Umma Kulsum Popi proudly identifies herself as a ‘graamer meye’ (village girl). She grew up in a diminutive village in the Lalmonirhat district of the north space of Bangladesh.
A primary fragment of Popi’s childhood and adolescent memories are associated to the beauty of rural Bangladesh. The earthy scent of rotting jute is her cherished scent. She delights in strolling by means of the slender aisles between rice fields and finds peace in spending aloof hours by the riverbank.
Finally, her be pleased for nature and agriculture inspired her to procure instant, informative videos where she showcases and explains varied fruits, flowers, alongside with agricultural hacks. These videos resonated with a huge viewers, incomes her most important traction on-line.
On the novel time, Popi has a formidable 1.7 million follower depraved on Fb and around 371,000 subscribers on YouTube, making her a worthy resolve in the gather agricultural neighborhood. She’s going to seemingly be the first female agri influencer in the nation.
“Human beings naturally decide up deep connections with nature; it be simply how we’re wired. This universal bond is why my videos resonate with such a various viewers, reducing all the contrivance in which by means of all professions and social backgrounds,” Popi explained.
She went on to claim that her convey material appeals to every person, from farmers to bankers, who no longer completely watch but additionally actively allotment their suggestions.
“If you quiz of us about their retirement plans, most will define you they dream of residing shut to nature, dedicating more time to gardening or farming. Agriculture, being inextricably linked to nature, isn’t for all time real for farmers—it be a ardour that any individual can embody,” she added.
What does she attain in a completely different contrivance?
Popi’s convey material is refreshingly easy. She travels from one converse to at least one other, be it a lush fruit backyard or an mountainous area, and selects a particular topic to explore. She then breaks it down into easy, easy-to-understand Bangla, making the topic accessible to every person.
Her YouTube channel is organised into particular playlists, making it easy for viewers to search out the convey material that interests them. Whether you are seeking to learn about varied forms of fish, spices, fruits, or medicinal herbs, Popi has curated collections that cater to a gargantuan sequence of interests.
“My first video used to be done in a charland of Teesta, where I talked about pumpkin harvesting. I didn’t sit down up for the appreciation I purchased from the video,” she recalled.
There may be so worthy to learn and allotment on this sector. Fair nowadays, I uploaded a video on making organic pesticide the use of neem leaves—a resolution I in my opinion found efficient. After attempting it out, many other americans who watched the video reported definite results as correctly. It’s rewarding to position a matter to such good files benefiting so many
One other mention-grand feature about Popi’s gallop is her active engagement with the farmers.
“Farmers are the right kind innovators. They’ve been testing and enforcing contemporary agricultural forms of crops and agricultural tactics for generations. Yet their files continually remains confined to their local areas. It’s our responsibility to develop their files and allotment it more broadly for the bigger just real of the neighborhood,” she said.
Popi graduated in 2023 with a degree in Geography and Atmosphere from Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur. Nonetheless, her deep ardour for agriculture retains her repeatedly discovering out. She stays urged and educated by reading books on agriculture.
“There may be so worthy to learn and allotment on this sector. Fair nowadays, I uploaded a video on making organic pesticide the use of neem leaves—a resolution I in my opinion found efficient. After attempting it out, many other americans who watched the video reported definite results as correctly. It’s rewarding to position a matter to such good files benefiting so many,” she added.
Like many of us, Popi also grew up observing Shykh Seraj’s documentaries on agriculture. She’s going to seemingly be inspired by contemporary agriculturists be pleased Talha Zubair Masror and Azharul Islam.
“Our agriculture alternate is stuffed with means. But, our ardour for this sector is worryingly low. We need more of us to step up and procure entangled, bringing new energy and solutions to unlock the paunchy potentialities,” she added.
The entrepreneurial gallop
Popi’s entrepreneurial gallop took off in 2016 with the founding of BD Assistant, an on-line platform specialising in electronic tool servicing, basically based completely in the Rangpur space. Past its core provider offerings, BD Assistant also affords transferring and transferring products and services, making it a versatile resolution for the local of us.
In 2020, amid the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, Popi, alongside with her husband Abu Sayed Al Sagor, launched Top rate Fruits. This enterprise aimed to raise new, excessive-quality mangoes from the northern space of Bangladesh to possibilities all the contrivance in which by means of the nation.
“Our industry strategy is objective easy. We provide varied fruits from varied districts of the nation, whisper from the gardeners to customers,” she added.
For mangoes, one of the famous areas are Rangpur, Rajshahi, Naoga, Chapainawabganj and Satkhira. Top rate Fruits also distributes papaya from Khagrachari, wild bananas from Bandarban, and wood apples and pomelo from Rangamati.
In her industry, Popi works hand-in-hand with farmers and gardeners. She secures backyard leases a year prematurely by means of attain possess agreements.
She is deeply involving about the harvesting job, carefully monitoring each and each stage to preserve quality. To guarantee the safety and purity of the fruits, she ensures that no chemicals or pesticides are archaic on the flowers for a minimal of 15 days sooner than harvesting.
“My industry complements my ardour for convey material advent. As I ride back and forth from converse to converse for work, I’m repeatedly inspired to procure contemporary videos, shooting new insights and sharing them with my viewers,” she concluded.
