"Nawn Realizes His True Calling" by Marcus Bethel

Cold calling on Wall Street is hardly what 20-year-old Mushtaq Choudhury of Sunnyside, Queens would refer to as his “true calling” since this aspiring young journalist’s passion for writing outweighs every other interest in his extremely busy life.

Originally from Richmond Hill, Queens, Nawn, as he is otherwise known, “is an outstanding individual, very political and a very good person,” as his life-long friend Owen Awning, describes him. He attended Richmond Hill High School, where he won a partial basketball scholarship to West Virginia University. While away at West Virginia University, he discovered the essence of independence and responsibility, encouraging his breakaway from his parents on his return to Queens.

His tenure at West Virginia University was a short one; Choudhury is currently a junior at Brooklyn College, where his major is journalism, complimented by a minor in film. At West Virginia University, Choudhury originally played as a combo guard – having a point guard body with a shooting guard game. Later, he become a point guard, but encountered problems having to make the adjustment.

Things took an interesting turn for Choudhury when he wrote “Social Segregation in Rural Town of Keyser, WV,” an article which highlighted the issue of segregation in the small town, for the Pasquino, West Virginia University’s school newspaper. The article got major recognition, propelling Choudhury to editor-in-chief, a position he held for two years. His focus shifted from basketball to writing.

Choudhury, to maintain his scholarship, had to juggle five intense hours of basketball practice (three hours team practice, one hour film review and an hour group work with the coach) with his role as editor-in-chief of his paper, combined with his commitment to his regular school work.

At five feet nine inches and a bit on the heavy side, Choudhury’s great interest for basketball was driven by his father’s love of the sport. “My father liked basketball so I always wanted to impress him,” he said. He described his father as an accomplished individual, who was responsible for bringing his extended family to New York, migrating from Celep, Bangladesh, a small country which shares its western boundaries with India.

Choudhury’s hectic daily four-train-commute to Brooklyn College, starts with the A to the C to the S and finally to the no. 2 train to Flatbush Avenue, is no deterrent for him. Though he often times dreads the return trip which could take well in excess of an hour and a half, Choudhury claims every minute is well spent as he enjoys his time here. “It was my first choice in New York because Columbia was too expensive,” said Choudhury. “Brooklyn College, challenges the average student to excel, having a great curriculum in comparison with the other CUNY schools, offering a well rounded education.”

Choudhury family has strong religious ethics well rooted into the Islamic religion; having a tradition of arranged marriages, something Choudhury has no real interest in. His lack of interest in his family’s traditional customs and values is attributed to his American upbringing, and lack of exposure to the real customs of his ancestors.

Choudhury does his best trying to confirm with his parents wishes by praying three times daily, also sharing the food and other culturally related aspects of his family’s religious rituals. “Though I don’t really understand what is said or recited during religious ceremonies,” Choudhury admits “I read a bit of Arabic myself.”

As he continues his pursuit of happiness and “The American Dream,” Choudhury hopes to combine his common interests in basketball and business with his passion for journalism in the future, to nurture his dream of having his own magazine; a publication he said, will concentrate on sports and business in the New York area.