‘I dedicate this win to Rubaiyat Hossain’

She began her journey of acting at the age of six with the theatre group Tokai Natyodol, later playing lead child artiste in Abul Hayat's directorial television series "Alo Amar Alo". Reekita Nondine Shimu stepped into the silver screen when Tareque Masud featured her in 'Runway' in 2010. She also worked in films like — 'Matir Projar Deshe' (2018) and the Indian film 'Once Upon a Time in Calcutta' (2021).

The actress, who won the Best Actress award at Festival de Saint -Jean-de-Luz, in France in 2019 for Rubaiyat Hossain's 'Shimu', was announced the Best Actress in the National Film Award (2022) for her portrayal of her namesake this year. She will be taking home the award jointly with Jaya Ahsan ('Beauty Circus').

Congratulations! What was the first thought that came to your mind upon hearing the news?

Thank you! I got a message from (Azmeri Haque) Badhan apu, who wrote, 'Congratulations, so proud of you!' Before I could reply to her, (Syed Ahmed) Shawki bhai congratulated me over the phone. I was still confused and thought they were making a mistake, and I asked him to give me proof! However, a little later I got a call from Rubaiyat apu, who shared that she was really happy and proud. I could finally believe it and felt honoured and elated.

How was your journey with 'Shimu' and Rubaiyat Hossain?

It was a journey for life. Rubaiyat apu holds a special place in my heart. We all know that her father (former Communication Minister Abul Hossain) recently passed away. Even while mourning, she praised me for my achievement. Our film is going to get awards in three more categories — Best Director; Rubaiyat Hossain, Best Editing; Sujon Mahmud and Best Costume Designer and Makeup; Tansina Shawon.

While talking about "Shimu", Rubaiyat apu gave me all the strength to pull off this role. The people of the RMG sector deal with great challenges every day, and learning about them and their stories inspired me. I was a little nervous before taking up this role, however, her support made it all possible. Previously we had collaborated in "Under Construction", in 2015.

Despite not having proper institutions for learning filmmaking, Bangladesh made it possible to compete at the international level, thanks to the effort of actors like you and directors like Rubaiyat Hossain. Thoughts?

We have resources, but we need proper institutes to improve our technical aspects. If we get such authorised organisations, then the directors will feel less pressure while working on a project and creativity will flourish more.

You have appeared in OTT projects like 'Taqdeer' and 'Kaiser'. Do you look forward to working more on the web?

I really enjoy working in the OTT industry. Both the projects I had worked on had strong stories and scripts that I couldn't say no to. I look forward to working more in OTT, and I am in talks with a project whose shooting will begin next month.

What are your upcoming projects?

I don't get too many roles, however, I believe that directors will think of me and give me challenging roles. Recently, I have completed working on a government-granted project, which is slated to be released next year.