Community Knowledge Fair: Nobanno Porbo

[Nusrat Jahan Priya]

Introduction:

On 15 December 2025, the Byaspur community came alive with warmth, laughter, and joy as they organized a Knowledge Fair in the yard of Sahanara Apa from Uttarpara. A total of 205 participants, including community members from Hijlipara, Uttarpara, Katakhali, Dokkhinpara, and Joynagar High School, as well as guests from partner organizations Alokito Kori, BRED, DHARA from ARC cohort, and Folklore Expedition Bangladesh, joined the fair.

The day was a living celebration of community spirit. From sharing experiences to enjoying children’s dance performances, from Folklore’s storytelling to parents and children participating in games, every moment was vibrant and full of life. The fair reflected the warmth of winter, the festive Nobanno spirit, and the collective joy of learning from each other.

2) Event Details:

• Event Name: Knowledge Fair – Nobanno Porbo
  
  
• Date: Monday, 15 December 2025
  
  
• Place: Uttarpara, Byaspur, Gopalganj (Sahanara Apa’s Home Yard)
  
  
• Time: 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
  
  

The idea for the Knowledge Fair came from Sahanara Apa and her team. A few days before the main event, they organized a small fair, preparing three types of winter pitha using ingredients from the new harvest and inviting the Hijlipara community. Both communities enjoyed the gathering, shared experiences, and had a wonderful time together.

This small fair was part of the Uttarpara community’s dream to create a safe, healthy, and joyful environment for children, where they could grow in a nurturing atmosphere.They wanted children to experience the warmth of winter, the joy of togetherness, and the sweetness of the new harvest, just like their own childhood while fostering learning and togetherness. The success of this small gathering inspired them to organize a larger Knowledge Fair, inviting all our active team members to share their experiences and give everyone an opportunity to share, learn, enjoy and play.

The fair was hosted in their own yard, and the team carefully prepared the space, decorated the yard, and made winter pitha with new harvest for 205 participants, creating a warm and festive atmosphere. They wanted the guests to feel the winter vibe, so everything—from decorations to pitha—was thoughtfully prepared by the community.

The theme of the fair was decided as “Knowledge Fair - Nobanno Porbo”. Three partner organizations from Bangladesh ARC cohort—Alokito Kori (16 people), BRED (4 team members, 1 driver) , and DHARA (2 people)—attended with 23 guests. Alokito kori attended the fair with 10 of their community members. There were in total 16 members from their Alokito Kori. Folklore Expedition Bangladesh also joined the fair. They are dedicated to exploring, collecting, and documenting rich local folklore and stories in Bangladesh and are passionate about preserving these cultural traditions through storytelling. They were deeply inspired by our grandparents’ storytelling sessions and organized a short storytelling activity for everyone, creating a magical moment for both children and adults.

Guests began arriving from 9:30 AM, starting their day by enjoying winter pitha and coconut naru. The formal program started at 10:45 AM, with Manira Apa welcoming everyone warmly. The first activity was a SALT conversation with the question:

    “Share one moment or activity from your winter days that you are proud of.”

Participants shared their proud moments and appreciated each other, starting the day on a note of gratitude, reflection, and mutual appreciation.

Following this, community members shared their experiences with each other, setting the tone for a day full of learning, storytelling, cultural sharing, and joyful interactions.

 

Hijlipara Community:

The Hijlipara team shared how challenges in their community—children addicted to mobile phones, less study time, and lonely grandparents—stemmed from low community unity.

Instead of blaming anyone, the community worked together:

• Mothers started afternoon learning circles to guide children in studies.
• Children were taught traditional games to reduce screen time.
• Grandparents initiated storytelling sessions to reconnect generations.
• They now also track the household present in their story telling session with black bindi.

Impact: What began with 9 households now engages 59 people from 22 households, children spend 0.5 hours less on screens and 0.4 hours more on study daily, and family bonds have grown stronger.

Another Hijlipara team, inspired by DHARA and BRED, started nutrition gardens. They now grow enough vegetables for their families and sell extra produce in the market. In a special case, Salma Apa even sent vegetables abroad for her daughter, showing the initiative’s reach and creativity.

Folklore Expedition Bangladesh: 

The Folklore Expedition Bangladesh team began their visit by appreciating our community members, especially the grandparents’ storytelling sessions. They were deeply moved to see that, even today, such intergenerational storytelling still thrives in Byaspur. Inspired, they wanted to experience a storytelling session firsthand with our community members.

