Gone are the slogans of last week, demanding the "killer dictator" quit: if you ask Bangladesh's youth whether they're hopeful about the future, the writing literally is on the wall.
Students who led the weeks of protests that toppled autocratic premier Sheikh Hasina are back on the streets to give the capital Dhaka a makeover.
They are whitewashing walls to clear politically charged graffiti accusing her of murder and demanding her resignation at the height of this month's unrest.
In their place, they are daubing elaborate and colourful murals hinting at widespread faith among Bangladeshis of a better tomorrow.
"We want to reform our Bangladesh," Abir Hossain, 21, said as he and half a dozen classmates decorating a kerbside wall with the image of a bird flying out of its cage.
![A student paints a wall with revolutionary slogans to cover old murals related to the regime of Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League party: the colourful new murals hint at widespread faith among Bangladeshis of a better futureĀ A student paints a wall with revolutionary slogans to cover old murals related to the regime of Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League party: the colourful new murals hint at widespread faith among Bangladeshis of a better futureĀ](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/afp/2024-08/doc-36E797Z-%40photo1.jpg.webp?itok=96uA6qkg)
"We're feeling proud," he told AFP. "The bird is now free. We're independent now."
Students in paint-smeared shirts chatted and laughed with friends as they renovated the visual landscape of Shabagh, a leafy central neighbourhood that hosts the elite Dhaka University.
Colourful murals exhorted the public to "destroy the iron doors of prison" and celebrated Bangladesh's "rebirth".
"When the protests started, there were a lot of negative things written here," Fiyaz Hossain, 21, told AFP.
"We are erasing them... so people younger than us don't say them," he added.
"We're writing other things that they can say in the future."
- 'Shoot me in the chest' -
![Students who led the weeks of protests that toppled autocratic premier Sheikh Hasina are painting over slogans calling on her to quit with messages of hope for the future Students who led the weeks of protests that toppled autocratic premier Sheikh Hasina are painting over slogans calling on her to quit with messages of hope for the future](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/afp/2024-08/doc-36E797Z-%40photo2.jpg.webp?itok=dLEAK6lV)
Graffiti denouncing "Killer Hasina" proliferated on walls around Dhaka as the protests against her 15-rule intensified, and it is disappearing just as quickly.
"We want to deliver a message to the public that we have liberated this country from a dictator, and now we have to work together," Nafisa Sara, 19, told AFP during a quick break from the paintbrush.
"The people will see that if the students and all of us work together, we can build the country," she added.
But the impromptu public works project also shows that rancour towards the former leader remains widespread.
More than 450 people were killed in the unrest that ended last week when Hasina abruptly resigned and fled to India.
![A student creates a mural which says 'Shoot me in the chest' in Bangla language to depict Abu Sayeed, the first student slain in a police crackdown on protests A student creates a mural which says 'Shoot me in the chest' in Bangla language to depict Abu Sayeed, the first student slain in a police crackdown on protests](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/afp/2024-08/doc-36E797Z-%40photo3.jpg.webp?itok=DlEbfauC)
One of the murals depicts Abu Sayeed, a student shot dead in the northern city of Rangpur, the first student slain in a police crackdown on protests.
Footage of Sayeed's last moments has been shown repeatedly on Bangladeshi television since Hasina's departure breathed new life into a repressed media landscape.
The painting shows an image that has now been etched onto the national consciousness: the 25-year-old stretching his arms out wide in a defiant confrontation with riot police.
It is captioned with his reported last words: "Shoot me in the chest".
A Dhaka court on Tuesday ruled that a criminal investigation for murder could proceed against Hasina, two of her senior lieutenants and four police officers for a separate police killing during the unrest.
![Sheikh Hasina's government was accused of widespread human rights abuses, including the extrajudicial killing of thousands of her political opponents Sheikh Hasina's government was accused of widespread human rights abuses, including the extrajudicial killing of thousands of her political opponents](/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/afp/2024-08/doc-36E797Z-%40photo4.jpg.webp?itok=uvepJI9s)
The caretaker government that took office after her departure has yet to comment on whether it supports the case, or whether Hasina should return from exile to face some form of justice.
Student groups have in recent days held rallies to demand just that.
"She must be brought back to the country," said Mohiuddin Rony, 25, "and she must face trial".
By Indranil Mukherjee And Luis Tato