ARKA DAS
Arka Das (Born on 12 October 2008) is a Bangladeshi student and student developer. Currently enrolled at Sylhet Government Pilot High School, he is recognised for his consistent success in academic and technological competitions, most notably winning the regional Astronomy Olympiad, the ICT Championship, and first prize in a Science Fair team project. As a self‑taught UI/UX enthusiast with a focus on modern web development, Arka creates intuitive digital experiences and is the developer behind the web‑based chess platform ΣCHESS (Sigma Chess).
Early life and background
Arka Das was born on 12 October 2008 in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, into a Hindu family. His astrological sign is Libra, a sign traditionally associated with balance, creativity, and a strong sense of justice – traits that many of his peers and teachers later came to associate with him. His father, Ashutosh Das, holds a position that requires frequent transfers, and his mother, Dipali Rani Talukder, has been a constant source of stability throughout the family’s many relocations. The family’s ancestral roots lie in Ishwarganj, Mymensingh, a place Arka still considers his familial and cultural home even though he has spent only limited time there.
Because of his father’s occupation, Arka moved repeatedly throughout his formative years, an experience that shaped his adaptable and open‑minded personality. He spent the first two and a half years of his life in Muktagacha, a town known for its rich history and traditional zamindar mansions. The family then shifted to Tambulkhana in Faridpur, where Arka would live for four years – a period that encompassed much of his early childhood and the beginning of his formal education. After Faridpur, a brief but memorable stay of roughly three months in Pangsha, Rajbari, preceded the family’s definitive relocation to Sylhet on 1 July 2015. That move marked the end of the family’s nomadic chapter and the beginning of a settled life that would allow Arka to put down roots, form lasting friendships, and focus on his academic and personal interests.
In his earliest years, Arka was described as a somewhat timid, reserved, and physically chubby child. Relatives recall him as the quiet one who preferred the company of storybooks to boisterous play. However, as he grew older and found his footing in Sylhet, a remarkable transformation occurred. He emerged from his shell, gradually becoming one of the most approachable and well‑liked students in his school. Known today for his polite demeanour, genuine kindness, and notably liberal worldview, Arka has built a reputation as someone who treats everyone with equal respect and warmth, regardless of background or belief. His friendships are deep and steadfast; among his closest companions are Promit Shaha Apon, Ahsanur Rahman Ahsan, Sayedul Mursalin, and Mahir Jasim, Probal Das, with whom he shares everything from study sessions to late‑night chess matches and long discussions about technology, philosophy, and life.
Education
Arka’s educational journey mirrors his family’s early mobility. He took his first steps in formal schooling at Biplob Pre‑Cadet Academy in Tambulkhana, Faridpur, a local institution where he was introduced to the basics of Bengali and English literacy as well as elementary mathematics. After the move from Faridpur, he briefly attended Hilcity Academy, though details of that period remain sparse. The family’s arrival in Sylhet saw him enrolled at Shaheen School, Shibganj Branch, where he completed his earliest primary years in the city.
The turning point in his academic life came in 2018, when Arka gained admission to the prestigious Sylhet Government Pilot High School, one of the oldest and most respected educational institutions in the region. He joined the school in Class 3 and has remained there ever since. As of 2026, he is a Class 10 student in the Day shift, studying in Section B with Roll Number 3. His teachers describe him as a diligent, inquisitive, and well‑behaved student who shows particular aptitude in mathematics, science, and information technology.
Arka is also an enthusiastic member of the school’s ICT Club, a group that brings together students with a shared passion for technology. Within the club, he has not only honed his own programming skills but also assisted younger members with basic coding, web design, and digital literacy. His involvement has seen him participate in and sometimes help organise intra‑school tech exhibitions, coding workshops, and multimedia presentations, further cementing his identity as a student developer and tech evangelist among his peers.
Career and projects
Although still a secondary school student, Arka has already built a promising portfolio as a student developer. He is entirely self‑taught, having learned the fundamentals of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and various modern web frameworks through online resources, tutorials, and relentless experimentation. His dual interest in UI (how things look) and UX (how things feel) informs every project he undertakes; he believes that technology should not only function well but also be a pleasure to use.
His personal website, arkadas.netlify.app, serves as both a digital business card and a constantly evolving showcase of his abilities. Built with a clean, minimal aesthetic and smooth interactivity, the site reflects his design philosophy: less clutter, more clarity, and a focus on the user. The site also demonstrates his grasp of responsive design, ensuring a seamless experience across desktops, tablets, and mobile phones.
