Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus spoke at the prize giving ceremony of Bangladesh Television's (BTV) ‘Notun Kuri’ competition 2025 at Shapla Hall in the Chief Adviser’s Office (CAO). Photo: CA's Press Wing

DHAKA, Nov 13, 2025 (BSS) — Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus today termed competitions as scopes for self-discovery, saying the ‘Notun Kuri’ competition 2025 has created that scopes for the country’s children and adolescents to unearth their talents.

“For these children, reaching this stage is a great event in their lives. It will inspire them to go further, to discover themselves. That is what this competition is all about — discovering oneself,” he said.

The Chief Adviser made the remarks at the prize giving ceremony of Bangladesh Television's (BTV) ‘Notun Kuri’ competition 2025 at Shapla Hall in the Chief Adviser’s Office (CAO) here.

“Today, this joy will spread to countless homes across Bangladesh. This celebration is not just for the children present here but for every family that supported them — watching with hope and love as their children competed and dreamed,” Professor Yunus said.

He emphasized that each child’s achievement — even small — marks a milestone of inspiration.

Under the initiative of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the state-run BTV arranged the iconic children's talent hunt programme ‘Notun Kuri’ 2025 where thousands of young participants from across the country contested in 12 categories, including dance, music, recitation, comedy, storytelling, and acting under two groups- ‘Ka’ and ‘Kha’.

At the function, the Chief Adviser awarded two top performers under 'Ka' and 'Kha' groups. The top two champions are- Preyosi Chakrabarty (Ka) of Tangail district and Shuvo Mita Talukder (Kha) of Sunamganj district, who received a crest and a cheque for Taka three lakh each from the head of the interim government.

Information and Broadcasting Adviser Md Mahfuj Alam spoke at the function as the special guest with Information and Broadcasting Secretary Mahbuba Farjana in the chair.

Describing how competitions build character and resilience, encouraging both winners and those who did not win but keep hope for future, Professor Yunus said, “Even those who could not reach the final stage deserve applause. Because when a child feels — ‘why not me?’ — that spark pushes him or her towards transformation with determination to clinch the championship in future.”

“Through such contests, children learn to question, to challenge, to realize that they can do things, which others cannot do . . . this builds their confidence and imagination,” Professor Yunus said.

The Chief Adviser thanked the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Bangladesh Television for reviving this iconic competition and promised the government’s full support to expand it.

This competition will shape the nation’s transformation to move from one level to the next, he said.

He proposed expanding the competition to other creative fields, including technology, science, fashion design, entrepreneurship, writing, and sports.

“Why should we limit competitions to only a few fields? Let children explore science, technology, literature, and business. Even fashion design or cooking can be a form of creativity,” the Chief Adviser opined.

Professor Yunus stressed that the ultimate goal is to ensure that no child in Bangladesh is left behind:

“No child should feel excluded. Every child has something special — our task is to help them find it joyfully, without pressure, through self-discovery,” he said.

Inspiring the children and youth to the global stage overcoming the borders, the Chief Adviser said, “As like we are best among the Bangladeshis, we want to be the best among the global community as well.”

While concluding his address, Professor Yunus congratulated all winners, participants, guardians, teachers, organisers and jury board members.

Bangladesh Television, BTV News, and Bangladesh Betar live telecast the event.