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  • #1

    Muhammad Ali: If you want to go to heaven, come to Bangladesh

    Ali: If you want to go to heaven, come to Bangladesh

    Tribune Online Report

    Boxing legend Muhammad Ali had said he considered Bangladesh his second home.

    He received Bangladeshi citizenship during his visit to the country in 1978, shortly after his title loss to Leon Spinks.

    Muhammad Ali visits Bangladesh


    The Greatest Muhammad Ali On His Visit To Bangladesh in 1978 - YouTube



    During his week-long stay, the legend went to the Sundarbans, Sylhet's splendid tea gardens, the scenic lakeside town of Rangamati, and Cox's Bazaar.

    The champ received Bangladeshi citizenship and had a stadium named in his honour.

    Muhammad Ali Interviews & Highlights


    Muhammad Ali Interviews & Highlights - YouTube


    “If I get kicked out of America, I have another home,” he quipped.

    In a documentary, “Muhammad Ali Goes East: Bangladesh, I Love You,” Ali spoke of his wish to return to Bangladesh and build a home here.

    'Bangladesh I love you'

    Muhammad Ali Goes East - "Bangladesh I love You" - Full - YouTube

    “If you want to go to heaven, come to Bangladesh,” he said.

    - See more at: Ali: If you want to go to heaven, come to Bangladesh | Dhaka Tribune
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  • #2
    Bangladesh I Love You

    When Ali came East



    Boxing legend Muhammad Ali holds the National Flag of Bangladesh in Dhaka. Ali visited Bangladesh in 1978. Photo taken from Facebook/ Bangladesh Old Photo Archive

    Reginald Massey


    37 years ago on February 18, Muhammad Ali, the “greatest heavyweight boxer ever,” came to Bangladesh along with his wife for a five-day visit. During the visit, wherever Ali went, he was greeted wholeheartedly by tens of thousands of fans. Ali was also awarded honorary citizenship of Bangladesh while the boxing stadium in Paltan was named after him.



    Since my early youth I have been fascinated by Bengal, its culture and its people. I read all about Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Henry Derozio, Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Tagore, Nazrul Islam, Jamini Roy and other amazingly creative people. No other region of South Asia had produced such a large number of artists and poets.

    In London, in the seventies, when I was chairman of Seven Stars Films I met a leading Bangladeshi businessman named Ghiasuddin Chowdhury and he said that it would be a good idea for me to make a film about Bangladesh. It was a new country which was created by the forces of history and the blood of its brave martyrs. After much thought we decided that the best person to project Bangladesh would be the Black Muslim boxer Muhammad Ali ('The Greatest') who was universally loved and respected. In fact, American President Jimmy Carter and his mother had great affection for Ali.



    World famous boxer Muhammad Ali enjoys a ride on an elephant during his visit to Bangladesh in 1978. Photo grabbed from a YouTube video
    The problem was how to get to Ali. Many trips to Los Angeles were undertaken and eventually Ali agreed that he'd introduce Bangladesh to the world. But first he had to solve a small matter in the boxing ring. He was scheduled to fight Leon Spinks which he thought was only a small problem. But Spinks beat him on points. Ali was devastated. He thought that he could not face his fans in Bangladesh and I had to convince him that his defeat would make no difference. The government and the people of Bangladesh would welcome him nonetheless. He asked me: “Brother Reg, are you sure?” I replied, “You have my word for it.”


    Full marks to President Ziaur Rahman and his officials. Ali, his wife Veronica and his entire entourage were state guests and treated like royalty. He was given the citizenship of Bangladesh and taken to all the important areas and sites of Bangladesh from the tea gardens of Sylhet to the tiger-infested Sundarbans and the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the fabulous sun-soaked beaches of Cox's Bazar. I, with my film crew, filmed Ali enjoying the sheer beauty of the country. He was brilliant, especially when speaking directly to camera. Ali was a natural communicator and I am glad that in spite of his serious health problems he still survives.


    Мохаммед Али в Бангладеше / Muhammad Ali in Bangladesh - YouTube

    Bangladesh I Love You, when cut and edited, was screened in United Kingdom cinemas by Lord Grade's distribution company. It was greatly appreciated and well received. That was my small contribution to put Bangladesh on the world stage.