They arranged a short storytelling session, sharing the story of a clever fox —a tale carefully chosen because foxes roam freely in Byaspur’s lush, tree-filled environment, making the story relatable and magical for everyone. The children’s eyes sparkled with excitement, completely captivated by the tale. Every twist in the story made them lean forward in anticipation, while the voiceover brought the characters to life, making the moment magical. For a while, there was pin-drop silence, as everyone—children, parents, and grandparents alike—held their breath, eager to see what would happen next. The energy in the yard was electric, filled with wonder, joy, and collective amazement, showing the timeless power of stories to connect generations and ignite imagination. 

The grandparents, inspired by the storytelling, eagerly engaged with the Folklore team, sharing their own folktales and treasured memories. It was a beautiful exchange of wisdom and creativity, showing how stories can connect generations, ignite imagination, and strengthen community bonds.

Uttarpara Team:

Inspired by the previous knowledge fair, the Uttarpara team (Shahanara Apa’s team) started afternoon learning circles and play activities for children. They shared their dream embroidered on cloth with beads, symbolizing their vision for children to grow in a healthy, joyful environment.

They also organized Pitha Utsab, a winter festival for children to create happy winter memories. The community proudly welcomed their guests with winter pitha, ensuring everyone felt the warmth of their hospitality.

Soha and her team highlighted their efforts to reduce children’s screen time while increasing study time through structured learning and play activities.

Dakkhinpara Team Avijatri:

The Avijatri girls performed a drama addressing early marriage. They also shared how, thanks to SALT, they could now play outside, moving from home yards to central fields, proudly wearing jerseys. Families are now convinced to support girls’ right to play freely, marking a meaningful cultural shift.

Katakhali Masculinity Team:

Prokash Bhai shared the journey of introducing Masculinity SALT in the Byaspur community. He used a simple analogy: if two wheels of a vehicle aren’t working properly, it cannot move forward—similarly, we need both men and women for real societal change. While women were already actively involved in community initiatives, men were often absent. This gap inspired the start of Masculinity SALT, a space for men to reflect, learn, and contribute.

The masculinity team shared how the sessions helped them:

• They began expressing emotions openly, breaking traditional barriers.
  
  
• They started contributing to small household activities, understanding that chores are not limited by gender.
  
  
• Recently, they volunteered in Nam Joggo, a task they would have once considered “too big” or “not theirs.”
  
  

Through these efforts, they realized there is no division of work, and everyone can contribute to building a safe and equal environment.

A visible shift in mindset was evident when they organized a combined football match with girls, encouraging mixed-gender play. Boys and girls played together freely, laughing and cheering, showing that attitudes toward gender roles are changing in Byaspur. The presentation reflected pride, growth, and collective progress, highlighting the impact of these sessions not just on individuals, but on the entire community culture.

Athlete Team:

The Athlete Team shared their journey of persevering despite negative comments. Today, the same community applauds them for their achievements. Nilufa, the team leader, expressed the hope that all girls in the village will be encouraged to play at the national level, inspiring the next generation of athletes.

Joynagar High School Team:

Faria and Rudro from the Joynagar High School team shared a key challenge they had discovered during their Dream Building session: the school had no iron-free drinking water, which caused health issues and disrupted students’ learning. Many students either avoided drinking water during class or had to go downstairs or outside the school to find clean water, which hampered their studies and concentration.

At our previous Knowledge Fair, the students had seen BRED demonstrate how to make low-cost filters for iron-free water. Inspired by this, the Joynagar students decided to take action themselves. They collected the necessary materials, worked together, and built their own mud filter, capable of providing iron-free water for their classroom. They also developed a simple testing method using papaya leaves to ensure the water quality.

This initiative showed how knowledge fairs transmit practical ideas, empower students, and turn inspiration into tangible solutions. Now, the students have access to safe, iron-free water during school hours, improving their health, focus, and overall learning experience. Manira apa also added other initiatives of the school led by the students like- playground for girls, student led library, garden, public speaking for confidence boost up.

Experience sharing by Partner Organizations:

Our partner organizations from Bangladesh ARC Cohort—Alokito Kori, BRED, and DHARA—joined the Knowledge Fair to share their own community initiatives and experiences with the Byaspur community. It was inspiring to witness the exchange of knowledge and learning, as community members listened, reflected, and connected ideas to their own work. Alokito Kori brought some of their community members along, which created an even richer space for peer learning. Seeing different communities come together to learn from each other, share challenges, and celebrate solutions was a beautiful demonstration of mutual support and collaboration.

Open Dialogue with Community Members:

Sadia Apa facilitated two reflective dialogue sessions, encouraging participants to think deeply about their own challenges and explore how initiatives from other communities could inspire solutions in their own context. The first session followed Hijlipara’s experience sharing, and the second came after the Athlete Team’s presentation.

During these dialogues, Sadia Apa also addressed gender and play, highlighting that there is no harm in boys and girls playing together. She asked the girls where they wanted to play, and they confidently replied that they wanted to play outside their homeyards, expressing a desire for more freedom and space. This prompted parents to listen and reflect on their children’s needs, creating a meaningful moment of intergenerational understanding, empathy, and community reflection.

