A month-long literary and cultural hub

inset Dr. Shamsuzzaman Khan Photo Courtesy: Aziz Mallick

It's that time of the year again. The aroma of freshly printed books in the air. When Bangla Academy, or pretty much Dhaka University campus, takes on a festive hue and becomes the literary and cultural hub in Dhaka. The event that epitomises celebration of Bangladeshi literature, litterateurs and readers -- Ekushey Boi Mela -- kicks off today.
So what does this year's Boi Mela offer? Bangla Academy Director General Dr. Shamsuzzaman Khan, who was busy orchestrating the opening ceremony of the month-long fair, said over the phone, “This year's Boi Mela is special, as we're celebrating 40 years of independence and 60th anniversary of the Language Movement.”
The fair will be inaugurated this afternoon by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Presided over by Professor Emeritus Anisuzzaman, the opening programme will be attended by Information and Cultural Affairs Minister Abul Kalam Azad and State Minister for Cultural Affairs Promod Mankin.
British poet, writer and translator William Radice is also set to attend the opening programme. Radice is the Senior Lecturer in Bengali in the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. His research area is in Bengali language and literature. He has translated several Bengali works, and works by Rabindranath Tagore and Michael Madhusudan Dutt.
A new building on the Bangla Academy premises will also be opened today.
Discussions during the first few days at the fair will highlight reminiscence of the Language Movement by witnesses and veteran activists, the impact of the Language Movement on the formation of Bengali identity, 40 years of Bangladesh's independence and more.
This year's Boi Mela will have 20-25 more stalls than last year's, according to the DG of Bangla Academy. A press release provided by Bangla Academy says that 425 organisations are participating at this year's fair. These include publishing houses, public and private organisations, socio-cultural and voluntary groups and media houses. The mela premises have been divided into nine zones named after Language Movement martyrs, litterateurs and intellectuals.