by Tibra Ali I had a wonderful time listening to classic bluesy songs at an international club in Gulshan the other night but it didn’t start off on the right foot… I was waiting for friends in front of the … Continue reading This Post is About Racism
Simple Social Studies: How will you conduct social research, then?Manosh Chowdhury I should take the responsibility of guiding you in how to become a ‘social researcher’, as I myself had defined it. Otherwise you may lose interest in doing social … Continue reading How will you conduct social research, then?
SIMPLE SOCIAL STUDIES: HOW DO “TRADITIONS” GET LOST? (LEARN IN A POLITICAL-ECONOMIC WAY, AND NOT IN A SENTIMENTAL WAY)– Manosh Chowdhury Today we will think about tradition, friends. When it comes to tradition, many of you are awakened to a … Continue reading How do “traditions” get lost?
Manosh Chowdhury Beauty Parlours attract me. It is not because of the pretty ladies who stay inside these parlours. But one of the terms and conditions – ` men are not allowed inside ` somehow amazes me. My wife is … Continue reading Beauty Parlour
by Faruk Wasif
In the name of non-standardising, a luminous (yet stupid) collective wishes to drag Bengali down to a demotic vernacular. However, to remove inherent, traditionalist inflexibility within the language, all dialects – from Tagore to Abbasuddin, from Calcutta to Sylhet – should be used profusely; so that, the real (or main) parts of the language (and its literature) can include tongues of all Bengalis. Continue reading “Neo-Bangladeshi Collective”
(Translated by Awrup Sanyal for AlalODulal Collective)
I have heard that when he went up to receive his award he had to hear the condescending remark, ‘hope you are being able to eat rice’! Continue reading “Rafiq Azad: The Truth Had Touched Him”
By Ahmad Ibrahim On 7 February 2016, Indian artists Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam had their photographs and art installations removed from the Dhaka Art Summit taking place in Shilpakala Academy. Huffington Post (India), Indian Express, and the artist Tenzing Sonam’s … Continue reading Tibetan Artists Silenced at Dhaka Art Summit
By Zirwat Chowdhury for AlalODulal.org
Pinaki Bhattacharya: West Bengal’s attitude to Bengali Muslim
“When our books are in the hands of Bangladeshi readers, they never ask — What is the religion of the writer? They judge it by whether it’s readable, whether the story is charming, or whether it’s pleasant to read. But when our Hindu readers from West Bengal, reading books by Bangladeshi authors, come across words such as amma, fufa, namaaz, they have a strange reaction. And it’s due to this reaction that books by many Bangladeshi writers don’t reach the readers here. I want to state this very clearly: compared to Bangladeshi readers, the readers from West Bengal are a lot more fundamentalist.” — Samaresh Majumdar.
Continue reading “Pinaki Bhattacharya: West Bengal’s attitude to Bengali Muslim”
রবি: আমাদের অশ্রু এতো শস্তা না
Irfanur Rahman for Alal O Dulal
The national anthem of Bangladesh, penned by Tagore, is not exclusively sung on one side of the fence, neither is its use stringently limited for the national occasions of Bangladesh. Unlike the national anthem of most nations, Bangladesh’s national anthem has an everyday appeal in its core that keeps it alive amid the unremarkable occasions, especially in West Bengal where it does not get limited by its officialdom.
Continue reading “CULTURE: Rift between two Bengals”
Remembering Humayun Faridi
by Anu Muhammed for Alal O Dulal
Continue reading “Remembering Humayun Faridi”
For India, it took the shape of Hindu right-wing and their counter-imposition of a false construct of Hindu and Indian identity. The irrelevant political force of Hindutva took the centre-stage, asserting its claim on the identity of ‘Indian-ness’ and ‘Hindu-ness’. And like any two compatible hegemony, down the lane, there were a political pact between the two. Once it was realised that the gullible globalised middle-class can be bought and bribed and made to want almost anything with enough packaging and with enough lucre, the only question remained how long it would take.
The Selling of Lalon Phokir
by Zaid Islam for AlalODulal.org
Lalon Phokir has always been important to us for the past hundred years. But recently he has become just another venture to cash in on. Starting from individuals all the way to corporate houses and agencies have all realised that a “little bit of Lalon” is required to spice things up. Continue reading “The Selling of Lalon Phokir”
Bangladeshis rarely get to cheer their heroes, but when they do they are euphoric. They came out in droves to celebrate the nation’s first ever qualification for the cricket World Cup, and for some memorable wins since then. But wins have been few and far between. There were other celebrities and celebrations – the Nobel Prize for the Grameen Bank and its founder — but they would hardly match the glitz and glamour bestowed by a ‘would be’ Bangladeshi film or a cricket star.
