Today, Sept 23, marks 77 days since Zubair Ahmed leave us.
He left us on 7 July, 22 leaving us groping in darkness when we desperately need the light shone by him.
Maybe you know him very closely, but this is not only who was Zubair for me.
People have been writing in to say he was one of the island's finest journalists, known for his fair and courageous journalism.
Zubair, a senior journalist, left a mark whenever he spoke about environments, culture, and society.
He was an experienced, studious, sincere, joyous, and capable journalist. As a historian, a protean writer, and a refined orator, he struggled to be aware of islanders. He retold history through his writings, which makes a generation know history. His down-to-earth living and passion for local stories touched many admirers. His writings about childhood in villages in old as well as young generations. He took them back to their past and walked with them through the narrow lanes of the rain forests and the muddy stretches strewn with nostalgic memories.
When he shares a blog about his The Way to School memory on facebook, no one had an inkling that he would be saying goodbye to the world.
I and his friends too can't believe the news of his death.
Zubair Ahmed started some of the first native Andaman Nicobar newspapers The Light of Andaman, including The Sunday Islander. It was the most respected and renowned newspaper in town.
He spent decades building a media landscape by and for native people.
I remember the time in 2019 when the news of the need for an Assembly or Pradesh Council in Andaman broke. So I don't know what's that. I just arranged Zubair Ahmed's contact and called him to ask all about his assembly views.
And I ringed him, and we first connected that time.
I remember, In his own words, he recalls many things and shared in that call, as quoting:
"In that time, there were some issues, people used to go to the Councillor because those people used to report Secretariat. So people can expect things from our local leaders. But now everything changed.
It is very good to have here assembly but if it is not, then it is better to be a Pradesh council. But why Central Government not taking an interest is that Andaman Nicobar is a strategically important area. It's real estate for Central Government, the land here is important, not its people. Mostly, LG is everything. MHA does everything for whatever is done.
The role of the MP is just that whenever the national policy will be presented to the island, he represents it. MP has no role in the local issue. People expect everything from MP, it's not right. MP's work is only to represent Andaman Nicobar in parliament and he has only MPLAD funds. That's what he doing but has no good things in it.
Nothing is stable in democracy too.
If the assembly or the Pradesh council comes everything will be fine, nothing is like that. At the bottom level where democracy should be, it is not being used in the right way. No single Pradhan can oppose the decisions of LG, and DC. Our politicians need maturity. We should more mature about our surroundings and issues. We never study about our own Island and its people. We people never traveled to the island, but we traveled to other places. Many people have not even been to Ross Island. The mainlander knows better and more about our islands than us. We all are weak because we even don't read our own things. We have no time for it. We'll talk about big things only without knowing a single depth about that issue. Islanders are always like that 'bureaucrats and mainlanders are ruling us'. Yes, they have the right to rule, because they know better than us about islands. We never go to know about jungle, beaches, fish, or trees.
Knowing all these things is very important, then we will have weight in our words. Our behavior toward reading and writing is going extinct. We should start reading books and our people then only we can speak without any hesitation. If you read three books then only write one line your view.
We need more people to ready for the future of our Island."
Then after a week, I met him for the first time...
A home with shelves full of books and a peaceful environment and many children playing around like a kindergarten.
Really I love those surroundings...
I was an avid follower of his writings.
My aim was to do my best to impress him and get close. I entered his home, but he was not there at that time. Just a few minutes later he comes. As soon as I saw a little height of man coming out with a sheet of paper, my face brightened up. He smiled at me and greeted assalamu alaikum.
Calmed, he started asking about me and my village. He was so down to earth and his low voice talking made me feel comfortable.
He was in full flow sharing memories from years past. I said how wonderful it would be if he put down on paper all those stories — and indeed, many more from his colossal memory bank.
He told me, how he started The Sunday Islander, which would provide information and reports on the happenings in the islands, in the tribals, and in places that weren't being reported upon.
A little over two years ago, he and I were chatting on the telephone regarding islands.
But we kept in touch over the phone and Whatsapp and never once did he allow any “generation gap” between us to affect our equation in any way.
It was hard to imagine Islands without Zubair. He wrote extensively about Islander's issues.
These days, many people like us are limited to writing on Twitter and Facebook, but the scope of Zubair's knowledge was astonishing. A foundation like that is only built by consistent hard work over a long period of time.
I frequently spoke to Zubair and met him at his residence. His admirers will remember his knack for finding words in politics, of finishing a piece of news with data. But as a close, I saw some other qualities in him which are more valuable to me.
Most journalists go to the mainland for more opportunities, as one of his closes told me, but Zubair never left the island. Andaman was visible in his writing and his voice. Andaman Nicobar was never to leave him.
I used to enjoy reading his report and also periodically interacting with him. He was insightful and humble.
Zubair's writings over the last decades stood out for their perceptiveness, integrity & the way he delivered hard truths with satirical dexterity. Most of all, he was a wonderful human being, who touched the lives of all those who knew him.
An encyclopedia of Islands, particularly of the story of Mopla communities settling down in these beautiful Islands. The depth of knowledge of aboriginals of our islands. Everything is one-stop to know about islands.
Even at his weakest, he gave Journalism a landmark judgment. No journalist will be randomly slapped with a police case because Zubair Ahmed fought that fight for us, as he always has.
One of the journalists said that he has lost his dearest and most loyal friend. His sudden and shocking demise silences a distinct voice in news media. He was a fearless journalist who had the courage to call a spade a spade.
Zubair leaves behind an extraordinary legacy.
This one-story space is not enough to remember humans like Zubair Ahmed. He raised the bar of journalism, and a true tribute to him would be the inculcation of his values of restraint, sincerity, and depth, especially in this era of decadence.
A person whom I deeply admire, his writings have always been an inspiration for many of us. His reminiscence of the yesteryears of Andaman was always a treat to read on.
If I want to know something about the island I just ping him and asked and he explains in brief.
That's the reason I miss him a lot. A huge personal loss to me.
So intense was his passion for his profession and so mesmerizing his way with words that his writings and he will always live. He left an unerasable footprint on the Island’s landscape that will keep enlightening the coming generations.
He in his own capacity tried to change or craft a new narrative about Islands.
Love you always, Zubair ❤️
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