Begum Rokeya

Begum Rokeya's 'Sultana's Dream' come to life through Spanish filmmaker

"Sultana's Dream" draws inspiration from the eponymous 1905 book by the renowned Bengali feminist thinker and writer, Begum Rokeya. The story unfolds as it follows a Spanish artist residing in India who serendipitously encounters a science fiction narrative centered on "Ladyland," a utopian society where women hold sway over the nation while men retreat to seclusion and assume responsibility for domestic chores.

FEATURE / Begum Rokeya and Begum Sufia An enduring “mother-daughter” bond

Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932) and Begum Sufia Kamal (1911-1999), two icons in Bangla literature and culture, were not kins but kindred spirits.

The books you will meet at Dhaka Art Summit 2023

For those who are especially interested in literature in book form, the first two floors of the exhibition hold treasures. 

Sister Library brings back ‘Sultana’s Dream’ and the chance to create one’s own utopia

The zine-making workshop was divided into four groups based on the central themes of Begum Rokeya’s story: arts, social justice, city planning and science & education.

BOOK EXCERPT: NONFICTION / Toward Ladyland: On the life and work of Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain

Her 1903 piece “Alonkar na badge of slavery” marked the start of Rokeya’s explicitly feminist writing.

BOOK NEWS / ‘Sultana’s Dream’ in new Penguin Classics edition and audiobook

The Penguin Classics edition of Sultana’s Dream and Padmarag comes in a paperback, ebook, and as an audiobook narrated by Priya Ayyar, a television and film actor and award-winning audiobook narrator with a BFA and MFA from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.

MUSINGS / On the chaos of teaching English

I discover that teaching is more about reading people.

INTERVIEW / ‘Luminaries of the Word’: Student designs video game on Bangladeshi women writers

"I selected excerpts from eight famous works, books like Begum Rokeya’s 'Motichur' and 'Ekattorer Diary' by Sufia Kamal, and expanded on their implied or intended meaning as best as I could."

Illustrating Begum Rokeya's ‘Sultana’s Dream’: Interview with Pakistani artist Shehzil Malik

A designer and illustrator whose work focuses on human rights, feminism, and South Asian identity, Pakistani artist Shehzil Malik has just created an artwork based on Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain's novella Sultana's Dream (1905).

September 24, 2023
September 24, 2023

Begum Rokeya's 'Sultana's Dream' come to life through Spanish filmmaker

"Sultana's Dream" draws inspiration from the eponymous 1905 book by the renowned Bengali feminist thinker and writer, Begum Rokeya. The story unfolds as it follows a Spanish artist residing in India who serendipitously encounters a science fiction narrative centered on "Ladyland," a utopian society where women hold sway over the nation while men retreat to seclusion and assume responsibility for domestic chores.

June 17, 2023
June 17, 2023

Begum Rokeya and Begum Sufia An enduring “mother-daughter” bond

Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932) and Begum Sufia Kamal (1911-1999), two icons in Bangla literature and culture, were not kins but kindred spirits.

February 9, 2023
February 9, 2023

The books you will meet at Dhaka Art Summit 2023

For those who are especially interested in literature in book form, the first two floors of the exhibition hold treasures. 

December 21, 2022
December 21, 2022

Sister Library brings back ‘Sultana’s Dream’ and the chance to create one’s own utopia

The zine-making workshop was divided into four groups based on the central themes of Begum Rokeya’s story: arts, social justice, city planning and science & education.

December 8, 2022
December 8, 2022

Toward Ladyland: On the life and work of Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain

Her 1903 piece “Alonkar na badge of slavery” marked the start of Rokeya’s explicitly feminist writing.

October 12, 2022
October 12, 2022

‘Sultana’s Dream’ in new Penguin Classics edition and audiobook

The Penguin Classics edition of Sultana’s Dream and Padmarag comes in a paperback, ebook, and as an audiobook narrated by Priya Ayyar, a television and film actor and award-winning audiobook narrator with a BFA and MFA from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.

October 5, 2022
October 5, 2022

On the chaos of teaching English

I discover that teaching is more about reading people.

May 25, 2022
May 25, 2022

‘Luminaries of the Word’: Student designs video game on Bangladeshi women writers

"I selected excerpts from eight famous works, books like Begum Rokeya’s 'Motichur' and 'Ekattorer Diary' by Sufia Kamal, and expanded on their implied or intended meaning as best as I could."

January 27, 2022
January 27, 2022

Illustrating Begum Rokeya's ‘Sultana’s Dream’: Interview with Pakistani artist Shehzil Malik

A designer and illustrator whose work focuses on human rights, feminism, and South Asian identity, Pakistani artist Shehzil Malik has just created an artwork based on Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain's novella Sultana's Dream (1905).

January 24, 2022
January 24, 2022

Pakistani artist illustrates Begum Rokeya's ‘Sultana’s Dream’

A designer and illustrator whose work focuses on human rights, feminism, and South Asian identity, Malik has just created an artwork based on Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain’s novella Sultana’s Dream (1905), which imagines a feminist utopia where women dominate the world of science, labour, and their homes.