Omar Sunny Somrat’s innovative game show for charity on YouTube has garnered more than 1 billion views. A team of 20 produces the channel — SS Food Challenge — and organizes games for more than 40 villages in Bangladesh, aiming to provide food and toys for those from poor backgrounds. These games include tossing rings onto bottles and balancing ping pong balls on a hanging platform. The prizes range from a 5-liter jar of groundnut oil to toys for the children. Millions have viewed SS Food Challenge videos and have 3 million combined subscribers are on Facebook and YouTube. 

The Cause

Despite Bangladesh’s rapid economic growth in the last 20 years, poverty remains a major issue. Remote areas of Bangladesh, where Somrat films his gameshow for the poor, lack vital services such as health care, education and adequate roads to markets. Of those living in rural villages, 35% live below the poverty line, and 29% of people are moderately poor. Due to this, many Bangladeshis living in these villages have a diet that lacks nutritional value and, as a result, are more susceptible to health problems. In Bangladesh in 2021, for every 1,000 babies born, 27 died before their fifth birthday. 

Women, in particular, are the poorest in rural areas as they are offered fewer earning opportunities. The fast-growing population in Bangladesh causes issues for the natural environment, resulting in erosion and flooding. Bangladesh is a developed economy, but its GDP has slowed to less than 2% a year, far slower than other developed economies. 

The Solution

Omar Sunny Somrat’s gameshow for the poor in Bangladesh is innovative due to its ability to provide essential food, supplies and entertainment. The inevitable boredom derived from poverty additionally causes psychological issues. Somrat provides these villagers with entertainment alongside a sense of achievement as more than 300 people gather to watch his challenges. The excitement and comradery as the Bangladeshi root for their friends to provide more than a simple hand-out would. The sense of community formed because of these games brings together the rural villages. 

“We want to bring exciting, entertaining games to all the villages. It is not charity. We are trying to help people while also entertaining them,” Somrat told The National. Somrat refuses sponsored products and brand deals, instead covering the expenses himself. The gameshow even offers a consolation prize to all participants; therefore, everybody walks away with something. There are games for only women, allowing them to escape their monotonous routine and earn for themselves. 

The Response

Somrat’s gameshow for the poor has been organized in more than 40 villages in the Pabna district and aims to cover villages across Bangladesh. One villager, Mim, spoke to The Business Standard: “Everyone was so happy, and we enjoyed this so much that everyone requested them to organize more games with us again.” These challenges have provided far more than oil and toys but they are providing a sense of achievement and joy that is just as vital. 

– Anjini Snape
Photo: Flickr