In times of the pandemic raising funds for burial is essential to help minority Muslim communities. Just we have seen the numbers of deaths of Bangladeshis in Britain had risen, so was the demand to raise funds for burial for those who passed away. For those who are less fortunate such as households in   low income and with no recourse to public funds, they rely on donations from organisations that Yousuf Khan works for. Yousuf works as a funeral funds manager at 13 Rivers Trust, a charity that helps fund Muslim burial.    Covid has made raising funds for Muslim Bangladeshi  communities crucial because if you have no savings, it's impossible to pay for burial costs.  ‘So since last April, till now, we carried out around 125 burials for region... Most of them  don't have a family, or they have partial family relatives or it would be with two young children,  wife  and the husband passed away. So the wife is not earning, they don't have money to bury. So this is why Muslim bu

A chef from the East End fears for the future of the predominantly Bengali run 'Indian curry' trade. Covid-19 just made things worse for the industry.  A chef from the East End of London fears for the future of predominantly Bangladeshi run 'Indian curry'. Covid-19 just made things worse for the industry.  Atikur Rahman is a chef in Graam Bangla restaurant, Brick Lane. He reveals to BritBanglaCovid some of the challenges the curry sector is facing. The pandemic has just made things worse. 'Covid is killing us' he states. Tourists are not visiting Brick Lane and mostly Bengali owned restaurants are feeling the stress of lockdown and it's financial cost. He emphasises that there is also a confusion with the Indian variant of Covid-19 with Bangladeshi owned restaurants because these restaurants are 'Indian restaurants'. Younger Bangladeshi generations are also not interested in working hard to keep the sector moving forward due to late nights a

Salam Jones speaks about his experience of depression and how minority mental men do not speak about depression and mental health.  He speaks about depression during the lockdown in order to get people talking about mental health and to remove the taboo of speaking up on the issue. He also feels that ethnic minority men do not speak about mental health because it's not a manly thing to do. BritBanglaCovid has been campaigning on health related issues during the pandemic because we have noticed how minority communities have been significantly impacted by Covid-19 for so many reasons. Here is an opportunity to raise awareness of mental health issues among ethnic minority communities during and after the lifting of the national lockdown.

  "I heard stories from people who'd lost their loved ones, who are made redundant and shielding." There are many reasons we're taking steps to protect our loved ones during COVID-19. Find out more about how you can protect your community: https://t.co/CsiJNdxIvp #ForOurFamilies pic.twitter.com/nKv9Jfwa1d — Tower Hamlets Council (@TowerHamletsNow) June 30, 2021

Mrs Nurun Nessa has been diagnosed with middle stage dementia during the pandemic. She is currently receiving informal support from her husband, adult daughters and a close friend. Her doctor said that her health is going to get worse as time goes on. She has accepted that her situation is going to get worse. She is waiting for a care package from Tower Hamlets Council. This film is brought to you by BritBanglaCovid. Filmmaker: Ripon Ray

Obie Matin was shunned for marrying a white man. Yet, she cared for her parents to their last moment.  BENGALI CULTURE & A NAME Obie Matin’s full name is a little bit complicated she says. In Bengali culture, people would know her by her nickname: Obie. But her  formal name  is actually Lubjana Matin. Nobody  calls her Lubjana except during graduation or in any formal occasions.  Everyone calls her by her nickname. There is complete separation between formal and informal life in Bengali culture. UPBRINGING AND RENT FREE ACCOMMODATION Obie was born was born in Britain.  When she was born there was seven years gap between Obie and her older sibling.  ‘I feel privileged of how I grew up, even though we never owned it. It was a massive house with a basement, a Victorian attic, beautiful house. And the terms and conditions were that my dad would have that home rent free, which is one part of the house for lodgings if he oversaw the rest of the property. So dad was fixing it up looking o

Julie Begum talks about her East End upbringing, passion for education  and campaign to vaccinate everyone. EAST END UPBRINGING She was born in the Mile End Hospital in 1968 when her parents were living in a temporary accommodation in Tower Hamlets. Her brother was born 18 months after. They were given a council flat in Globe Town, Bethnal Green, London. She remembers that:   ‘We live in a block of flats, with a lot of other working class people…   I think there was only one other Bengali family on the estate at the time. And a black family and majority was white. And there was one mixed race family…To be honest, the only safe place was at home. We heard about people being attacked in their homes by racists. So it was, I would say a climate of fear really for a lot of Bengalis at that time. My father was bottled and attacked.’ There was a difference in response between younger and older generation within the Bengali Community from Julie's account. ‘Young men…decided to fight back a