Photographer Arif Zaman is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this photo essay. From the project ‘The Fairytale of Bangladesh’. To see Arif’s body of work, click on any image.

I stood in the whisper of mist.

The serene Sangu river was flowing right in front of me,

Where a boat was sailing.

When I look back again it was lost in the mist.

It seems my soul also lost in the mist.

I stood alone, all alone in the strange mist,

Where silence was whispering at my ear.

The fairy tale exist here

The first song before the demise of second death.

Tindu is located in Thanchi Upazila in Bandarban district. This area lies in Chittagong hill track area of Bangladesh. It is estimated that 400 or more indigenous people, mostly Marma, live in this tiny lush green village and total 6000 different Indigenous people live in Tindu union alone. Tindu, this name thought to be come from, Tindumukh, one of the source lakes, finally falls into Sangu river.

During monsoon time this tiny river could be very fierce though end of the monsoon if you sit at the bank of the river; you would listen to the sound of the Sangu river.

The enchanting Sangu river is seen shrunk, up from the valley, navigating through the beautiful green mountains as far as viewed. And the people living in these valleys looked with empty eyes at the crossing boats on the rivers and sang a quiet song in their mind.

In Bandarban some established enterprises are providing service to the tourist, but no doubt it is still expensive and we do not see any more business enterprises coming here and saving this place from being rubbish, full of litters and garbage, lying all around. Apart from this, it is very alarming that some multinational ventures are trying to grab the land in Bandarban for developing five star hotels or resorts for making money. Not only does it affect the local inhabitants and their livelihood, but this also causes massive damage to wild places and it’s ecosystem. We should come forward to help local people and their community, as if they can uphold and enjoy their right over their own lands. We, therefore, want this place to remain quiet and wild.