A tragic demise

"When a great man dies, for years the light he leaves behind him, lies on the paths of men,” were the words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  Similarly, Sajal Khaled, an eminent filmmaker & mountain climber has left us just after achieving his lifelong dream of conquering Mount Everest.

After conquering Everest, Sajal Khaled faced his demise on 20 May during his decent in the “death zone” -- above 8,000 meters. Altitude sickness was the main cause of an untimely death at the young age of 35. Thankfully, the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry is making proper arrangements to bring his body back promptly.

Photo: Tamim Sujat

I was lucky enough to have been able to interview Sajal Khaled during a Rising Star interview about his film 'Kajoler Din Ratri' released last December. The film was based on the popular novel written by Muhammed Zafar Iqbal who had also written the script for the movie. “It is a story about Kajol, a teenage boy whose parents are separating. It depicts the problems the child faces in such a situation and how he copes with it,” Sajal said that day. He related that the specialty of the film is that it showcases a common social problem, something everyone should be aware of. Sajal's plans for this film were huge and he planned to screen it for free in all 64 districts of Bangladesh before its release on TV. The inspiration behind the movie was his one-and-a-half-year-old son, Susmit. Sajal's efforts to ensure that this film reaches every child of Bangladesh are truly praiseworthy and hopefully his initiative will inspire many others to do more for children.

Sajal began his film-making career in 2006, when he returned after completing his education in media technology from Germany. His first film was 'Ekattorer Shobdosen' and 'Kajoler Din Ratri' was his last. Since 2000 the avid mountaineer spent three months a year up in the Himalayas. His first attempt to conquer Mount Everest was an unsuccessful one because of extreme weather conditions prevailing at the time.

The multitalented individual had lived his lifelong dream and finally conquered Mount Everest this May. Tragically, none of us will hear the story of his brave journey to the summit. Sajal Khaled has made his country proud and he shall live in our hearts forever.