Muhammad Yunus: Ishaan Tharoor's First Ever Interview... And There Is a Twist
As Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus is going to be the head of the interim government in Bangladesh, Washington Post journalist Ishaan Tharoor, son of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, today recalled an interview he took of him in 2006. The memorable interview for both Yunus and Ishaan was marked by an interesting twist.
Ishaan looks back on how surprisingly Yunus was struck on a landline with him when officials were trying to reach him to inform that he has been chosen for the prestigious Nobel Prize for Peace.
Read Also: Pioneer In Poverty Alleviation: Nobel Laureate Yunus To Lead Bangladesh
Ishaan remembers Yunus was patient and obliging, even as someone repeatedly tried to interrupt him while he took his phone call. “It turned out, an hour later, that there was a Norwegian TV company trying to reach him to formally notify him that he had won the Nobel Prize, but he was stuck on a landline with me,” the global affairs columnist wrote on X, highlighting that it was his first interview as a professional journalist.
Muhammad Yunus (@Yunus_Centre) has been picked to be Bangladesh’s transitional leader. The first ever interview I did as a professional journalist was with him in 2006. He was patient and obliging, even as someone repeatedly tried to interrupt him while he took my phone call. It…
— Ishaan Tharoor (@ishaantharoor) August 6, 2024
In an article written by Ishaan in 2006, Ishaan did not forget to mention the surprising story. He penned that Yunus spoke to The Time “moments before hearing the news that he and the bank he founded had been awarded the 2006 Nobel Prize for Peace.”
During the interview, Ishaan asked several questions regarding the Grameen Bank, the famous initiative by the economic professor that made him a recipient of the Nobel Prize. Yunus explained the background that forced him to think out of the box and come up with the game changer project.
The microlending initiative lifted millions out of poverty by loaning small amounts to poor people for starting businesses. Yunus answered queries such as how the Grameen Bank worked which left investors and businessmen across the world astonished.
Read Also: Charges, Allegations Against Muhammed Yunus, New Head Of Bangladesh
With Shiekh Hasina’s resignation and fleeing following massive protest against the government, Yunus has been appointed as the head of the interim government in Bangladesh. Notably, he has been one of the persistent targets of the government with several cases and allegations against him. While his supporters call it politically motivated due to his rising popularity, the government claims it follows the due legal proceedings against the violations of the country’s law.
