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When Eid used to be incomplete without Eid cards

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Remember the late 2000s and early 2010s when school-goers couldn't wait to exchange Eid cards to mates saving bucks from tiffin? 

The custom of sending cards to friends and family members as part of the annual hullabaloo around Eid has long since passed. The practice has gradually faded into antiquity and disappeared. 

In the age of social media and the internet, these cards are regarded as redundant to many grownups. Though electronic greetings replace traditional colourful cards, they can't change the emotional touch Eid cards used to bear.

Makeshift jute sack stores in alleys, in front of schools and colleges, and at intersections of roads used to be seen during Ramadan. Eid cards were even made by hand. 

Eid greetings, poems, and rhymes were written on those cards, and funny pictures accompanied them. Different coloured 'Bahari' Eid cards were for sale.  

From teens to newlyweds, everyone brought and exchanged Eid cards, but today it's confined to office courts for corporate greetings only.

Spending time in those shops was normal, while the present-day generation is almost unfamiliar with the whole picture.  

bKash Digital Cards vs Eid Cards

bKash has taken the timeless tradition of sending Eid cards to a whole new level by introducing a digital feature that lets users add a personal touch to their money transfers. 

With this innovative feature, people can now send digital Eid cards and their money transfers, instantly bringing a smile to their loved ones' faces, even if they're miles apart. 

This adds a layer of thoughtfulness and personalisation that goes beyond just sending money, making the act more meaningful and heartfelt.

Sayka Arifin Orpita is a final year student at the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, University of Dhaka. She shared her experience of exchanging Eid cards with the scribe.  

"Being a kid, Eid meant new dresses and, most importantly, exchanging cards with friends and close ones. I used to especially wait for the day to receive and give cards." 

She described how stores in her area around 2008 used to look like. 

"My friends and I went to different stores near my house. We were happy by having those cards as if they were as expensive as gold."

When asked if she ever made any Eid cards, she said, "I think the best way to show my care and love towards others is to make something of my own. Handmade cards are filled with emotions; one's emotion is attached to them. And being a kid, I used to have a shortage of money. As I vividly remember, I wrote something on the Eid cards like 'Haser dim, Murgir dim, card dilam Eid er din'," she giggled.

Orpita wants the tradition of exchanging Eid cards to revive again. "The reason is pretty simple; as we are going towards digitalisation, we are forgetting our traditions. Modernisation doesn't mean a total transformation from the past. Some traditional touch is needed and should be celebrated," she added.

On the contrary, Rumu Rahman, a graduate student, doesn't like the tradition of exchanging Eid cards. According to her, "If the people change and if the emotional bondage is fragile, what's the point of keeping them? It would haunt how the relationship broke."

Although she makes a valid point here, those who love to exchange Eid cards won't buy her words and would to keep their memories anyway.

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