Cultural Performances: Dance

The Knowledge Fair was not just about sharing experiences—it was also a celebration of talent and joy. Children from Uttarpara, Hijlipara, Katakhali, and Dokkhinpara prepared beautiful dance performances, showcasing their creativity and skills. Their faces glowed with happiness and pride as they performed in front of a large audience, receiving cheers and appreciation from parents, grandparents, and guests alike. The dance performances brought energy, color, and life to the fair, leaving everyone inspired and delighted.

Games and Play Activities

The fair also featured traditional games that engaged children, parents, and grandparents alike, creating moments full of laughter and togetherness.

Kothar Pach Kan (Parents & Grandparents): We started with a fun sentence-passing game among parents and grandparents. One person would say a sentence, which was then passed along to the next participant. The sentence kept changing as it moved person by person, causing lots of laughter and excitement. The original sentence was: 

“মা বলল খেলো ঠিকমতো, বাবা বলল জিতলেই পুরস্কার, আর আমরা সবাই বললাম—আসলেই আনন্দ!” ("Mom said, play properly; Dad said, only winning matters; and we all said—true joy is in playing!")

By the end, it humorously transformed into:
“মা বলেছে ছেলে ভালো।” ("Mom said, the boy is good.")

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed this playful activity, laughing and bonding with one another.

Ball Nikkhep (Mixed Teams: Avijatri, Athlete, Masculinity Teams)

• To encourage boys and girls to play together, we organized a Ball Nikkhep game where boys and girls took part. Although we couldn’t hold a full mixed-gender football match due to time and space constraints, this activity allowed children to experience teamwork, collaboration, and gender-inclusive play. Participants had a great time and the spirit of friendly competition was alive throughout.

Hari Bhanga & Biscuit Dour (Children)

• Children enthusiastically participated in traditional games like Hari Bhanga and Biscuit Dour, creating an atmosphere of joy and excitement. So much energy filled the yard that adults had to remind participants to stay in place! The games became a space for fun, connection, and laughter across generations, adding to the festive winter vibe of the Knowledge Fair.

AER with the community Members:

Sadia Apa facilitated the AER session with support from Shantu Bhai. Bristy one of our community members appreciated the event as a space where community members came together for a shared purpose. She noted that the event could improve with more active volunteers and better coordination for managing children, reflecting the community’s commitment to continuous learning.

Key Highlights from the Fair:

The most remarkable aspect of this Knowledge Fair was the complete ownership taken by the community. From preparing and decorating the yard, making winter pitha for 205 people, to welcoming and hosting the guests, every detail was handled with care and pride by the community members themselves. 

A particularly heartwarming moment was seeing the grandparents spontaneously share their initiatives. In our previous Knowledge Fair, many of them were shy to speak up. This time, they confidently came forward, shared their experiences, and showcased their personal transformation, inspiring everyone around them.

Their dedication and openness transformed the event into a heartfelt celebration of togetherness, learning, and shared joy, showing that when a community leads, every effort becomes meaningful and memorable.

Logistics & Technical Challenges:

The open-space venue created some crowd management challenges. Increased support from the masculinity volunteer team could have further improved coordination.

Conclusion:

The Knowledge Fair 2025 was more than just an event—it was a celebration of community spirit, learning, and transformation. From the warm winter pitha shared by Uttarpara, to the stories told by grandparents, the inspiring initiatives of children, youth, and adults, and the joyful games and dances, every moment reflected the power of people coming together.

It was a day where knowledge was shared freely, experiences were celebrated, and connections were strengthened across generations and communities. The fair showed that real change begins when communities take ownership, support one another, and work together toward a common dream.

Every story shared, every game played, and every smile exchanged reminded us that Byaspur is not just a place—it is a living example of unity, courage, and hope. The transformation of the grandparents, the enthusiasm of the children, the dedication of parents, and the active participation of partner organizations all echoed the incredible potential of community-led action.

As the winter sun set over Uttarpara, the air was filled with laughter, learning, and the promise of a brighter future—a future where children grow up in a healthy, joyful, and caring environment, inspired by the love and determination of the generations before them.

The Knowledge Fair 2025 was a reminder that when communities lead, every challenge becomes an opportunity, every idea becomes a solution, and every shared moment becomes a memory worth cherishing.

Links:

Event Photo: Link

Prothom Alo News Link: News Link

[Sadia Jafrin]

Thank you so much, Priya, for capturing everything with such care and beautiful detail. Reading your words allowed me to relive the entire day once again—the moments, the emotions, the togetherness. It truly felt like being there all over again. 💛