    But all enterprises of this nature and magnitude are a team effort. There were many people, Bangladeshis, British and American who pitched in wholeheartedly. The New Zealand author and journalist Marc Alexander was the main anchor-man and my chief cameraman was Lewis “Rory” MacLeod, a Scotsman pure and unashamedly unpolluted.

    What is seen on the screen is the final result of long planning, hard work, hard bargaining and absolute sincerity of purpose. I insisted that Bangla music be included as well as a traditional Bangladeshi Islamic marriage ceremony be filmed. The scene where the father of the bride bids farewell to his beloved daughter still brings tears to my eyes.

    Normally 'firanghi' cameramen would not be allowed anywhere near a new Muslim bride of the upper Bangladeshi class. While I was directing the scene, “Rory” asked me: “Reg, can I continue shooting?”

    I replied: “Rory, continue filming! You may not understand this but you are filming history.”

    Personally I feel it is a pity that the film has not been commercially released in Bangladesh. After almost 40 years the younger generation must be made to realise what immense opportunities have been missed.

    (Reginald Massey, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Freeman of the City of London, has written many books on South Asian subjects. His book SOUTH ASIA: Definitions and Clarifications is required reading in leading world universities.)

    Bangladesh I Love You | The Daily Star


    Normally 'firanghi' cameramen would not be allowed anywhere near a new Muslim bride of the upper Bangladeshi class.
    1. Even though I am Bengali I didn't know that this word was used amongst Bengalis, though I knew it was used by Pashtuns.


    2. With the loss of Ali the world has lost one of its heroic figures.

    - More famous than countless unnamed presidents in south America, Africa, Asia, Europe.

    - Inspired millions.

    - Stood up to racism and social injustice.

    - Refused to go and kill a people who had done him no wrong.

    - A hero of Islam.


    I hope the government of Bangladesh puts flags at half mast for three days in memory of this great man.
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    • #3
      Hasina writes to Obama, says Muhammad Ali a bridge between US, Bangladesh

      Senior Correspondent, bdnews24.com
      Published: 2016-06-04 23:58:51.0 BdST Updated: 2016-06-04 23:58:51.0 BdST



      Muhammad Ali in Dhaka, 1978.

      Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has mourned the death of boxing great Muhammad Ali and, in a message to US President Barack Obama, said he was a ‘bridge’ between two countries.


      And, she added, he “would remain so for generations to come”.

      “The people of Bangladesh would always remember their brother, Muhammad Ali, with love and reverence,” she wrote.

      The former world heavyweight boxing champion whose record-setting career, flair for showmanship and political stands made him one of the best-known figures of the 20th century, died on Friday at the aged of 74.

      The prime minister said she was ‘profoundly saddened’ at his ‘unfortunate’ demise. Ali was also an honorary citizen of Bangladesh.

      She termed him as “one of the greatest sports icons of all time” and said he had long been a “household name” in Bangladesh, according to the message released by the foreign ministry.

      He was regarded with “great respect and passion” by its people for his extraordinary talent and skills in boxing, and also for his bold voice to uphold the dignity of all human beings and challenge all wrongs.

      Hasina conveyed the deepest condolences to the US President and, through him, to the members of Ali’s family.

      Hasina writes to Obama, says Muhammad Ali a bridge between US, Bangladesh -
      bdnews24.com


      Prime minister Hasina Wajid must have written this letter from Saudi as this is where she has been since yesterday on a state visit.





      Muhammad Ali praying.





      With Muslim-hater, Donald Trump.































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      • #4


        Ali (rahmatullahi 'alaih) in Kabul.





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        • #5


          Ms Bushra Gohar is a senior leader of the ANP and a Pashtun nationalist.

          [MENTION=1201]Toramana[/MENTION]
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          • #6
            Hamza Yusuf on the Passing of Muhammad Ali - YouTube

            Hamza Yusuf on Mohammed Ali (rahmatullahi 'alaih).
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            • #7
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              • #8
                Condolences from Afghanistan, 15,000 likes.

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