How We Started Bichchu

One month from now marks the anniversary of Bicchu’s founding. Over the past few days, I’ve been thinking about writing the story of how Bicchu began. For those who may not know, Bicchu is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about wildlife conservation.

When I entered university, the first problem I faced was the English syllabus. Coming from a Bangla medium background, suddenly having to study in English—especially with all the new scientific terms—was a real challenge. The biggest issue? I couldn’t memorize things.

My method was to read as much as I could, try to understand everything, and then write the answers in my own words during the exam. But while studying, I kept running into terms I didn’t understand. So whenever I tried to grasp the full meaning of a topic, I ended up spending a lot more time than others.

That’s when the idea first came to me: What if there was a website that made zoology easier to understand in Bengali? Something that explained concepts in a simple way—the way I understood them.

I don’t know about others, but for me, all these ideas would flood my mind the night before the exam! I'd sit in the exam hall thinking about them, wondering when the test would end so I could start working on them.

Our first-year exams ended in early 2016. After the exams, we had a month-long break. I went back home and, as usual, completely forgot about the idea. Time passed, and soon the pressure of second-year exams started to build.

One day, Prof Gazi called me and said, "Asek, you can score really well in your second year. Focus on your studies." I took his advice seriously and decided to get more focused. By then, I had already started collecting books and articles from the internet. While preparing, the old idea came back to me: Could I create a website where I explained zoology in the way I understood it?

Since I had already begun preparing, I had plenty of content and time to think it through. If I remember correctly, our second-year exams were held in March 2017—and just before the exam, I got my second laptop.

My first laptop was a gift from my father after I passed my SSC exams. That’s when I started learning Photoshop. Internet costs were very high back then, so I bought books and taught myself through trial and error. After starting my undergraduate, while staying in a cottage near university, that laptop was stolen. I didn’t have the courage to tell my parents for a long time.

Later, when I got my second laptop, I immediately began exploring how to build a website. Bicchu’s website was actually my second attempt. After high school, some friends and I had tried to start an educational website called Mastishk—but due to issues with the developers, it never took off. So this time, I decided to take full control and move forward with my own ideas.

Once I committed, things started to move. Around the same time, my second-year exams came to an end. I had also become friends with several seniors—Suma, Irfan Bhai, Imran Bhai—and we formed a little circle. They were the first people I shared the idea with.

I asked Suma, “Give it a name.”

After thinking for a while, she said: “Bicchu.”

Bicchu began as just a website on November 24, 2017. In the beginning, we were our own content writers. The goal was clear: to create educational content specifically for zoology students.

Over time, team members began bringing new ideas to the table. We started discussing how to expand our reach and increase the number of people who could benefit. One question kept coming up:

Why should the general public care about animals?

The answer is complex in some parts of the world. But living in an anthropocentric society, for us, the answer was quite simple: for their own sake.

That’s when we found our tagline:

"Save Wildlife to Save Ourselves."

If animals survive, we survive too. We are all part of a delicate balance—like two sides of a scale. If one side tips, both fall. And if we want to save animals, there is no substitute for knowledge.

That’s why we chose to spread information in simple Bangla—to eliminate barriers and make it accessible for people from all backgrounds.

What started as a late-night idea before an exam soon became a responsibility. We began exploring how to spread the idea of conservation. That’s when the idea of running campaigns was born.

Children in rural and suburban areas often have more direct contact with wild animals than those growing up in cities. So we thought: Why not nurture a generation that is tolerant, aware, and respectful toward wildlife?

Children carry the knowledge they gain throughout their lives—so we believed, if we could teach them about animals from an early age, we could create lasting change.

Now the question arose: How do we teach them?

Our first major step was to create a documentary. By then, many new people had joined us—juniors who were writing regularly and contributing their ideas. One of them was Jahir. Together, Jahir and I wrote the script for our first documentary.

We focused on all the animals in Bangladesh that had gone extinct, as well as those on the brink of extinction. We also highlighted why they matter—why their existence is essential to our ecosystem and our own well-being. The result was a 20-minute video designed to shift the way children think about animals, to spark curiosity and empathy.

That documentary marked a turning point. Bicchu moved beyond just being a website.

We began organizing regular seminars, launched an online library to provide access to animal-related resources, and expanded our reach in multiple directions.

This momentum continued for quite a while.

Then came the pandemic.

Schools and colleges shut down. Our campaign activities were forced to pause. Bicchu entered a long hiatus. Meanwhile, those of us who had started the initiative had now completed our university journey. At one point, I genuinely thought Bicchu might not go any further.

But no—those who loved Bicchu wouldn’t let it fade away.

People like Sabbir, Shihar, and many others stood firm against the idea of stopping. The outgoing committee recommended names for the next leadership. That day, as we were signing up the new committee, Irfan Bhai smiled and said,

"Good to see that the team is still alive."

I don’t know exactly how Bicchu makes people feel nostalgic, or who all it has truly helped. But I know this much—for me, if I ever talk about my university life, I don’t think I could say a word without mentioning Bicchu.