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Birth anniv of Sufia Kamal observed
Mahila Parishad introduces Poet Sufia Kamal Award
Anisur Rahman
The 96th anniversary of birth of Poet Sufia Kamal was observed on Wednesday with various programmes highlighting her contribution to the advancement of womenfolk as well as the nation.
The Bangladesh Mahila Parishad held a memorial lecture on Sufia Kamal and a cultural function at the BIAM auditorium in Dhaka on the occasion.
Eminent writer Professor Hasan Azizul Huq delivered memorial lecture styled 'The movements in democracy' at the function chaired by Parishad president Comrade Hena Das.
Parishad's general secretary Ayesha Khanam and international secretary Nasimun Ara Huq, among others, spoke at the function.
Hasan Azizul Huq in his lecture said, "Sufia Kamal was vocal against all autocratic regimes in the country."
Referring to the current political situation, he said, "Do the repression on people and discrimination prevailing in the society mean democracy?"
"The role of Sufia Kamal is now very necessary for us. She could touch the spirit of humanity in her society", he added.
Poet Mahbub-ul-Alam Chowdhury read out his self-composed poem on Sufia Kamal entitled Janani Sahasika, while Bhaswar Bandyopadhaya and Pragga Laboni recited poems written by Sufia Kamal. Singers Meeta Huq and Iffat Ara Dewan remembered the late poet through musical performance.
Sufia Kamal was born on June 20, 1911 in Barisal. She played an active role in all progressive movements since 1947. Her role in the movements of 1969, 1971, 1987, 1990 and 1992 is notable. She died in Dhaka on November 20, 1999.
The parishad has introduced the Poet Sufia Kamal Award for the first time. Every year, the Parishad will give the award to a literary scholar for his contribution to research on literature in women-awakening in the society.
This year, writer and researcher Professor Golam Murshid got the award. The parishad will hand over the award to him on Begum Rokeya Day on December 9.
Born in Barisal in 1940, Golam Murshid did his Master's in Bengali from the Dhaka University in 1962. He now lives in London.
Murshid was a professor of Bangla at the Rajshahi University. He also worked for BBC.
Author of a number of books, he is specially mentioned for his biographical work on Michael Madhusudan Duttta and in women's awakening in the 19th century reform movements on Bengali drama.
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Nrityanchal presents Chhau dance
Cultural Correspondent
Chhau dance is not widely known in Bangladesh though this genre of performing art has its roots in the soil of Bengal. Three styles of Chhau dance - Seraikella, Purulia and Mayurbhanj - belong to the
neighbouring Indian states of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Orissa.
To popularise Chhau dance in Bangladesh, Nrityanchal arranged a workshop with the children in Dhaka. On the concluding day of the workshop the organisers arranged Chhau dance presentation at the auditorium of the Bangladesh Shishu Academy on June 18.
Chairman of International Theatre Institute, Ramendu Majumdar was present as chief guest while Mohammad Jahangir of Nrityanchal spoke at the function. Dancers Shamim Ara Nipa, Shibli Mohammad and Suchita Majumdar also spoke at the discussion part of the programme.
Ramendu Majumdar said that the government should take proper initiatives to nourish the country's cultural heritage. He demanded of the government to strengthen cultural exchange programmes among the neighbouring countries.
The other speakers hoped that the performers who had taken lessons on Chhau dance would do better in future. They also hoped that the students could use the forms and techniques of Chhau dance in choreographing dance pieces in their professional life.
According to the organisers, Chhau dances represent an interesting blend of folk, tribal and classical elements. Like classical dance, there is a certain amount of codification but the dances retain freedom of improvisation. Their movements depict vivid images from everyday life.
Most Chhau themes are drawn from the two great Indian epics - the Ramayana and the Mahabharata as well as the India mythology.
The dance performances were directed by noted Indian dancer Swapan Majumdar. His wife, Suchita Majumdar, a Bangladeshi national, along with the students of Nrityanchal, delighted the audience by presenting the three types of Chhau dance at the programme.
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UNESCO workshop begins
Cultural Correspondent
A five-day international workshop on attaining universal literacy, organised by UNESCO Dhaka in collaboration with UNESCO Bangkok and UNESCO Institute of Lifelong Learning, began in Dhaka on Monday.
The Japanese ambassador to Bangladesh, Masayuki Inou, inaugurated the event at Hotel Sarina in Banani as chief guest.
Among others who spoke on the occasion was Malama Meleisea, UNESCO Representative to Bangladesh.
The workshop was organised to attain Education for All, one of the millennium development goals, by 2015, promoting mother tongue as well as the national language.
Masayuki Inou in his speech mentioned that there is only eight years time to achieve the target of basic education for all and stressed that it would take persistent and concerted efforts of all quarters involved to attain that goal.
Recollecting the glorious sacrifice that Bengalis had made for their right to speak in their mother tongue, Inou hoped that Bangladesh would accomplish the present challenge of achieving universal literacy.
Meleisea underscored the significance of conducting literacy programmes through one's mother tongue to facilitate universal access to education.
'UNESCO believes in and promotes cultural diversity and when one promotes mother tongue, one is promoting cultural diversity,' he observed.
While learning the national language is important, numerous researches undertaken all over the world has reached the same conclusion that quality education or literacy can be imparted only through the mother tongue, Malama added.
A large number of participants from Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Afghanistan and experts from Latin America and Africa are attending the workshop.
