Zahid Akbar

National Award winning actor Anwar Hossain was one of the most celebrated faces in Bangladeshi cinema. Known as the ‘Nawab Sirajuddaula’ of the silver screen, the actor worked in over 500 films in his illustrious career, spanning over five decades. Today marks the 8th death anniversary of Anwar Hossain.

White kaash (catkin) flowers cover miles of lands while fluffy clouds hover in the blue sky above — such scenery announces the arrival of Autumn in Bangladesh. On one such beautiful afternoon, I was at a shooting spot at the Meradia area of Dhaka’s Banasree, where I came across popular stars Shakib Khan and Nusraat Faria. They were shooting for a television commercial under the scorching heat. The production is directed by Samiur Rahman. 

Today is the fourth death anniversary of the heroic freedom fighter and vocalist Abdul Jabbar. The eminent singer passed away on August 30, 2017. Making his death anniversary, Syed Abdul Hadi talks to the Daily Star about Jabbar’s legacy.

Eminent singer Samina Chowdhury was born on this day in 1966 in Dinajpur. She studied in Agrani School and College in Dhaka.

A board of trustees has been formed for the welfare of film artistes. Actors Shahiduzzaman Selim, Misha Sawdagar, and Purnima will take their positions as board members at the Film Artists Welfare. Shahiduzzaman Selim and Purnima confirmed the matter to The Daily Star earlier today.

After two months of strict lockdown, cinema halls have reopened recently. However, as of now, they are mainly screening old movies.

Nayak Raj Razzak was one of the most beloved actors of the country. On his fourth death anniversary, popular actors of today speak about their favourite movies of him.

Today marks the 74th birthday of the "Miah Bhai" of Dhaliwood, Farooque. The best way to commemorate the actor, brave freedom fighter and Member of Parliament is through one of his own anecdotes.

Today marks the 60th birthday of music legend Ayub Bachchu.

Renowned actor Shakib Khan opened up about the much talked about arrest of Pori Moni today, with The Daily Star. “Being her colleague, as far as I know, Pori Moni grew up without her parents,” said Shakib. “There is a huge difference in the way she grew up, compared to others her age. Her struggles have definitely not been the same as other people. Perhaps not having a guardian around has often led her to make decisions which were not right for her.” 

Eid special tele-fiction “Ghotona Shotto” gave way to numerous social media views upon release. The tele-fiction enraged viewers – allegedly due to its insensitivity towards children with special needs. However, there have been many other productions that people thoroughly enjoyed this festive season.

The ongoing pandemic has led to significant impediments for the Bangladeshi film industry.  None of the big-budgeted films were released since March last year, during special occasions such as Eid, Durga Puja, Pohela Boishakh, and Valentine’s Day, among other festivities. More than 25 new commercial films are awaiting release. Though cinema halls were reopened from time to time, directors and producers were reluctant to release new films, due to low audience turnout.

In compliance with the rules for the seven-day lockdown, no shooting will be allowed at the premises of the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC), starting from tomorrow, July 1.

The status quo of the government regarding the operational rules for cinema halls remains dubious. As a result, about 110 cinema halls were opened during last Eid-Ul-Fitr. However, the local administration closed many cinemas during the second wave of Covid-19. Thus, the hall owners are suffering huge losses.

The Bangladeshi film industry has suffered huge losses for over a year, due to the coronavirus pandemic. More than 25 movies are awaiting release. While most of these films have wrapped up, some are in production. Some of the forthcoming big-budget movies include “Mission Extreme,” “Bidrohi”, “Antaratma”, “Operation Sundarban”, “Adventure of Sundarban”, “Shaan”, “Bikkhob”, “Jinn”, “Hawa” “Paap Punno”, “Poran”, and “Damaal” among others. These films involve investments of nearly BDT 100 crores.

Renowned musician Tapan Chowdhury has been living in Canada for a long time, but he often visits Bangladesh for his musical commitments. He decided to stay in Canada for the safety of his family during the pandemic, but after receiving an invitation to sing at the celebrations for the golden jubilee of Bangladesh’s independence, he was more than happy to come back to the country.

The shooting of the much anticipated film on the life of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman will begin from January 19.

The Covid-19 pandemic rendered the music industry into disarray for the first few months, one which it tried hard to fight back. Even though the year is musical activities were largely limited to online releases and ‘live’ concerts on social media, we did see a number of notable releases from artistes.

Sangeeta founder Salim Khan, who produced albums for almost every major singer in the 1980s and 90s, died with Covid-19 yesterday at Impulse Hospital in the capital.

We recently lost one of the most celebrated actors of the country with the demise of Aly Zaker. In this interview, published on Anandadhara’s December 16-31 2014 issue, Aly Zaker had spoken about his love for music and poetry with this correspondent.