December 23, 2020
The misdeed of masquerading as a Muktijoddha
Bangladesh emerged as an independent nation through the unconditional surrender of the Pakistani army to the joint command of Bangladesh and Indian forces on December 16, 1971.
November 30, 2020
Looking at the November coups through a neutral lens
Newspaper articles published on the military coups held in Dhaka in November 1975 are often coloured by the authors’ political standpoints and ideologies.
November 6, 2020
How respectful are we of the ideals of Liberation War?
In 1971, the Pakistani military junta wanted to prevent Bengalis of then East Pakistan from pursuing their just demands by using brute force.
August 29, 2020
Destroyed, but not defeated
It is said that in times of peace, sons bury their fathers, but in war, it is the fathers who bury their sons. On August 29, 1971, the Pakistani army caught Bodiul Alam (Bodi), Shafi Imam (Rumi), Abdul Halim Chowdhury (Jewel) and Magfar Ahmed Chowdhury (Azad) in Dhaka city. They were the members of a guerrilla unit of Mukti Bahini.
June 2, 2020
Courage, thy name is Devdas
Recently, Mujibor Rahman Devdas passed away. Although the state honoured him with the Ekushey Padak, he had to lead his life in isolation and remained totally unknown to many people.
May 16, 2020
Are we praising the right films?
When did we last watch a formally-innovative Bangladeshi film that made a conscious attempt to confront and denounce a long-standing social problem of our country? And when did we last witness people’s huge enthusiasm to watch a film that did away with alluring ingredients and attempted to raise people’s sociopolitical consciousness?
April 24, 2020
Mindlessness as Food for the Mind?
At a time when it is essential to maintain social distancing in order to remain safe amidst the Covid-19 outbreak, we see many people displaying a reckless disregard for the need to stay indoors.
January 3, 2019
Remembering Mrinal Sen, whose films connote courage and consciousness
Only a handful of Bengali filmmakers are revered in the realm of world cinema whose names are mentioned with legendary directors such as Jean-Luc Godard, Francois Truffaut, Ingmar Bergman, Luis Bunuel, Akira Kurosawa, Yasujiro Ozu, Ousmane Sembene, Federico Fellini, Michelangelo Antonioni, Glauber Rocha and others.
August 29, 2017
They gave their today, for our tomorrow
Today, on another August 29, how many people remember that dark night when these patriotic and fearless young men had been captured? Do the members of our new generation have any interest in reading about the young Bengali guerrillas who were murdered by the Pakistani army in 1971?
August 8, 2017
Save our heroes from oblivion
My current students' unfamiliarity with Major Ziauddin only shows that the unwillingness of our young people to know about the heroes of 1971 persists.