04-05-2025
The woman braving tigers, crocodiles and pirates in Bangladesh's mangroves
Gabura island, Bangladesh - The sun is fierce and the air hot and sticky when Mahfuza Begum steps onto the riverbank one late morning in March.
Her bare feet sink into the cracked mud as she reaches for her narrow, black boat. Her fingers quickly check her net for tangles. Then two women and a man help her push the boat into the water. With no upstream current to fill the riverbank, they strain under the weight of the task. After several minutes, the boat finally drifts free. Without a word, Mahfuza slides into it, grips her oar with calloused hands and begins to row.
Each stroke carries Mahfuza forward, carving a path through the river's gleaming surface.
She glides past dense green Sundri mangrove canopies. A humid river breeze tugs at her headscarf. The 52-year-old pulls it back into place with a practised hand and keeps rowing. Beads of sweat trace a slow line from her temple to her jaw.
After about five minutes, she stops in the centre of the river, stands, and with a graceful motion, casts her net wide over the water. The heavy mesh unfurls, then sinks.
Fifteen minutes pass. Then she pulls the net, and as the mesh rises, a wide, triumphant grin blooms across Mahfuza's face.
The net is filled with shrimp.
The air has the earthy smell of mud, and the only sounds are of the river's gentle movement and the rustling of leaves. Dense mangrove roots twist out of the water at the river's edges. In the places where thick tree canopies block out the sun, it casts deep shadows, while beyond the riverbank, the forest hides what moves within.
