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Bangladeshi Child Star Hopes Life Will Mirror Art
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Obaidor Rhaman Rabiul, 14, lives in the cramped basement used by the theater group. His father died recently, and his mother left. Hassan, the theater director, now watches over him.
"I love this drama because it's really like my life," said Obaidor, a gregarious boy with shaggy hair. "It also made me feel that it is better to study now and marry later. I have a friend who got married and was so unhappy because there was so much pressure to raise children, clean the house, make money. After watching 'Alo,' I want to be a director and help slum kids get on TV."
On a recent Sunday evening, Shimu sat in the tin-roofed, one-room home where she and her grandparents live together. There are two thin mattresses, one mosquito net, some pots and pans and a stack of Shimu's schoolbooks in the windowless room. "The storybooks are my favorites," Shimu said.
Even though Shimu is on television, her family does not own a TV set. She and her friends watch the show at the theater group's center.
Her grandfather, Mohamed Siddiq, 61, said he wants Shimu to stay in school but is worried that she may end up marrying or working, since their family is being evicted in a month and has no savings.
"We are illiterate. I really want Shimu to stay in classes," Siddiq said. "It's just so hard to survive here."
UNICEF workers recently started a fund to help the family relocate.
Shimu said that her hopes are the same as Alo's. "All I want is to continue schooling and acting. I don't want to get married until I am older," she said. "What makes me happy is when I think about when Alo gets back to school. Everyone is cheering and smiling. I love that scene."
Maybe it will work out and she won't have to drop out, she said. Just like on TV.
