A BIOGRAPHY OF SIDDIQUA KABIR 

Cooking was a means of pleasure and an enjoyable thing for Siddiqua. At home, she would make herself too available in the kitchen just for cooking, especially for trying different cuisines. 

According to Siddiqua’s one of the 2 daughters, Zarina Nahar Kabir, Siddiqua was a “balanced” lady. Siddiqua had the ability to blend the modern with the traditional, and maintained a balance between her professional and family life. 

Siddiqua was a bold and brave woman who in the 1960s, had the guts to host a cooking show on television. Not many women ventured out in the public at that time, forget about performing in the media. Even before that, as a young woman, in the early 1950s, despite having an elder brother, Siddiqua took over the responsibility for her siblings. She, along with her mother, took the responsibility of rearing and educating her brother and three younger sisters. She waited to be married until the last of her siblings had earned a university degree.      

Siddiqua Kabir was married to Syed Ali Kabir. He was a prominent journalist and the former Deputy Governor of Bangladesh Bank. The couple together had 4 children; 2 sons and 2 daughters: Shahnaz Ahmed,Sakhawat Ahmed, Ahmed Saad, and Zarina Nahar Kabir. 

Siddiqua and her husband had a mutual love, and they would express their love for each other openly. As per Zarina’s statements, in the book “Rondhon Shilpi Siddiqua Kabir”, published in 2009, Syed Ali always said that the best thing that had happened to him was to have Siddiqua in his life. Both the couple were very disciplined and organized. They together created an environment at home where search for knowledge was simply natural and infinite. 

Siddiqua always ensured that her all the 4 children, from their childhood time, know the nutrient values of the foods that were served to them. They would internalize the nutrition in the food as well as enjoy the delicious appearance and taste of the food. When she would approach cooking, she would be as precise as solving a mathematics equation. She would always measure the calories of each item that she prepared. This is something normal from a person who knows both the mathematics and art of cooking.  She used to make her children the guinea pigs for her cookery experiments. Her family had supported her wholeheartedly too. She preferred staying in the kitchen until she did not get the perfect recipe to add to her manuscript. Her family would often get the discarded batches as their snacks. She would spend hours trying to make the same dishes again and again. Her children and family would get tired, but she would not. 

Though she received huge popularity, she loved to remain calm and down to earth. She used to feel awkward with all the attention. Because she was a very calm and disciplined person, who was not so talkative, people used to mistake her for a serious and grumpy person. Gradually, after talking with her, people could realize that actually she is soft spoken and well-articulated. 

She was never interested in promoting herself. That is why, it was difficult for TV channel producers to convince her to host or join in a show. Luckily, one of the renowned Bangladeshi TV media personalities, Sara Zaker, happens to be Siddiqua’s niece. She could convince Siddiqua to star in the show “Siddiqua Kabir’s Recipe”, which became a hit show for 9 years. According to Sara, Siddiqua had given a condition that if she ever had a cooking show she would only do it under Sara’s production house, Dhoni chitro Limited.

Siddiqua was such a hardworking professional person that she used to prepare the dishes/recipes that she showed on the show beforehand several times before actually showing the perfect recipe on TV. Moreover, though the A/C could not be turned on and there was a presence of constant heat from the cooking, she never complained or felt exhausted because of these. She also hardly used to remain seated and took rest during the show. Even in her late 70s, she was always seen to be energetic, positive and enthusiastic to learn different things from guests in the cooking show. Also, Siddiqua had been active and persistent all through her life. Until her sickness, 2 months prior to her death, she was seen working for some things or other. 

Though she would make different incredible recipes, she herself never ate much. Whenever she was offered food, she would always say, “Don’t give me much”. This proves how humble she was. Also, simplicity was her main concern. She would be draped in a simple saree, hair in a bun and a hint of makeup on face.  

Siddiqua had a habit of writing. According to her daughter, Zarina, an usual scene in their house at 2 am was that Siddiqua, also her husband, would sit and write different columns, poems, novels, essays or recipes. 

Siddiqua was a lover of music and poetry. She used to often spend her lazy afternoons with her daughter-in-law listening to Rabindra Sangit. She also loved reciting poetry. 

The relationship that she had with her daughter-in-law was incredible too. Nafisa Hasin Shormi, Siddiqua’s daughter-in-law, shared one of their memories together that they would sit together and make plans for the whole day and also manage the household together side by side, just like two good friends. 

One of the sweet and beautiful incidents that happened on one of Siddiqua’s birthdays is that once, her husband decided to surprise her with a number of sarees. He hid them in every possible site of the house where she may visit during the day. At first, when she opened her cupboard door to get money for grocery shopping, a saree fell out. Later she found another saree hidden behind the stacks of books when she went to get a book off the bookshelf. Gradually, she discovered 2 more sarees from under her pillow and bathroom. Though she was overwhelmed with happiness, she was shy to express her feelings. So she just spent her special day by wearing each of the sarees. She then preserved them all as priceless belongings.