Continue reading “AJ, Arrival of a Bangladeshi Hero”
A Way of Living Lost In ‘Selfie’ and ‘WhatApp’
By Garga Chaterjee for Alal O Dulal
Our neighbour of many years, Ananda Santra, died yesterday. Anandda kaku lived in our apartment complex in the Chetla locality of Kolkata (Ward Number 82 of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation). Continue reading “A Way of Living Lost In ‘Selfie’ and ‘WhatsApp’”
Narcissism of Small Differences: Some Comments on the T20 Debate and on Nationalism in the Era of Neoliberal Globalization
by Humayun Kabir for Alal O Dulal
The ICC T20 World Cup Theme Song and the Opening Ceremony have generated sizable controversy over the past weeks. Continue reading “T20 Debate And Narcissism Of Small Differences”
The Face of Dipjol
By Arafat Kazi for AlalODulal.org
“Tolowar chalabo ami! Tor Dadima buritar matha kete aaj ami football khelbo. Kothaye? Kothaye Jannat Begum?”
By Devasish Roy-Wangza for AlalOdulal
About thirty-five of us – including six women and about ten local men porters – took a seven-day trek from Farua village within Farua Union (“For-ua” in Tanchangya), Bileisori sub-district of Rangamati hill district to Bethuni Para, Ruma sub-district, Bandarban hill district, all within the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) in southeastern Bangladesh, from 22 to 28 December, 2011.The team included former Farua Union Parishad (UP) member, Jacob Tripura,
Continue reading “Reingkhyong Lake: The Forgotten Frontier of Bangladesh”
Bathing in the Buriganga
Faheem Haider for AlalODulal.org
Let Doraemon be in Bangla: Stop Kiddy-Hindi!
by Bratya Raisu; Translated by AlalODulal.org
Continue reading “Bratya Raisu: Let Doraemon be in Bangla, Stop Kiddy-Hindi!”
The naming of Banani-Gulshan-Baridhara as the “Tristate area” indicated a winking nod to the American “tristate” (NY-NJ-CT), and the elite bubble nature of the B-G-B triangle.
Continue reading “Dhaka’s Tristate: Lungi War as Class War”
David Nalin: friend or smuggler of antiquities?Guest Post by Dr. Perween Hasan
I was surprised and angered to read a report in the daily Prothom Alo (March 30, 2013) entitled ‘ This country is destined to march forward: an interview with David Nalin, a friend from overseas’. Continue reading “Dr. Perween Hasan: David Nalin, “friend from overseas” or smuggler of antiquities?”
So the rumour on facebook and twitter is that Baridhara Society may be banning rickshaw pullers from wearing the dreaded lungi. Continue reading “The Lungi Menace Resurfaces!”
Anger and rage. Calls for prosecution for sedition. Invoking the Constitution. Expressing concern for future generations.
All standard fare nowadays. But this time, it was from unlikely sources: Mita Huq, Sadi Mohammed, Khairul Anam Shakil, noted singers all. What has aroused their wrath?
And what does Khiyo have to do with it all?
For almost two years I was thinking of writing about our class distribution. But I could not find time to write it. But recently when even a proper “bourgeois” like Ananta Jalil got slanged as “rickshawalla class” I thought the time had come to write the piece.
The Hay Festival controversy picks up speed as protesters demand “Prime Minister’s intervention to refrain Bangla Academy from being the host of the Hay Festival on the academy premises, resignation of Bangla Academy director general Shamuzzaman Khan and bringing charges of anti-state activities.”
The following chronology is compiled from various blog and facebook posts.
1. Somewherein blog by Tokon Thakur on who are the corporate sponsors of Hay, why this English matbori, anointment of elites. He singles out “Kaziputro” (son of Kazi, a reference to author K. Anis Ahmed) and “Anamkonya” (daughter of Anam, a reference to Tahmima Anam). Kazi & Kazi Tea and Daily Star are two of the sponsors of Hay. K. Anis released Goodnight Mr Kissinger, right before Hay, and Tahmima Anam released The Good Muslim earlier this year.
“You pom Ghana?”
…
“Even English Medium are talking about me”
….:::::একটি হিন্দি সিরিয়ালের কাল্পনিক দৃশ্যের চিত্রনাট্য::::::…….
ছেলে:: আমি তোমাকে ভালবাসি
[১০টা অবস্থান থেকে এই দৃশ্যটা দেখানো হবে।]
[মেয়ের টাশকি খাওয়া মুখ দেখাবে ১২টা অবস্থান থেকে]
Exactly ten years ago today*, upon arriving at a friend’s place, instead of ‘Shubho Nobo Borsho’ (Bangla new year greeting), I was greeted with a barrage of ‘Have you heard the news? Call home now. Hope family’s okay…’
Militant jihadis struck the new year’s dawn cultural events in Ramna, the major park at the heart of Dhaka, killing over half a dozen people. Continue reading “CULTURE: Still Bengali”
আলাল ও দুলাল | ALAL O DULAL 