Long ago, a major event shaped the history of the Indian subcontinent—Muhammad bin Qasim invaded Sindh and entered India, with his arrival came a new religion and a new culture of this subcontinent. Before this, no foreign religion had reached here.  Since then, Arab and Indian cultures began to mix. But the question remains—can a culture ever be completely erased? The answer is No. Culture never disappears, rather,  transforms over time.In 1192, Muhammad Ghori defeated Prithviraj Chauhan and establishing  Muslim rule in Delhi and surrounding areas while some Muslim rulers may have come earlier, however,  this marked a turning point in Indian society. At that time, Indian culture was deeply influenced by folk traditions and Hindu social structures, where the upper caste often oppressed the lower castes through taxes and other forms of control.

The initial goal of Muslim rulers was not to spread religion but to establish political power. During their rule, Indian society remained vibrant with festivals, music, and cultural celebrations. Emperor Akbar, For instance ,  introduced Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year) to help collect taxes from agricultural communities, later becoming a major cultural festival for Bengalis.Over time, a conflict began to emerge—a struggle between Bengali and Muslim identity as Muslims in the region became more involved in Arabic education and religious practices, many began to see Bengali culture as something  separate from their faith. This marked the beginning of an identity crisis.In essay Sangskriti Kotha,  Kazi Motahar Hossain says that For an uneducated person, their culture is their religion; but for an educated person, their religion is their culture. This means on one hand,  uneducated people often don't understand what culture truly is—they follow religion as a way of life, on the other the educated people embrace culture deeply  because culture itself shapes their values and lifestyle.Sociologist Robert MacIver once said, “What we are is our culture.” Our food, language, clothing, and festivals reflect our identity. We have rice and fish and speak Bengali, and our traditions are deeply rooted in this land while Islam is a religion with roots in Arabia, our cultural identity is uniquely Bengali.This is where Homi K. Bhabha’s concepts of ambivalence and mimicry become relevant. Colonial rule created confusion within us—we began to imitate foreign culture and, in the process, lost touch with our own. History shows that having the same religion does not always mean sharing the same culture. East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan shared a religion, but their cultures were completely different. It was this cultural division that eventually led to the birth of Bangladesh.In our blood flows a mixture of Indo-Aryan, Arab, Turkic, Persian, and Mongolian ancestry. Yet, as citizens, we are Bengali. Our language, literature, history, and festivals are all part of the Bengali identity. Yes, we are Muslims—but that reflects our faith, not the whole of our being.The real problem begins when society forces us to choose—either Bengali or Muslim. This binary thinking causes division. In truth, we carry multiple identities: we are Muslim, Bangladeshi, and Bengali. Our strength lies in this diversity, and our unity comes from embracing it.To overcome this crisis of identity, we must learn to love our culture while respecting our faith. Culture and religion do not need to clash. Instead, culture can beautifully express religious values in its own way.