Usually women after losing their husbands become helpless and hopeless thinking about the lack of someone to take care of them. However, such a widow woman named Sonabhan did not lose hope like that when she lost her day labourer husband about 30 years back.
With two minor kids the women had worked as maid in Kaliganj town of Jhenaidah at one stage she had established a hotel at Kaliganj Natun Bazer area. The hotel is widely known as Sonabhaner Hotel where special local delicious foods like Bhuna Manhsho and Bhasji Mangsho (fried meat), local fishes and various delicious vegetables are available at an affordable price.
When this correspondent visited the hotel, the 55 year old woman said her husband belongs to Satkhira came to Kaliganj town and started working as a day labourer for carrying wooden logs. Suddenly he had died leaving a son and a daughter. Finding no other alternative, she was staying at her parents’ house at village Paikpara of the upazila. Latter she engaged herself in working as a maid in the town which could not meet up the demands of the kids.
Now Sonabhan has been running a hotel at Kaliganj Natun Bazer where she serves huge varieties of curries including tasty fried meat. Huge customers rush at her hotel daily to have a taste of the meat widely known as “Bhuna Mangsho and Bhajimangsho”.
Badruddin and Anwar Hossain, two customers enjoying the food at Sonabhan’s hotel when contacted said the fried meat of Sonabahan is so popular that huge customers from local town and surrounding areas rush there at an affordable price.
Sonabhan said she has been running the hotel with his son and a relative anyway. Her business was affected badly when the global havoc corona virus had hit hard in the beginning of the year of 2020. She lost her capital that she had deposited to build a metal hose. To run the business, Sonabhan has been repaying loans to three money lending NGOs. She is hopeful to become free form the loan within next few months.
The workaholic elderly woman said age is not a matter to anyone if he or she desires to do something good to run a family. She said the unemployment of the young men and women might be reduced if they are involved any income generation activities with confidence.
Sonabhan said she is hopping build a house for her son when she is free from any installments of loan that she had borrowed from NGOs during the global pandemic corona virus. No financial aid was sanctioned for her from the government side during the pandemic, she said.
According to her many youths has been leaving country after selling the land, home premises and other assets for a job in abroad. It is a risky work as many of them have been missing and being harassed many ways. But they can manage a job for survival staying in the locality without any risk.
