Theatre fest marks Mirpur liberation day

Rifat Munim

Theatre group Sattwik Natya Sampraday organised a weeklong theatre festival titled '10th Walton Mirpur Utsab'at the National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy from January 31 to mark the freeing of Mirpur in 1971.
   Though the country became independent on December 16, 1971, the non-Bengali community of Dhaka's Mirpur refused to give up their allegiance with the occupation Pakistan army and resisted the Bangladesh liberation forces for 46 days till January 31, 1972. At the inaugural session, the organisers honoured guerrilla commander of Mirpur and Mohammadpur area Syed Shaidul Haque and Abdul Hakim killed by the non-Bengali miscreants and noted poet Kazi Rozi for their contribution and suffering in liberating Mirpur.
   The programme began with the screening of a documentary titled 'Mirpur: the Last Frontier'. Directed by Sagir Mustafa, the film highlighted the brutalities and mass killings committed by the non-Bengali community during the 46-day occupation.
   State minister for land Mustafizur Rahman was chief guest at the inaugural session also attended by member of the parliament Shaheda Tarek Dipti, RTV chief executive officer M Hamid, Sammilito Sangskritik Jote secretary Hasan Arif, Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation secretary general Jhuna Chowdhury, Sattwik Natya Sampraday president Belal Hossain Bhuiyan, Bangladesh Pathanatak Parishad secretary Mizanur Rahman and Walton director Humayun Kabir.
   Speaking on the occasion, the state minister said that despite all the ill-motives of the occupation forces and their cohorts, Bangladesh had turned around and would continue to march ahead in the right direction.
   He also announced that a town hall would be established in Mirpur to meet the demands of the cultural activists of the locality.
   Later the organisers staged the 77th show of 'Pejgi'. Based on the 17th century French playwright Moliere, the play was adapted by Apu Aman and directed by Kamruzzaman Tupa. Matiur Sumon, Santwana, Anu Mohammad Harun and Anisur Rahman Selim played different roles in the play. Theatre group Dhaka Padatik will stage 'Katha 71' scripted by Kumar Pritish Shil and directed by Debashish Ghosh at 6:30pm at the National Theatre Hall on February 3.
   On February 4, Theatre will stage 'Balad' scripted by Gazi Rakayet and directed by K M Harun at the same time and venue.
   On February 5, Mahakal Natya Sampraday will stage 'Ghum Nei' scripted by Nasiruddin Yousuff and directed by John Martin.

^ TOP OF THIS PAGE ^ MAIN PAGE

'Hey Ananta Punya', a dance drama based on 'Notir Puja and Pujari' of Rabindranath Tagore, was premiered recently at Daffodil International University (DIU) organized by the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication. The function was addressed among others by Prof. Abul Hasan Chowdhury, Dr. Fazlul Alam, Lubna Morium, general secretary of Sadhona, dance director Wardda Rihab and Arif Rassel. Kamrun Nahar, Head of the department of JMC, presided over the function.
   The drama takes the viewers back to the shaping years of Buddhism. Men and women responded to Buddha's call to embrace the Ajatshatru (Eightfold Path) and he ascended the throne of his father, King Bimbisar of Magadh. The latter had renounced his noble rights to pursue nirvana through the rites of Buddhism. Ajatshatur's mounting hunger for power contradicts Buddha's doctrines of peace and forgiveness. The King bans all forms of practice of the new faith. The Queen Mother is left in a dilemma; she is drawn towards the message of love. The court dancer Sreemati resolves to embrace the new faith in the midst of this chaos. An unyielding seeker of eternal love and beauty, the path to enlightenment is presaged by Sreemati as she makes the ultimate sacrifice for her belief.
   — Omar Faruque

^ TOP OF THIS PAGE ^ MAIN PAGE

---

Michael Jackson, Leonard Cohen
win special Grammys

Reuters, Los Angeles

Michael Jackson won yet another posthumous honour on Saturday, joining six other musicians including Leonard Cohen and Loretta Lynn who received Grammy awards for lifetime achievement.
   But Jackson's family, whose members rarely turn down an opportunity to share his spotlight, did not attend the ceremony at the Wilshire Ebell Theater, despite speculation that some of his children might accept the statuette on his behalf.
   Instead, Jackson's former manager, Frank DiLeo, did the honours, describing the pop star as 'a funny guy, he had a sense of humour like none of you ever knew.'
   Jackson, who died of a drug overdose last year, aged 50, won 13 Grammys in his lifetime.
   An unshaved Cohen, sporting a fedora and bolo tie, wryly noted that he never won a Grammy for any of his recordings.
   'As we make our way toward the finish line that some of us have already crossed, I never thought I'd get a Grammy award. In fact, I was always touched by the modesty of their interest,' he said to loud applause.
   The 75-year-old Canadian folk poet did receive a Grammy two years ago as one of the featured artists on Herbie Hancock's surprise album of the year winner.
   As a bonus, he recited the lyrics of his comic tune 'The Tower of Song' featuring such lines as 'I was born like this, I had no choice. I was born with the gift of a golden voice.'
   Bobby Darin, the man behind such hits as 'Mack the Knife' and 'Splish Splash,' was another posthumous winner. The award was accepted by his son, Dodd, who tearfully recalled that his father knew 'he wouldn't be around for the long haul.'

^ TOP OF THIS PAGE ^ MAIN PAGE

---

Rahman bags two Grammy Awards

“God is great again,” said Rahman. Indian music maestro A.R Rahman has bagged two awards at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles on January 31st, 2010.The double Oscar winning composer was honoured for his compositions in Danny Boyle's rags-to-riches film Slumdog Millionaire, getting the awards for best compilation soundtrack for a motion picture and “Jai ho” being the best motion picture song.
   Rahman shares the Grammy with lyricist Gulzar who penned “Jai ho”. “God is great again,” Rahman said as he accepted his second award.”Jai ho” has been sung by Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer, Vijay Prakash and Rahman himself. This is the first time Rahman has been nominated for a Grammy. He joins other Indian music greats like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Zakir Jussain, Vikku Vinayak and Vishvamohan Bhatt who have won a Grammy in the past. Rahman's rivals in the soundtrack category included Steve Jordan for “Cadillac Records,” Quentin Tarantino for “Inglourious Basterds”, and the producers of “Twilight” and “True Blood.” In the best song category Rahman's beaten rivals included Bruce Springsteen for his song “The Wrestler,” from the Oscar-nominated movie of the same name.

^ TOP OF THIS PAGE ^ MAIN PAGE

---

The mourning Gaza

Mujtoba Ahmed Murshed

The blue sky seems a name of a forgotten day,
   It seems this was the sky once lovable, cute.
   Once it was with full of emotion of butterfly.
   
   Look, our unkind efforts have brought us
   Under the catastrophic sky.
   Look, it is we are making our own ill fate,
   Making our devastated weeping Gaza more fragile
   And putting other parts of land in cry.
   
   Look, it is only we have truly blessed
   All dirty bomb and missile.
   It is we have removed love from each other's mind,
   And programmed bomb-beasts mustn't give a thought,
   Even not to notice any human child.
   
   Yes, it is we all are silent as we all love to remain here.
   Yes, it is we all forget our means where to go, where?
   
   Why, why, why – we couldn't bring back the blue sky?
   The fireball questions in my heart burst now,
   Why we are remaining yet silent and shy?
   
   Is it that we all are silent as we all love to remain here,
   Is it that we all forget our means where to go, where?
   
   Trust me, I say, there is also a baby born!
   A new born baby speaks the truth in mother's breast
   Under the bullets raining down from the Gaza sky.

^ TOP OF THIS PAGE ^ MAIN PAGE