Typists: Swansong of a dying breed

The year was 1987 when Sirajuddin Suja (pseudonym) used to type in a manual mechanical typewriter in the DC office premises next to the Judge's Court in Raisaheb Bazar.

Suja travelled to Dhaka from his hometown in Kishoreganj to study at Suhrawardy College. And, on the side, he worked as a typist.

Suja fended for himself and bore his study expenses, having lost his father in 1981. However, ultimately, he discontinued his studies after his higher secondary examination. 

Suja raised money by selling a portion of his land property in his hometown. And bought an English typewriter for Tk6,000. 

After collecting an identity card from the DC officer, Suja could sit at the DC office premises with a desk. His desk is three and a half feet in width. Now, there sits a computer. 

The typewriter used to be in a small compartment. There is also a comb, a hat, a small mirror and a bunch of keys kept inside the compartment. Suja likes to stay neat and tidy. With hair brushed back, he wore a jacket, black pants and clean shoes. 

Photo: Mumit M

"There were 85 typists [back] then. We used to do all the work of documents, affidavits, contracts, applications, etc. I would take Tk5-6 to make a page. To make a contract, I would make a deal for Tk25 or Tk30. The daily income was Tk350-400," Suja, now 54 years old, said.

In 1996, Suja got married. He eventually moved his mother and wife to Dhaka and rented a house in Konapara for Tk1,100. Then he had two children, a boy and a girl. 

In 2006, Suja gave away the typewriter to someone else. He was offered Tk200 for it, but Suja refused. He gave it away for the benefit of the buyer. He went back to his hometown and this time he sold a cow for Tk34,000. 

With the money, Suja bought a computer and a printer.

Suja's son is now studying computer science and the daughter will sit for her SSC exams soon. "Now the house rent is around Tk13,000. Income has fallen significantly. But life goes on. 

My children bear their costs by doing tuition. Even today, when my daughter asked me for some money, I couldn't give her much. But she didn't complain about it," said Suja. 
"Both my children are very good. They don't have fancy demands. They don't stay outside the home that much. Food is not very special either. I don't spend more than Tk100 a day on my own. And after 16 years, I bought winter clothes this year," Suja added. 
Even in the 1990s, there was a fair amount of income for typists. Since the 2000s, computers have become available. He had to change his livelihood. Presently, among the 100 typists there, only 7-8 are still typing manually. The rest of them type on computers.

In 2013, Suja was badly injured in a road accident, which impacted his typing speed. So he no longer types by himself, but since he has been working in the Judge Court and DC office for so long, he has mastered all the work. With dictation, he now manages to get the work done by other typists. And the income is shared. 

Suja said he has seen many ministers and MPs of the country from a close distance. He shared a story about a former minister, who was a lawyer by profession. People used to call him "bot tolar ukil" – a derogatory term – because he was not a good lawyer. Suja once got into a fight with him over eating "noli" (cow's leg bone).

"I don't like to hanker after money. I'm happy with my ordinary life. I don't have any extra expenses such as drinking tea or chewing betel leaves," said Suja, "[but] I do love to travel. I have been to Bandarban, Cox's Bazar, Rangamati, Khagrachari – most of the time as an assistant to someone else. 

I like the mountains the most. Moreover, I fish as a hobby. I do not have my own fishing wheel, but I become a companion to those who have. I just came back from a trip yesterday [5 February]. 

One of my relatives has a fishing pond. He invited me to go. We caught a Wallago attu, which is about my waist height," said Suja. 

Suja used to enjoy fishing in the lake of Ramna Park. He is also fond of reading religious books. He loves to read Niamul Quran, Sahih Bukhari and biographies of the companions of the prophet. He likes to listen to "waz" (religious discussions). But he does not like those who shout or make angry gestures, he said. 

'Can you survive by competing with the computer?'

Md Mohsin sits right next to Suja at work, who got his hands on a typewriter in 2000. 

Earlier, he was in the betel nut business. Once, he endured a big business loss and came to the DC office in Dhaka. His younger brother – who was also an LLB student – was a typist here. Hearing about the enormous loss, Mohsin's brother told him to come to him.

Mohsin's brother is now a Supreme Court lawyer, who trained Mohsin to be a typist. And Mohsin's only son operates a computer in the court premises. 

Mohsin began by saying, "it's almost an extinct profession. Today, I didn't earn a single penny [2 pm, 5 February]. Some days, the income is Tk150 to Tk200. Many days, there's no income at all." 

Photo: Mumit M

Together, the father and the son live in a rented house at Koltola Bazar. They cook for themselves, bring meals from home for lunch. That day, they were eating rice with taro and amaranth curry. 

On his desk was a box of lime and a cough syrup. He lost his right leg in a 2013 accident. Now he walks slowly with a wooden leg. 

"We had a good income from manually filling up forms. Now all the forms are available online. The amount of work [available] has drastically declined. Our competition is with a strong opponent. Can you survive by competing with the computer?" lamented Mohsin. 

'There used to be a lot of work for typists'

Annapurna Hotel is right next to the Bar Association building of Judge Court. There is a table on the opposite side of the hotel with "Md Zakir'' inscribed and a tool - a typewriter. There is nothing on the table, nothing underneath the table either. Rarely someone is seen sitting there. 

Late in the afternoon, I found a skinny man with a muffler around his neck and head. He was not willing to talk, initially.

"I'm very busy. I don't have time," said Zakir. However, after a little persuasion, he opened up. Hailing from Barishal, Zakir came to Dhaka to live with his brother after completing his SSC exams. In 1988, he started working in the DC office. 

Zakir bought his first typewriter - a Japanese Optima Munir - from Bangladesh Traders for Tk10,000. At the time, his brother worked as an assistant to a lawyer.  

"Back then the rent was low. There were fewer people. The number of lawyers was low but the crime rate was high. 

There was a lot of work. My brother gave me money to buy the typewriter. Income ranged from Tk200 to Tk300 a day. We charged Tk5 for a page," said Zakir. 

"Working here for many years, I know everything. So, now I dictate to juniors. Typewriters are disappearing. I've seen many typists. Hundreds of them passed away. I've closely watched Gofur Mollik, Shamsul Alam, Kazi Liton and learned many things from them."

Now the 52-year-old veteran typist lives near Shamsul Haque Khan School in Demra, with his two sons and one daughter. He leaves home for work at 7:30 am. He eats bread for breakfast and takes rice to work for lunch and returns home shortly after Asr azan. 

Back home, " I take care of children's education. I spend 90% of my income on their education. I also go shopping for home essentials," said Zakir, "and on weekends, I buy a lot of things. Other days, I bring vegetables when I come back from work. I've no greed for money."

How about recreation? Do you watch television? "When I was in the mess, I used to watch TV. [However] there has been no television in the house since the birth of my children." 

What about a wish or goal? "After marrying off my daughter, I will go to Hajj with my wife," said Zakir. 

And when did you leave the job of a typist? "In 2008," said Zakir, adding, "I'm too old now. I don't like to be in front of a computer screen." 

"People bring work to me, and I supervise others to get it done. I had a job at the headquarters of the post office in the Public Service Commission. However,  I didn't continue it for long," he further added. 

Have you seen a lot of people? Have you met a lot of people? "Yes. I've worked with many magistrates and secretaries. Secretary Adam Ali also worked on my typewriter. I didn't know him, my brother said he was a secretary from our home in Wazirpur.

Then the father of the hero Salman Shah was also a magistrate. I also worked with him," reminisced Zakir.