Singed But Not Burnt traces the efforts of Shahidul Alam, a Bangladeshi activist, journalist, and award- winning photographer, throughout his 40-year career as he brings to light the resilience of the Bangladeshi people and their ongoing struggle for freedom. Alam’s work highlights the stories of unsung heroes, the legacies of the missing, and the stories known but unspoken. His photography chronicles the recurring patterns of autocratic regimes: the dangerous effects of loose labor regulations; civil rights abuses; extreme class differences, and conflicts produced by the state’s desire to manifest a homogeneous national identity. The following timeline traces the history of the young Bangladeshi nation and expands on the issues addressed in Alam’s photography.

1947 India gains independence from British rule, resulting in the Partition of India, which created two new countries: India and Pakistan. Bengal, a region in India, becomes East Pakistan. The division of these countries is based on religion, with Hindus designated to India and Muslims to Pakistan. This leads to the largest migration in history, with 18 million people displaced across borders.

1947-1971 West Pakistan (modern Pakistan) governs East Pakistan (modern Bangladesh). The period is marked by political and linguistic tensions. Resources are withheld during natural disasters. Urdu, the language of the West, is imposed on the Bangla-speaking East.

1955 Shahidul Alam is born in Dhaka, East Pakistan

1962 Kaptai Dam is built in the Chittagong Hill Tracks (CHT), a region in East Pakistan home to indigenous groups. The dam creates an artificial lake which displaces 100,000 people and submerges 40% of the CHT farmable land.

1970 The Bhola Cyclone hits East Pakistan, killing 300,000 people.

1971 The Bangladesh War of Independence begins after national elections gave a landslide victory to the Awami League, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the de-facto leader of East Pakistan. Rather than handing over power, the Pakistani army embarks on a brutal crackdown, committing genocide in the eastern wing. Resistance by the freedom fighters, assisted by India, culminates in an independent Bangladesh after a bloody nine month battle.

1972 Bangladesh becomes an independent country. Alam moves to the United Kingdom (UK) to pursue his education.

1975 Ziaur Rahman comes to power through a military coup and is assassinated two years later, during his presidency.

1975 The CHT region comes under repressive military rule by the Bangladeshi government.

1980 Alam becomes active in the UK Socialist Workers Party. He begins photographing protests and political activities.

1982 General Ershad seizes power, suspends the constitution, and institutes martial law. He assumes the presidency the following year.

1982 In Myanmar, a neighboring country, a citizenship law is passed denying the Rohingya people citizenship and rendering them stateless.

1984 Alam moves back to Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

1986 Ershad is declared the winner of a presidential election under martial law.

1987 Opposition to the general unites and mass demonstrations are held across the country, cumulating in a massive protest on November 10^th. A young protester, Noor Hossain, is shot and killed by government officers. “Let democracy be freed,” is painted on his chest.

1988 A destructive flood covers roughly 60% of the country for two weeks.

1989 Drik Picture Library is established as an independent media agency by Alam and writer Rahuma Ahmed.

1990 Large protests cause Ershad to step down from power.

1991 A caretaker government is established for the first of many times to temporarily oversee the election process. Khaleda Zia, the widow of former President Ziaur Rahman, wins the election.

1993 Nurjahan Begum is found dead after she was publicly assaulted and shamed following a fatwa (a ruling passed by a religious Islamic leader).

1996 Kalpana Chakma, a young indigenous leader and activist from the CHT, is taken by a group of military men and never seen again. Abductions of members of the Hill Women’s Federation continue.

1998 Pathshala South Asian Media Institute is established as Drik’s education wing. Pathshala grows into an accredited school for photography, film, and television.

2000 Alam starts the first photography festival in Asia, called Chobi Mela.

2001 Fatwa as a punishment is banned after several women are sentenced to brutal punishments.

2004 Through Drik, Alam starts the Majority World Photo Agency, to expand the visibility of photographers from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.

2004 Rapid Action Battalion is formed by the Bangladeshi Army, Police, Navy, and Air Force, and is increasingly criticized for serious human rights violations, including the extra-judicial killings and torture of people in custody.

2008 Sheikh Hasina is elected as Prime Minister and remains in power today, although elections are widely considered to be rigged.

2011 The fatwa ban is lifted, allowing clerics to practice Koranic law but leaving them no power to punish people.

2017 The Myanmar military launches a crackdown on the Rakhine State, resulting in widespread violence, killings, and burning of Rohingya villages. This leads to the exodus of over 700,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing across the border into southeast Bangladesh, establishing the largest refugee camp in the world. It is described by the United Nations as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing.”

2018 Public protests advocating road safety break out across Bangladesh after two students are killed by an unlicensed bus driver.

2018 After giving an interview to the international media on the Road Safety Protests, Alam is abducted and imprisoned for 107 days before being released on bail.