Ayub Uddin Chowdhury: "Here I Learned What "Arbeit" Means

Mukul Bhai came to Germany as a student and today owns an Asian shop, a restaurant, a shop for bridal costumes and several internet-call shops in the city. However, this ever-smiling man has remained humble and modest.

Mukul Bhai was wearing a brown shirt, a brown long winter jacket with a brown scarf that complemented his skin colour. He looked at me through his specs. "I was in the Mukti Bahini (the liberation forces of Bangladesh) in the war of 1971," he says.

DW-WORLD: Why did you decide to come to Germany?

Mukul Bhai: My father had a printing business back in Dhaka in Bangladesh. Being the eldest son, I was expected to marry, to work in the factory and settle down. I got married to Sultana, my wife, and did exactly what I was expected to do. But my dream was to do something bigger. I came to Germany in 1978 to study information science. Instead, I had to study economics. Those were the days of extreme struggle. I was among the first generation of Bengalis in West Germany and there was no one to fall back on, to turn to for help, when the need arose.

Then how did you support your studies?

I used to work in several restaurants to sustain myself, first as a kitchen help and then as a waiter. I worked 12 to 13 hours a day. At the weekends even 16 to 18 hours was nothing unusual. But working under somebody was not my cup of tea. I decided to start a business and got an import-export licence to start with. It was still not enough to sustain me. Then I started an Asian shop in Bad Godesberg in Bonn in 1992. Meanwhile, my wife joined me in Germany. I had also obtained a residence permit by then. The business did very well, since those were the days when Bonn was the capital of Germany and there were many foreigners living in Bonn.

You are also involved with the Bangladesh Cultural Centre. Could you tell me something more about that?

With the help of my wife and five German friends, I founded the Bangladesh Cultural Centre e.V. where children of expatriate Bengali parents have a chance to learn Bangla, their mother tongue. My daughter is also actively involved in the cultural centre.

Which language do you speak at home?

Bengali is very close to my heart though I also speak German. My daughter Tiyasha, a medical student, was indeed born and brought up in Germany but she cannot only speak but also sing Bengali songs like any other native Bengali youngster. Some say even better.

What are your future plans? Do you plan to expand your business even more?

Of course, I have big plans. I want to go to the Gulf countries to try out my luck in the oil business. But more than that I want to open a hospital in Bangladesh in my mother’s name. Actually, I always wanted to bring my mother to Germany. But unfortunately my mother died before I could fulfil this dream.

Do you believe in God?

I am a devout Muslim. I believe in Allah and pray five times a day. Though I serve alcohol in my restaurant, I have never tried it myself. I am also a fatalist, in some ways. I believe that things are predestined and will take their own course.

You have been living in Germany for almost three decades. What do you appreciate most about the Germans?

One thing that I have learnt from the Germans is the concept of Arbeit or work. I never knew what work was. I have seen people working in my father's factory day and night. Later when I had to row boats for hours during the liberation struggle, I got my first taste of real work. But I actually learnt what work really is here in Germany. I understood that there is no good or bad work. Whatever you do, you should do it with dignity and full concentration. You have to love what you are doing and you should have patience. Presently, I work around 15 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week. I have never taken a holiday in my life and I have always tried to work to the best of my abilities. I live for my work and I enjoy it as I have come to know many wonderful people through my work. I think people who do not work become sick.

Do you also want to spent your old age in Germany?

My dream is to go back to my country after my daughter has finished her studies and is properly settled. But I have no idea how many more years I will have to wait for this dream to come true. I believe that if one stays away from home too long, the love for the home country can vanish. I would never let that happen to me.

Mukul Bhai has not forgotten those days of struggle, of doing odd jobs to survive. Poor students coming to Germany for higher studies know his address here in Bonn. Mukul Bhai gives them work and the means to survive.