Mechanical Engineer Zahiduzzaman Tanvin dreamed of seeing his drones soar across the skies of Bangladesh and beyond. This dream was his driving force. 

But in an instant, his aspirations were shattered by a bullet during the July Movement in Uttara under the capital city, leaving his dreams unfulfilled and ending his life in a foreign land.

Speaking with this reporter from the state news agency BSS, Tanvin's mother, Bilkis Zaman (45), broke down in tears. On July 18, while withdrawing money from an ATM booth, Tanvin was caught in a clash between police and protesters advocating for reform of the quota system in Dhaka’s Uttara area.

Tanvin was shot during the altercation, dying on the spot. The bullet pierced his neck, leaving marks of pellets across his chest. “I never imagined my son would leave us like this,” she lamented.

“My son was resting and left between 11:30 AM and 12 PM. That day, I was busy, and everyone ate at the dining table. I was preoccupied with tidying up the messy plates. I didn’t go to the door to see him off. Tanvin went out after giving me salaam, as he always did. But unlike other days, I didn’t bid him farewell. This remains my biggest regret”, she continued.

Student protest at Uttara in July

Bilkis Zaman explained that every day, she would respond to his salaam and read protective verses over him before he left the house. “This routine was uninterrupted until that day on July 18. That was the last salaam I responded to. Little did I know it would be the final one.”

With a voice choked by tears, she added, “I was at home when someone used his phone to call me, saying, ‘Your son has been shot. Please come to the hospital.’ Hearing this, I rushed to Kuwait-Maitree Hospital in Uttara.”

Zahiduzzaman Tanvin (24) lived with his homemaker mother, Bilkis Zaman, and engineer father, Shamsuzzaman, in a rented home in Uttara’s Azampur area.

Tanvin excelled academically, achieving a GPA of 5 in both his Secondary and Higher Secondary exams. He graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the Islamic University of Technology in Gazipur in 2022.

Later, with three friends, he co-founded a drone-based company called "ANTS," named after the initials of their names, specializing in drone sales, commercial applications, and services. The company conducted surveys and sold drones online, with Tanvin serving as the Chief Technical Officer.

In 2018, his team won a Best Shift Design competition organized by BUET’s Naval Department, taking second place in 2019. In both 2020 and 2021, Tanvin and his team won the Unmanned Aerial competition.

While still in school, Tanvin and his team ranked 10th globally and first in Asia in NASA’s European Rover Challenge. During his time at the Islamic University of Technology, he also won the BUET-organized Model Ship Propulsion Competition.

Later, he and his team ventured internationally, becoming champions in the UAS Aircraft System Competition organized by the UK-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Tanvin’s team won three out of six awards in that competition.

Bilkis Zaman recalled how her son had a deep passion for technology since childhood, describing technology as his true devotion.

“My Tanvin was brilliant and never involved in politics. He was always focused on drones. Using a grant of one million taka awarded by the ICT Division in 2021 after winning the Bangabandhu Innovation Grand, he founded ANTS to make drones.”

She described her son as humble and well-mannered.

“He built drones and sold them himself, winning numerous awards. He didn’t want to go abroad. He wanted to succeed in business both locally and internationally. His father had encouraged him to prepare for the BCS exam, but Tanvin said, ‘I want to go into business. I’ll never work for the government. So, why should I prepare for the BCS exam?’”

Tausiful Islam Tawsif, CEO of ANTS and Tanvin’s friend, shared, “Tanvin handled the technical side of ANTS. We studied together at the same university and co-founded the company back then. He was an incredibly talented engineer and a genuinely good person.

The night before he passed, on July 17, we were together until 10 PM. On July 18, we had scheduled interviews, but given the worsening situation in the country, we cancelled them and decided not to go to the office. Later that day, around 12:45 PM, we received the tragic news that Tanvin had been shot. A friend called to tell me he was gone.”

Chase and counter-chase takes place between protestors and police-RAB in Uttara around 1:30pm on 18 July 2024

Tawsif further added, “He had big plans for expanding the drone business. Without Tanvin, ANTS might never have come this far. ANTS now works on drone piloting and mapping, collaborating with various organizations such as the Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Gas Field Company, the Department of Agriculture, and Dhaka WASA. Tanvin’s creativity and dedication pushed the company forward. His loss is a huge blow to this sector.”

Dewan Fahim Faisal, another colleague and friend at ANTS, shared with BSS, “I first met Tanvin in our first year at university. I was looking for a badminton partner, and he responded to my group post. From the start, Tanvin showed interest in innovation. I remember a competition at BUET where he built a boat, and seeing it sail on the campus lake at dawn impressed me. He was just a first-year student then.”

Faisal continued, “After university when we worked at ANTS, I spent a lot of time with Tanvin. He had a way of making people feel valued. I still remember how he would check if I had eaten lunch or needed anything.

Whenever he came from outside the office, he’d bring something for us. When I learned about his death at 1 PM, I called his number, but someone else answered, saying, ‘Your friend is no more.’ I couldn’t believe it. I later spoke with his mother at the hospital, who confirmed it.”

With a heavy heart, Faisal added, “That day, the streets were chaotic. I came from Shyamoli to Uttara, but I never got to see him one last time. I want to remember Tanvin as a friend and colleague who always cared deeply. He encouraged me and celebrated even my small successes, and I hope to honour him by helping those around me as he did.”

In memory of Tanvin, the five-way intersection near his hometown in Godagari has been renamed "Shaheed Tanvin Chattar." Previously known as Feroz Gol Chattar, two trees were also planted there in his honour, symbolising the loss of a young life brimming with potential and dreams.