Some of the main issues that will be featured in the workshop include 'capacity building in designing mother tongue first bilingual literacy programs', 'literacy teaching learning methodologies for bilingual education', 'develop strategies for establishment of interregional networks and policy dialogues'.
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Film Centre to be launched on July 1
All advanced countries of the world have their own national film centres, for example the National Film Centre of UK on the Southbank of London. Even cities boast of their own film centres, like the "Nandan" of our neighbouring Kolkata. For decades the cine-lovers and film-society activists of this country have urged successive governments to set up a film centre in Dhaka but nothing positive has happened so far in Bangladesh. The organizers, under the leadership of noted film-maker Tanvir Mokammel, have taken an initiative to establish a small film centre. Stybd Bangladesh Film Centre (BFC), the organisation will begin its journey from 1st July, 2007.
The film centre will have an auditorium where members can regularly watch the old classics and contemporary quality feature and documentary films of Bangladesh. Films of the alternative film-makers of the country, which are not generally exhibited in the commercial cine-halls, will be regularly shown in the film centre for its members. Besides, there will be a library with film-related books and journals, and a rich DVD library, from where the members can borrow books and DVDs.
The membership of BFC will be of two kinds, permanent membership and temporary membership. In the permanent category the most coveted and prestigious one will be the life-long membership. Besides, there will be five years', yearly and six-months' membership. For special situation, one can also be a temporary member for one month only. For each category of membership there will be different membership fees.
The members are entitled to watch all the films shown in the film centre and to receive books and DVDs from the library. BFC will remain open from 4.00 pm to 8.00 pm of every day of the week except Sunday.
The Film Centre will wok in close cooperation with the Bangladesh Film Institute. The director of the BFC is Tanvir Mokammel.
For further information about Bangladesh Film Centre interested persons may contact:
Bangladesh Film Centre; 160 Lake Circus (4th floor); Mirpur Road, Kalabagan; Dhaka-1205; Bangladesh. Phones: 01720-015 284; 01711-071 550; 01712-086 102; 01714-648 541; 01711-940 163. E-mail: bfcdhaka@gmail.com>
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Indian film focusses on profanation
as family trade
Reuters Mumbai
A new film will examine a centuries-old tradition among some underprivileged Indian communities where girls in the family become prostitutes, with their brothers and fathers acting as pimps.
Mostly restricted to a few male-dominated ethnic groups in central and southern India, this custom means women sell themselves to support the family while the men drink and gamble in between soliciting clients for their daughters and sisters.
One such community is the Banjaras, living on the arid plains of central India, where the eldest daughter of the family is introduced into prostitution - often when she turns 12 - with bizarre fanfare.
The mother dresses up the daughter for her first client while the father negotiates the best price for her virginity.
'Rivaaz,' or tradition, tells the story of a teenage girl who is to follow the age-old custom and become a prostitute. But her mother protests, triggering anger in a community living off their womenfolk.
'Family-based prostitution exists in more than 300 districts in India,' Ashok Nanda, the director of the Hindi-language film, said.
While certain communities like the Banjaras see family-based prostitution as 'god's will,' other groups coerce their women into the flesh trade as a form of bonded labor to pay off debts taken from moneylenders.
In this system, the prostitute generally works without pay for a year or longer in order to repay a debt.
Since Indian law prohibits prostitution, the bizarre tradition is unregulated by authorities, and more than 90 percent of these pre-teen prostitutes become pregnant. Many others are infected with sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS.
In 'Rivaaz,' one of the girls, played by Bollywood actress Meghna Naidu, is ugly and hated by her family. The film also stars well-known Indian art-house actress Deepti Naval as the protesting mother.
The film will be screened at the New York film festival next month and will open in India in September.
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Band music is widely accepted
in Bangladesh, speakers say
Robab Rosan
Band music is very popular among the youth of Bangladesh. This kind of music was introduced in Bangladesh more than thirty years ago and had been gradually winning adherents among the younger generation. Now it is on the way to being accepted as a part of the country's cultural heritage.
The officials of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy stated this at the inaugural session of the two-day programme of band music, organised by the academy at its National Theatre Hall in Segun Bagicha on Sunday.
The academy's director general Qamrul Hasan, director of dance and music, Sunil Chandra Das and director of dramatics and film, Shafi Kamal spoke at the inaugural day of the programme.
Qamrul Hasan said that the band music during the last thirty years has acquired a strong foundation in Bangladesh. 'We should not ignore this genre of music,' he continued, 'during this time of globalisation the Bangladeshi band music should be practised mingling local heritage with modern instruments.'
He hoped for further development of band music in Bangladesh and assured that the academy would continue its support in promoting band music among the young people of the country.
Sunil Chandra Das said that for the first time the academy arranged programme of band music to meet the demand of young audience. 'The academy works for the development and nourishment of healthy music.
Terming the band music as a new trend in the country's cultural tradition, he said, 'We have arranged this programme to fulfil the academy's commitment to support quality music.'
Shafi Kamal said that this was the proper time to narrow the gap between the academy and younger generation. 'Band music is no longer an alien culture. Band music has gradually struck roots in our society since after the independence of Bangladesh,' he said.
Kamal also laid emphasis on the pursuit of healthy band music.
The inaugural session was followed by the performances of poplar groups LRB, Feedback and Face to Face. Two music bands Steeler and Parthib also performed at the programme.
The groups delighted a packed audience inside the hall singing their popular numbers.
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