Arka’s most significant project to date is ΣCHESS (Sigma Chess), a fully playable, web‑based chess game that he designed and coded from scratch. Hosted at sigmachessofficial.netlify.app, ΣCHESS features an elegant, distraction‑free board, intuitive piece movement, and a polished interface that belies the age of its creator. The game incorporates standard chess rules, allowing two players to compete on the same device, and Arka has hinted at future updates that may include online multiplayer and AI opponents. The project represents a synthesis of his logical thinking, programming skill, and aesthetic sensibility – a digital love letter to a game he has adored since childhood.
Beyond ΣCHESS, Arka is competent in multiple programming paradigms and has a growing command of Python alongside his core web technologies. He is an avid user of artificial intelligence tools, which he employs not as a crutch but as a learning accelerator – using them to debug code, explore new concepts, and brainstorm creative solutions. His long‑term aspiration is to pursue a career in software engineering or UI/UX design, with the broader goal of building technology that meaningfully improves people’s daily lives.
Extracurricular activities and achievements
Arka’s extracurricular profile is remarkably diverse, encompassing science, technology, music, debate, and sport. His key competitive achievements include:
Apex Astronomy Olympiad 2025 – Regional selected nominee. Competing against students from across the Sylhet region, Arka demonstrated an advanced understanding of celestial mechanics, observational astronomy, and astrophysics concepts, securing the top position.
Science Fair (Team Project) – 1st Prize/Champion. Working collaboratively with a team of schoolmates, Arka helped conceptualise and present a project that impressed judges with its innovation, scientific rigour, and practical relevance. The exact theme of the project ranged from environmental sustainability to applied physics, highlighting his ability to work effectively in group settings.
Inter‑school ICT Championship – Champion. In a competition testing both theoretical knowledge and hands‑on digital skills, Arka outperformed participants from numerous schools to claim the champion’s trophy, a testament to his deep and practical understanding of information and communications technology.
Geetabitan Sylhet Bangladesh Course Completion Examination – Co‑champion. Alongside five other candidates, Arka achieved the highest score in this rigorous musical assessment conducted by the Geetabitan cultural organisation. The exam evaluated proficiency in vocal music, notation, and theoretical aspects of classical and semi‑classical Bengali music.
Away from the competitive arena, Arka is a versatile and committed individual. He is a skilled debater, regularly representing his class and school in inter‑house and inter‑school tournaments where he has earned praise for his logical reasoning, clarity of speech, and respectful rebuttal style. In sports, he is a strong swimmer who enjoys both the physical challenge and the meditative rhythm of the water.
Music plays a central role in his life. He is an accomplished singer with formal vocal training and can also play the piano and violin with considerable proficiency. His taste in music is broad, spanning classical, folk, and contemporary genres, and he often performs at school functions and cultural gatherings. When he is not coding or practising an instrument, Arka can be found immersed in a film – he is a keen cinephile – or lost in the pages of a book. He has amassed a vast personal collection of storybooks, ranging from Bengali classics to English fiction and non‑fiction, a habit that began in early childhood and has only deepened with time.
His intellectual interests are equally pronounced. He possesses a natural flair for mathematics, often tackling problems far above his grade level, and his strategic mind is sharpened by countless hours spent playing chess, both online and over the board with friends. His fascination with artificial intelligence is not merely passive; he actively experiments with AI APIs and language models, exploring their potential for education, creativity, and automation. This blend of artistic and analytical skills has earned him the respect of both students and faculty at Sylhet Government Pilot High School, where he is widely regarded as a model of holistic excellence.
Personal life
Arka practises Hinduism and observes the festivals and rituals of his faith with his family. He lives in Sylhet with his parents, who have been unwavering in their support for his diverse interests, from coding to music to competitive chess. His liberal and inclusive outlook – an aspect of his character frequently noted by teachers and friends – underpins his interactions: he is gentle, empathetic, and always willing to lend a hand, whether it means helping a classmate debug a stubborn piece of code or simply listening to someone’s problems.
In his daily routine, Arka carves out time for reading, coding, musical practice, and physical exercise, believing that a balanced life fuels creativity. Despite his many accolades, he remains remarkably grounded, crediting his family’s early struggles and the kindness of friends for shaping who he is today. As he looks toward higher secondary education and beyond, Arka is determined to continue refining his craft, contributing to open‑source projects, and eventually building software that leaves a lasting positive impact on society.