⁠⁠Features

⁠⁠Features

LITERARY CURTAINS / ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’: Reverberating despair and dread through a theatrical production

All Quiet on the Western Front (Little, Brown and Company, 1929), a semi-autobiographical novel authored by a German World War I veteran, Erich Maria Remarque, is one of the greatest anti-war works of literature—one that was published nearly a century back and still holds relevance today

5d ago

TRIBUTE / The poet who declared birth was his eternal sin

Remembering the stateless poet Daud Haider

6d ago

WORLD BOOK AND COPYRIGHT DAY / A tribute to the written word

'A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies'

1w ago

ESSAY / Aparna Sanyal and the burden of representation in South Asian literature

Aparna Upadhyaya Sanyal’s 'Instruments of Torture' is a powerful literary collection that delves into the psychological and societal torments individuals endure, particularly focusing on themes of beauty standards and the representation of women. Each story in the collection is named after a medieval torture device, serving as a metaphor for the emotional and societal pressures faced by the characters.

2w ago

CREATIVE NONFICTION / Of glitter pens, prestige, and Eids in Dhaka

Being a Dhakaite, your Eids in childhood were spent in mournful longings for something to happen.

1m ago

FEATURE / Whose language matters: On inclusion, identity, and silence

The panel supplied a critical as well as emotional commentary on the issues of linguistic hegemonisation, power imbalances, the marginalisation of non-Bangali languages and identities, and the aftermath of the revolutionary spirit of July 2024

1m ago

ESSAY / The power of Qasidas and devotional poetry in deepening Ramadan reflections

While core acts of devotion take center stage, qasidas (Islamic odes) and devotional poetry serve as powerful complements, enriching the experience of Ramadan and deepening one’s spiritual reflections

1m ago

EVENT REPORT / ‘Bengal Photography’s Reality Quest’: A discourse with Naeem Mohaiemen

Throughout the session, Mohaiemen’s passionate, spontaneous, and engaging demeanour captivated the audience, fostering a deeper understanding of storytelling through images.

1m ago

Finding Obayed Haque: A contemporary writer who lives in his words

If you pick up an Obayed Haque novel, you won’t find an author’s photo, a detailed biography, or even a note about his life.

2m ago

Desire, Identity, and the boundaries of silence

Saikat Majumdar, a professor of English and Creative Writing at Ashoka University, is a writer whose works delve deep into the intricacies of identity, desire, and the tensions between personal yearnings and institutional expectations.

2m ago

Michael Madhusudan Dutt: A pioneer of modern Bangla literature

January 25, 2025 marks the 201st birth anniversary of Michael Madhushudan Dutt

3m ago

The Doppelgänger

It was actually a bit of a relief to sit on the terrace of the Gezira Pension and have a quiet breakfast before plunging back once more into the traffic of Cairo in search of a carriage to the museum.

3m ago

Spectacularised rape

In the psyche and schema of the average transnational Bangladeshi, rape is visible and legitimate only when it takes spectacular forms—violent, brutal, deadly.

4m ago

On invisibilised violence

In classic Bengali fiction, the kitchen is a central site for conflict and community bonding.

5m ago

The vampires of Bangla literature

Pale, aristocratic, seductive forces lurking in the dark—when we think of vampires, we often perceive them through a western lens

5m ago

The old and new Bangladesh from the eyes of a historical fiction writer

In the West, South Asian literature is primarily dominated by works from India and then Pakistan. This dominance has made it difficult for Bangladeshi authors to receive the attention they deserve for their work

6m ago

Story of an ‘Unaccompanied Minor’: A tribute to Matthew Perry

It's almost as if Matthew Perry was destined to write this book.

6m ago

A surreal graphic novel by Subimal Misra

As I read Subimal Misra–I was therefore seized by the urge to bring out his stories, or "anti-stories", in graphic form

6m ago