This is a translation version of the original video documentary which was than transcribed and translated from Bengali to English. A book with the title of History of Bangladeshis in Greater Manchester has been published and it will be distributed to the libraries, schools and universities. The interview took place on 25 June 2010, so information about his personal family information may have been changed.
8.22 Alhaj Mohammed Bashir Ali
8.22.1 Life in Bangladesh:
Alhaj Mohammed Bashir Ali was born in the Boratuka village in the area of Chattok, Sunamgonj. His father’s name is Md. Amir Ali. The distant between Boraduka and Sylhet is about 18 miles and by transport it takes about an hour.
His father was involved with the agricultural work. When he was in Bangladesh he had completed primary education from “Boraduka Primary School” then he went to Ramshundor High School and studied at class 6 then he came to Britain.
8.22.2 Journey to the UK & Immigration:
His father came to Britain in 1965. 5-6 years later he moved to Britain, he was 12 years old.
8.22.3 Life in the UK:
After arriving in Britain he did not have any problems at work, with regards to the language or anything else. He used to have friends and he used to go out with them. He used to have lot of friends so he did not have any problems.
He also managed to adjust with the different cultures in Britain. When he was teenager he came to Britain and now he has been living in Britain for a very long time and he adjusted with the culture and the weather. He likes Britain but he also said in the past it was a really hard life, things have been changed and improved.
More specifically the environment, weather and road communication has been improved. The standard of life has also developed over the numbers of years. Britain is now seen as place to celebrate many cultures from different communities in the worlds.
All the communities can form their own association and organize different activities including personal, social, cultural and political. The community members are also making contribution with regards to this.
8.22.4 Employment:
He started to work at 13 years of age in Preston Bengal Restaurant as a kitchen porter. They used to make Indian food. His father used to work in a factory and used to live in the Mosley area. His father found a job for him. He worked for 3 years in that restaurant. His first weekly wages were 5 pounds which increased to £25.00 to £30.00. He was really happy when he received his first wages for the first job in his life. Thereafter, he started work as a trainee waiter in the same restaurant.
After a few years working at the kitchen, his employer had given him the opportunity to work at the front as a trainee waiter. His employer was confident that he will be able to do this job and it won’t be any problem for him to speak and understand English because he studied in Bangladesh and he has experience from living in Britain.
During the waiter job he used to go to a part time language class to improve his communication skills by learning the English language. Attending the language class, it has been benefited personally to improve his English, he said.
From Preston he came to Ashton-under-Line and worked in the “Ojantha Restaurant”. He worked there for 3 and half years, and then he went to Chester. He worked 2-3 years in Chester then in 1982 he opened his first business in Accrington which was known as the “Grand Mughal Restaurant”. That was a partnership business with 3 partners.
He was involved with the business because he had experience and encouragement from friends and family. 3 partner’s paid 21 thousands pound cash and the rest of the money were used to pay mortgages. The restaurant was worth 80 thousand pounds which was a lot of money for the restaurant business for that time.
They used to get good wages. Every week they used to do receive £2,800.00 which was very good for the business. After 4-5 years he sold the business. Then he opened another restaurant with 4 partners in the Oldham area, it was known as the “Shagor Restaurant”.
They bought the restaurant for 150 thousand pounds, 60 thousand pounds was paid in cash and rest of the money was on mortgage. It was a good business. Every week they used to make 6-7 thousand pounds. At the moment the restaurant is still running but he had a personal problem with his eyes and other health issues, so in 1999 he sold his share.
8.22.5 Housing:
When he came to Britain he used to live with his parents in Mosley. His first job was in a restaurant in Preston and he used to live there. During the restaurant business he also bought a house in Accrington. Since 1991, he has been living in Oldham.
8.22.6 Social & Family:
He got married in 1976 and his wife came to Britain in 1985. He wanted to do something so he bought a restaurant and house then his wife came to Britain.
He has 6 children and his 2 sons have degrees in Business studies and now they are working. His daughter is a solicitor and another daughter is a teacher. His youngest 2 children are studying at the school. He has 4 siblings including himself, one sibling is in Britain and the other 2 siblings are in Bangladesh. After 1-2 years he goes to Bangladesh for holiday to see his relatives and friends. Since he came to Britain he went to Bangladesh 7-8 times and the first time he stayed 9 months in Bangladesh, after that he used to stay 4-5 weeks in Bangladesh.
Along with family development he contributed his time for the community’s development. He is also involved with the Shahjalal Mosque and he is a trustee of the Mosque. He said “if there is any changes that need to be made, then Mosque committee consult with the trustees”. Also he said “during the process they elect a new committee, and then the trustee board takes over the responsibility to run the Mosque for 90 days and elect a new committee”. He is also involved with the “Bangladesh Neighbourhood Society”.
8.22.7 Independence of Bangladesh:
During the liberation war in 1971, he was only 13-14 years old but still he was involved and helped them in many ways. They used to collect money and send the money to help the freedom fighters to win the war. He was actively involved with action committees and attended many meetings and events which took place by this committee.
He is an established person in Britain; he is also a proud father and a loving husband. He is a hard working person who dedicates his personal time for the community’s development. In 2009, he and his wife went to Makkah to do (Pilgrimage) Hajj.
He is now retired, during his free time he goes to see his friends and goes to his relative’s houses. On prayer time he goes to the Mosque to pray. Sometimes, he passes his leisure time by participating in social activities. On holidays he goes to Bangladesh. He goes to London to see his relative’s 2-3 times a year and stays 4-5 days and enjoys himself.
8.22.8 Conclusion:
Finally, he made his own remarks about the local community and he said “everyone should be united and work together, so that the new generation will concentrate on their education and they will do good things in the future”.
He urges to the local community in Coppice including all the other communities living in Britain that working as team brings better results and prosperity, so all the Bangladeshi community needs to sacrifice their differences and work as a team.
He also thinks that there should be a community centre for the local Bangladeshi elderly people, where they would be able to pass their time and do some activities. He believes that the Bangladeshi community will come forward to develop this project for elderly people.
If he didn’t come to Britain would he have been able to have a family and personal life like this. He said it is difficult to say but if he didn’t come to Britain then he would have been in a different situation.
He said “if he was not able to make progress with his education then obviously the personal life in Bangladesh would have been different”. He said “I would have tried my best to obtain better qualification, but it would depend on the luck, whether or not I would able to make success”.
Considering all aspect of his personal family life, he thinks that it has been beneficial to come to Britain. He was able to get a job and set up businesses in order to raise his family in the UK and all of his children have obtained better qualifications and have good job.