Kolkata: As the winds of political change blew in Bangladesh, the country’s most popular travel YouTuber, Salahuddin Sumon, set sail from Ushuaia in Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego province on 28 January to Antarctica, becoming the first content creator from his country to reach the coldest continent on earth.
On board the polar ship Hondius, Sumon, 40, and his friend Nilay Kumar Biswas, the only two Bangladeshis on the trip, along with a group of travellers from 21 countries. The duo witnessed breathtaking natural beauty, rare animals in their natural habitat, the debilitating effects of climate change on ice caps, and something they had not expected from their fellow travellers: in-your-face racism.
“We thought all of us on the Hondius, irrespective of where we came from, were in this extremely difficult, but breathtakingly beautiful trip together as one family. But then a German couple burst my bubble,” Sumon, 40, told ThePrint over the phone.
“This is an expensive expedition even for us. How could you afford to be here from Bangladesh? Your country is poor,” the couple reportedly asked Sumon, leaving him speechless and seething in silent rage.
Content creator’s continent
Sumon’s travels through the length and breadth of Bangladesh, discovering historical gems like the forgotten zamindar havelis in Kolakopa, the Medhas Munir Ashram in Boalkhali, arguably the oldest Durga temple in the world, or the ghost village in Mangalpur in Jhenaidah that has remained uninhabited for nearly a 100 years, have earned him 3.04 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.
Now Sumon and his travel companion Biswas have set their eyes on foreign shores, creating blogs in Bengali not just for Bangladeshi citizens but for anyone who follows Bangla.
“I have a fair number of subscribers from beyond borders, in the Bangla-speaking West Bengal, and my channel is rather popular among Bengalis living in Western countries who get to know or rediscover the parts of the globe we travel to through our eyes and mother tongue,” Sumon said.
When the chance arose to be part of an expedition to Antarctica, organised by the Dutch company Oceanwide Expeditions, aboard their polar ship, Hondius, Sumon and Biswas seized the opportunity.
“Our journey began in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, often called the end of the Earth. From there, we embarked into the vast Southern Ocean, crossing the legendary Drake Passage, heading toward the icy wilderness of Antarctica,” Sumon recalled.
After an unforgettable 20-day voyage, they returned to Ushuaia, forever changed by what they had witnessed.
In Antarctica, surrounded by glaciers and endless white silence, the duo felt that they represented something greater than what money can buy. They represented courage, ambition, and the truth that dreams are not limited by nationality. Even with a Bangladeshi passport, they had reached Antarctica.
“Antarctica is a place of rare beauty. There are the glaciers, of course, and then we saw fur seals, elephant seals, crab-eater seals, and leopard seals in their natural habitat. We saw krill and the killer whale, Orca,” Sumon said.
Seeing these creatures in the wild was the highlight of their trip. “The animals live without fear, perhaps, because humans stay so far away from them. When we took pictures with the penguins, they happily posed for us,” Sumon added.
In Antarctica, they had to follow strict rules, taking in account the environmental concerns. “We were not allowed to sit or go near the animals and had to keep a distance of at least five metres. We were not allowed to touch them,” the YouTuber said.
The team had to take great care to protect the land from outside germs. “We had to wash up and brush every single clothing item before going out. Even a grain of dust had to be removed,” he said.
The ship even recycled human waste. “This ensures that the white continent stays as healthy as it possibly can, now that it faces environmental threats due to climate change. We got to know how there is a rapid ice shelf collapse and the endangered marine ecosystems in the region.”
But it was the chance of a lifetime for Sumon to generate content for his YouTube channel that he could only dream of. On the first day of the trip, the expedition leader had announced that Suman and Biswas were from Bangladesh and would create content for YouTube and Facebook.
“Passengers were told if anyone felt uncomfortable being filmed, they could inform the staff, and we would respectfully avoid recording them. Not a single person complained. Instead, they were cooperative. Yet, we could sense a quiet surprise among some of them seeing two travellers who looked like us standing beside them on one of the world’s most expensive expeditions,” Sumon said.
And then came a nakedly racist comment about how two men from a “poor country like Bangladesh” could be on the ship.
“It was like a punch to the gut.” Sumon had no idea how to answer such a question.
It was no doubt an expensive trip. For two people sharing a room, even with a discount, the price is anywhere between $17,000 and $21,000. For a single-person room, it is between $36,000 and $45,000 USD. But Sumon found out the hacks.
If one books five to six months before the trip date, there are chances of getting shared rooms and discounts. Sumon chose a package that included the Falkland and Georgia islands. But one can choose to avoid these destinations to save money. “In that case, the price will be around $6,000,” he explained.
For the project, Suman got Turkish Airlines as the title sponsor and also collaborated with a Bangladeshi internet service provider and the Dutch expedition company. “They took us on because of the reach and credibility of my YouTube channel, something totally lost on the German couple,” he explained.
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‘Bangladesh needs good PR’
As a proud Bangladeshi, Sumon admits his country has been in the news mostly for the tumultuous political changes over the last two years. He feels, instead, it should be known for the women and men who have competed and excelled in almost every field.
“Ruthba Yasmin is training to be the first Bangladeshi woman to ever set foot on the lunar surface. And here, we are being racially profiled on a ship whose owners are one of the sponsors for the episode that we were shooting!” he said.
Now that Bangladesh has political stability, Sumon feels the country needs a new narrative. One that shows Bangladeshis as equal citizens in respect to other countries. “Through my channel, I will do my bit,” he promises.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)