Bangla literature

How my admiration for Kazi Nazrul Islam evolved over the years

Kazi Nazrul Islam’s work remains just as relevant and beautiful 123 years after his birth.

Lit Fest and Boi Mela: A linguistic, cultural apartheid?

Both the Dhaka Lit Fest and Ekushey Boi Mela offer sobering insights into the underlying socioeconomic challenges that have hamstrung Bangla publishing.

Books / Five books to help you delve into the world of Bangla literature

Sometimes we find it difficult to get past some of our renowned literary works.

A tribute to Akhtaruzzaman Elias on his 80th birthday

Born on 12 February 1943 Akhtaruzzaman Elias was much like a firework.Khoabnama and Chilekothar Sepai, the literateur's two novels, are often mentioned with admiration amongst ardent readers.

Tagore, the climate crisis, and compassionate development

Rabindranath Tagore saw World War I as the West literally turning its guns on itself, using its very worst traits to cannibalise itself

The Making of Theatre: There are no secrets

What makes theatre good, bad or even deadly? I thought I knew the answer to this tricky question. I had a valid ground for this belief because more than thirty years ago, the pre-eminent playwright of Bangladesh,

Kazi Nazrul Islam and “World Literature”: Some Questions and Concerns

Kazi Nazrul Islam (1899-1976) has been customarily characterized as a rebel poet, particularly, if not exclusively, because of his 1922 poem called “Bidrohi” (the Rebel)—a poem that fiercely stages his political, linguistic, even metrical rebellion all at once.

The poet’s last abode

It has been 50 years today since an independent Bangladesh got its national poet.

How I found my voice as a debut author

Being accused of copying Humayun made me want to create something of my own, something that wouldn’t be considered mainstream, but nor would it be too out of the box. I wanted to reflect on realism.

May 25, 2023
May 25, 2023

How my admiration for Kazi Nazrul Islam evolved over the years

Kazi Nazrul Islam’s work remains just as relevant and beautiful 123 years after his birth.

March 6, 2023
March 6, 2023

Lit Fest and Boi Mela: A linguistic, cultural apartheid?

Both the Dhaka Lit Fest and Ekushey Boi Mela offer sobering insights into the underlying socioeconomic challenges that have hamstrung Bangla publishing.

February 23, 2023
February 23, 2023

Five books to help you delve into the world of Bangla literature

Sometimes we find it difficult to get past some of our renowned literary works.

February 12, 2023
February 12, 2023

A tribute to Akhtaruzzaman Elias on his 80th birthday

Born on 12 February 1943 Akhtaruzzaman Elias was much like a firework.Khoabnama and Chilekothar Sepai, the literateur's two novels, are often mentioned with admiration amongst ardent readers.

December 24, 2022
December 24, 2022

Tagore, the climate crisis, and compassionate development

Rabindranath Tagore saw World War I as the West literally turning its guns on itself, using its very worst traits to cannibalise itself

June 13, 2022
June 13, 2022

The Making of Theatre: There are no secrets

What makes theatre good, bad or even deadly? I thought I knew the answer to this tricky question. I had a valid ground for this belief because more than thirty years ago, the pre-eminent playwright of Bangladesh,

May 28, 2022
May 28, 2022

Kazi Nazrul Islam and “World Literature”: Some Questions and Concerns

Kazi Nazrul Islam (1899-1976) has been customarily characterized as a rebel poet, particularly, if not exclusively, because of his 1922 poem called “Bidrohi” (the Rebel)—a poem that fiercely stages his political, linguistic, even metrical rebellion all at once.

May 25, 2022
May 25, 2022

The poet’s last abode

It has been 50 years today since an independent Bangladesh got its national poet.

August 28, 2021
August 28, 2021

How I found my voice as a debut author

Being accused of copying Humayun made me want to create something of my own, something that wouldn’t be considered mainstream, but nor would it be too out of the box. I wanted to reflect on realism.

July 31, 2021
July 31, 2021

Shaheen Akhtar and Shabnam Nadiya’s ‘Beloved Rongomala’ to be published by Eka, Westland Publications

Shaheen Akhtar’s 'Beloved Rongomala', translated from the Bangla novel, 'Shokhi Rongomala' (Bengal Publications, 2015), by Shabnam Nadiya, will now be published by India’s Eka imprint of Westland Publications. The novel tells the story of Queen Phuleswari, a child bride, and of Rongomala, a woman of legend—a low caste mistress to the king who protested the limits to which her rights were confined by the class and caste prejudices of 18th century southern Bengal.