Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the architect of independent Bangladesh, whose name comes to mind most of us as the best Bengali of the millennium. But why only for a thousand years, many consider him as the best Bengali of all time.
But many may not know when and how Sheikh Mujib got the official title of 'Best Bengali of All Time', and who were his closest rivals. So let's tell that story today.
In 2002, the BBC aired a television series called The 100 Greatest Britons. According to a visitor's survey, the top 100 Britons of all time are determined. Former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill has been named Britain's greatest man of all time. Also in the next two positions were Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Diana, Princess of Wales.
The television series has received a worldwide response since its inception. After Sir Winston Churchill was voted the greatest Briton of all time, another frenzy ensued surrounding the series. Some gladly accepted the decision of the British people. Many also sharply criticized the British, saying they were completely ignorant of history.
However, the point is that the program aired on the BBC saw the face of success. It reflects the likes and dislikes of the British people. It is clear that they consider some historians as their role models.
Inspired by this series, the BBC Bangla Radio Service decided that they too would conduct a survey in which the greatest Bengali of all time would come out in the election of listeners.
This plan of BBC Bangla was implemented in 2004. At that time in Bangladesh and East India (West Bengal, Tripura, Assam) the Bengali speaking people were about 25 crores. And 12 million of them are listeners of BBC Bangla Radio. Aiming at this huge number of listeners, BBC Bangla started a huge work.