Farewell, Ms Lubna Choudhury

As a student of the humanities, specifically English Literature, I have often wondered if pursuing such dreams would ever be fruitful. But every time I second-guess myself, I remind myself why I took up the subject as my major in the first place.

Some seven or eight years ago, during the sports period, I stood with my friends as a sixth-grader waiting for my turn to play badminton. A voice then erupted from behind me, accusing my friends and I of being "lazy girls". Ms Lubna Choudhury stood behind us, her petite stature failing to downplay her loud and confident demeanour. She took us to her room, brought out a book from her drawer and presented before us the poem "Six Young Men" by Ted Hughes. She had asked one of us to read the title out then. My three  friends trembled and made no attempt to do it. So I recited the title out loud meekly, prompting Ms Choudhury to finally take the poem book in her hands and read it aloud, all while looking at me. She broke down the words then, analysing the lines, and annotating.

I was taken to the principal's office to be 'punished' but instead I came out of that room completely in love with poetry and literature. Our punishment was to analyse the poem at home and bring the essay back the next day. None of my friends attended school in fear but I did with a happy and excited heart. It's possible that Ms Choudhury too had forgotten that I was in her office because of some imagined mishap because we had sat in her office and discussed my analysis of "Six Young Men" at great length.

That was who Ms Lubna Choudhury was. A woman of great stature – the sound of her footsteps hitting the floor was enough for all of us to stop running around the school corridor and freeze with racing hearts. Nonetheless, we were still incredibly proud to have encountered her even if it was for only a moment.

Sanjida Ali, Class of 2016, notes the importance of art and culture Ms Choudhury amplified in our curriculum, 'Ms Choudhury had a deep love for the arts. She encouraged us to use art as a means of expression, arranging frequent art and poetry competitions. We danced to her favourite song "Anondo Lokey" at every graduation ceremony, and our theatre productions of Shakespeare could rival professional performances."

Ms Choudhury's voice alone was enough to make anyone crumble, but it was also Ms Choudhury's presence that has enabled so many young women and men to become successful in their respective fields. She instilled confidence in her students whom she called her "own children" and even embodied it.

There was one line of Ms Choudhury's that every BIT student is familiar with. She would announce it every year without fail on the huge stage in the auditorium that would appear to be small in her presence. She'd say, "I will not die until one of my children wins the Nobel Prize." Despite the sheer magnitude of such a dream, not even attaining the most prestigious award in the world seemed impossible in the presence of such a fierce woman

Zia Ashraf, Class of 2004, of BIT and one of the founders of Chaldal.com mourns her passing with a heavy heart, "I am truly grateful for the positive impact she had on my life. I carry her teachings with me every day to serve the nation. I have put my daughter Zunhera Ashraf in BIT too so she can take this legacy forward."

Ashraf Hossain, the former Vice Principal of BIT shares the loss with his students, and former colleagues, "If BIT is a school, then Ms Lubna Choudhury was the institution. I worked as her longest serving second-in-command – a tenure that lasted 27 years. I am truly at a loss of words in expressing my profound grief. Ms Lubna Choudhury was bold, unwavering, resilient, and resolute in every step she took in imparting education through her faculty members. The two of us made a wonderful team. She would often claim affectionately that I provide balance for her. I will certainly miss working with and for her.

Ashraf Hossain adds, "She would often say that someday, one of her pupils would win the Nobel Prize. Ms Choudhury may not be there to witness this but I am positive that a student of BIT will make her proud as she looks over from above."

There are many roles a woman plays in life, but it is that of being the first teacher to their children that often gets overlooked. She was an incredible mother of three accomplished children, two of whom she left behind her legacy to.

Ms Choudhury's dynamic presence and the precedent she has set for English Medium schools in Dhaka is impeccable. Anyone who has been a student of BIT will feel and realise the impact she has had on us every step of the way. The determination and discipline she instilled in all of us as well as the idea to serve our nation from wherever we go is BIT's motto.

I had seen Ms Choudhury, a believer of tough love, become a kind, loving, motherly figure by the end of my school years in 2019. Perhaps, the loss of her son, Dr Numair Atif Choudhury in 2018 contributed to that. Now that she is gone, however, her well-wishers may take comfort in knowing that she has reunited with her beloved son.

Ms Choudhury has left behind an irreplaceable loss to the community of educators in our country. It gives all of us immense pride to have experienced her leadership. A collective loss is felt all over the entire education community with Ms Choudhury's passing on October 7, 2024. Perhaps, someday one of us will win a Nobel Prize, and get to dedicate it to her and her only.