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While July 30 marks International Day of Friendship, many parts of the world, including Bangladesh, celebrate this day on the first Sunday of August, which falls on August 2 this year.

Throughout the years, major films have hit cinema theatres around the time of Eid-Ul-Azha, one of the biggest festivals of the country. Sadly, 2020 has no good news for moviegoers. Even though several directors and producers resumed and completed shooting for their films and went into post-production after reeling under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, cinema theatre owners have not received any official permission from the government to restart their businesses yet. With theatres shut, the future of the film industry remains uncertain.

Hundreds of new television programmes come out during the Eid holidays every year. Sadly, several television projects were disrupted this year because of the ongoing pandemic. Despite such hindrances, top television channels of the country have included some exceptional programmes in their Eid-Ul-Azha schedules, as TV shoots were permitted to resume, with strict conditions. The Daily Star brings you a compilation of some of the finest television shows that will be aired in the country throughout the festive season.

Today marks the 67th birthday of Parvin Akhter Poppy, popularly known by her stage name, Babita. She has worked with renowned directors Zahi Raihan and Satyajit Ray. Babita was the golden star of cinema from the 70s. She has acted in more than 350 films in her career.

Having started his musical career with the inaugural and only Bangladeshi Idol, Amid Hossain Chowdhury has come a long way, giving voice to several songs, jingles and projects throughout the decade. However, the talented singer had a stop-and-start approach to his music due to his career in the corporate sector. “It was indeed difficult to handle my passion and profession together, but I always found a way,” says Amid, who is the son of noted Rabindra Sangeet exponent Fahim Hossain Chowdhury.

Rock band The Roads recently released two new tracks, Mone pore and Ekdin. Established in 2011, the founding members of the band are Zaki Mahmud and Aapel Mahmud. The track Mone pore is a ballad, while Ekdin is an experimental rock number. The songs are about lost love.

Today marks the birthday of two maestros in the world of music, Kamal Dasgupta and Feroza Begum.

Acclaimed film director and Bangladesh Film Directors’ Association member Aftab Khan Tulu passed away today at 66 in Dhaka’s Labaid Hospital, due to complications from COVID-19. Mushfiqur Rahman Gulzar, President of Bangladesh Film Directors’ Association and Bodiul Alam Khokhon, General Secretary of the association, informed The Daily Star about the director’s demise.

Drive-in movie theatres have been around for a long time, and they are particularly popular in Australia. In a first of its kind initiative, Bangla Drive-in Movies (BDM) is set to host a special screening of Poramon 2, directed by Raihan Rafi, on August 8, in Fairfield Showground, Sydney, at 6 pm. The announcement was made at a recent virtual press conference.

The Dhaka International Film Festival (DIFF) 2021 will be held from January 16 to 24. The physical locations of the festival include Bangladesh National Museum, Central Public Library, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Alliance Francaise de Dhaka and Star Cineplex. The event will also feature online film screenings. Those interested to watch the films online will have to register in advance. The organisers plan to wait till the end of this year, to confirm whether the COVID-19 crisis will push them to go for a hybrid festival (both physical and online).

With participation of artistes from all over the world, Save our World is a melodious plea to humanity to help each other in these dire times. Written by Helal Chowdhury and composed by veteran musician S I Shumon, it features talented artistes including Torsten Vikström from Stockholm Sweden, Chandan Zaman Ali from Canada, Romel Ali and Masha Islam from Bangladesh, Tarzian from Uxbridge London, among many others.

Celebrating the 16th anniversary of Galleri Kaya, an exclusive group exhibition by 42 modern and contemporary artists from Bangladesh and India, is underway at their premises in Uttara, Dhaka. The inaugural ceremony of the exhibition took place on July 25.

Freedom fighter and cultural personality Syed Hasan Imam began his acting career in 1961. His first theatrical release was the film, Dharapat. Acting on television for over 50 years, Hasan Imam is also a dedicated theatre artiste. Over the years, he has won several prestigious awards, including the Ekushey Padak (1999), Independence Award (2016) and Bangladesh National Film Award for Lifetime Achievement (2014), among others. Today marks the artiste’s 86th birth anniversary. On a candid chat with The Daily Star, the actor looks back on his life.

A group of musicians have expressed their solidarity with the ‘Where is Kajol?’ movement, which has been demanding the release of Shafiqul Islam Kajol, a photojournalist who has been imprisoned in a case filed under the Digital Security Act. Several artistes performed and raised their voices to press home the demand in three days of a weeklong online programme, titled ‘Kajoler Mukti Ebong Mukto Chinta’. The programme has been airing live from the movement’s Facebook page, starting from July 21. The show, which will end on July 27, is organised by Kajol’s son, Monorom Polok.

The fifth installment of Cartoon People Gaan-Toon Caricature Challenge was held online, recently. The weekly contest, organised by Cartoon People, featured renowned musician, Fuad Almuqtadir.

Since October 2018, the Digital Security Act (DSA) has been threatening freedom of speech in the country, endangering our constitutional right to information and expression. This act has been used to sue and arrest journalists, writers, and artistes over the years. Recent arrests of journalist Shafiqul Islam Kajol, cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore, Baul singer Shariat Boyati among many others spurred a movement against the DSA.

Walt Disney Co has postponed the debut of its movie “Mulan” indefinitely, dealing a new blow to theater operators that were counting on the live-action epic to help attract audiences during a pandemic.

Noted writer, television personality and cultural activist Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed, the founder of Bishwo Shahitto Kendro, celebrates his 81st birthday today.

In ‘Let Me Get You a Nice Cup of Tea’, artist Yasmin Jahan Nupur sits across from spectators at an English-styled tea table, in her white jamdani shari.