Photo: UNB
Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) has successfully hosted a three-day Lalon Festival to commemorate the 134th anniversary of the death of Fakir Lalon Shah, one of the country's most respected philosophers, mystic personalities and poets.
Intending to promote Lalon's non-communal philosophy and anti-caste ideology that would spread among everyone, particularly the younger generation, the festivities wrapped up on Saturday, October 19, after being inaugurated on Thursday, October 17.
On Saturday evening, the three-day Lalon Festival came to its closure with a special Lalon memorial seminar titled ‘Dhoro Manush Rup Nehare’ at the National Theatre Hall auditorium featuring Dr Asif Nazrul, Adviser to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs as the keynote speaker.
BSA Production Department Director Abdul Halim Chanchal delivered the welcoming address, while Dr Syed Jamil Ahmed, Director General of BSA, presided over the event which was also joined by journalist-fiction writer and newly appointed Managing Director and Chief Editor of the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) Mahbub Morshed as a discussant.
Addressing as the chief guest, Dr Asif Nazrul said, "In our Bangladesh, not only political practice, economic practice, but all cultural practices have also been limited to the worship of a family or one person. The historic July revolution led by the students and mass people has freed our shackles. Today, if we want to study and practice the culture of Bangladesh, we inevitably have to talk about Lalon Shah.”
“In contrast to the lives of ordinary people, Lalon’s life was an epic existence. His companions believed he was dead at a very young age and abandoned him on a pilgrimage, but he miraculously survived and lived. Lalon's creativity inspired prominent litterateurs even Rabindranath-Nazrul, and the Ministry of Cultural Affairs would completely support any initiatives aimed at fostering the cultural practices centring Lalon,” Dr Asif Nazrul said at the event.
The cultural segment of the event featured enthralling solo and group cultural performances by renowned artists including eminent folk personalities Farida Parveen, Baul Shafi Mondol, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy music and dance troupes and others. The artists performed popular Lalon songs including “Manush Bhojle Shonar Manush Hobi,” “Khachar Vitor Ochin Pakhi,” “Jaat Gelo,” “Shohoz Manush,” and more; and the festivity concluded with Lalon’s iconic philosophical track “Milon Hobe Koto Diney.”
Earlier in the day, a discussion titled "Jatisottar Prosno Ebong Baul-Fakir Poribeshonar Rajniti" (The Question of National Identity and the Politics of Baul-Fakir Performance) was held at BSA’s National Theatre seminar room. The keynote presentation was presented by Rajshahi University professor and researcher Dr A Al Mamun. The discussion was presided over by Dr Syed Jamil Ahmed, the welcoming address was delivered by Director of BSA's Production Department Abdul Halim Chanchal, and the discussion was joined by notable speakers including Dr Mohammad Azam, Director General of Bangla Academy; journalist-writer and Director General of the Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB) Faruk Wasif, and Dr Shahman Moishan, dramatist and associate professor at Dhaka University.
The second day (Friday, October 18) featured the Sadhumela "Manush Bhojle Shonar Manush Hobi" at the academy's Nandan Mancha at 6 pm. Dr Syed Jamil Ahmed chaired the event, while Mehjabeen
Messenger/Sourov
