Sundarpur-A model village in Bangladesh: by Techkhala
A model village in Bangladesh -living with technology and Islam
Teckhala-In Sundarpur
In the green heart of Bangladesh, where rivers curl like silver snakes through rice fields and the air smells of jackfruit and rain, lies the village of Sundarpur. It was a peaceful village, untouched by the rush of Dhaka or the roar of Chittagong. But change was coming. And at the center of that change stood a woman everyone lovingly called TechKhala.
Her real name was Farzana Anwar, alias TechKhala . Once a successful IT professional in Dhaka, she had returned to Sundarpur with a dream — to build a model rural village powered by technology, but firmly rooted in Islamic ethics and traditional family values.
TechKhala believed that while the world moved forward with apps, satellites, and AI, the human heart needed something timeless — the warmth of a close-knit family, the respect for elders, and a life lived with faith.
A New Vision for Sundarpur
Sitting under the old banyan tree where village elders once settled disputes, TechKhala often gathered the youth. She taught them basic computer skills, explained the wonders of the internet, and even showed them how they could earn from digital freelancing. But she always said:
“Technology is like fire. Useful when controlled, dangerous when wild. Use it to serve Allah, to help your family, and to lift your community.”
When news came that Starlink — Elon Musk’s satellite internet project — was expanding to Bangladesh, excitement ran through Sundarpur like a summer storm. Finally, the village could have fast, reliable internet without waiting for government towers or expensive mobile networks.
But TechKhala’s excitement was mixed with concern.
“With great speed comes great temptation,” she said.
“Not all that is easy is halal. Not all that is popular is pure.”
Ethical Dilemmas
She gathered the village council one evening and spoke seriously.
“Brothers and sisters,” she said, her scarf fluttering in the breeze, “with Starlink, our children will have the world at their fingertips. But also all its dirt. We must build digital barriers, just as we have physical fences around our gardens.”
TechKhala proposed creating community-wide rules for internet use:
Children’s internet time would be limited and supervised.
- Islamic learning websites and family-friendly educational platforms would be promoted.
- Sites with haram content would be blocked.
- Every household would have a basic guide to ethical technology use based on Shariah principles. Some villagers worried.
“Will the government even allow us to control this?” asked Master Saheb, the local schoolteacher.
“What if big companies push their own rules?”
TechKhala agreed that bigger questions needed answers.
The Government’s Role
At that time, the Bangladeshi government had begun discussions about internet governance, especially with satellite providers like Starlink coming in. There were talks of setting up a National Ethical Internet Board to filter content, encourage Islamic education online, and protect rural users from scams, exploitation, and moral decay.
But progress was slow. Many in the cities debated freedom versus control. Rural voices like Sundarpur’s were rarely heard.
TechKhala decided not to wait.
“Change doesn’t start in parliament,” she said. “It starts in the home.”
With the help of some old friends from her Dhaka IT days, she set up a small local server system in the village. It cached educational materials, Islamic books, farming advice, and skills-training videos. Children and adults could access these without needing open access to the entire internet.
Later, she started lobbying quietly through letters and meetings, encouraging the local Member of Parliament to raise Sundarpur as a model village project — one that showed how rural communities could embrace technology without losing their soul.
The Family Model
But TechKhala knew it wasn’t enough to filter the internet. The hearts of people needed to be strong too.
She began hosting family evenings every Thursday.
No screens.
No phones.
Just storytelling, poetry, Quran recitation, and old songs from the golden years of Bangladesh (1960s–1980s) when families would gather and share dreams under oil lamps.
“Do you remember,” she would ask the young ones, “how your grandfather used to walk across three villages just to visit a sick cousin? That is the Bangladesh we must rebuild.”
In a world chasing followers and fame, TechKhala preached something revolutionary: relationships over reach, character over clicks, service over selfishness.
A New Kind of “Digital Village”
Within a year, Sundarpur began to change.
Young girls learned coding while wearing their hijabs proudly.
- Boys who once loitered aimlessly now built online stores selling village crafts.
Elderly farmers video-called experts to diagnose plant diseases.
- The mosque’s loudspeaker wasn’t just used for prayers but also community tech lessons.
And yet — no one forgot their roots.
Marriage ceremonies were still simple.
Friday gatherings were still sacred.
Elders were still respected.
Children still ran barefoot after cows, even as they studied Python programming in the afternoons.
Starlink’s shiny satellites circled high above, beaming internet to a tiny village that proved you could walk boldly into the future without leaving your heart behind.
And at the center of it all, sitting on her veranda with a laptop in one hand and a cup of tea in the other, smiled TechKhala — the aunt Bangladesh didn’t know it needed, but would soon realize it could not do without.
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