Leafing through this life
This century had started 14 years ago—and unlike the previous one—the world was not drafting 19-year-olds to a great war so that they could die in the trenches.
1y ago
Marketing pills or monetizing pain? One family’s greed destroys thousands
Empire of Pain is a wondrous achievement of investigative journalism.
2y ago
IN MEMORY OF HASAN AZIZUL HAQUE: Two tales of violence from the hands of a master
Hasan Azizul Haque, who passed away on November 15, 2021, began his career with the publication of the short story “Shokun” in 1960, and since its publication till today, it has shocked and stupefied most readers who have found their way to this unique and masterfully crafted story—reading it is not an experience one forgets easily, or ever.
2y ago
Listening to Shankha at dusk: a requiem for a poet
My late grandmother would immerse herself in the rhapsodic melody of Muhammad Iqbal’s poems in Urdu, recite them aloud while taking a stroll around the house and say, “Eta ek alada shaad, banglay er khoj milbe na—this is a different taste, one wouldn’t find it in Bangla”. A few years later, Shankha Ghosh’s masterful translations of Iqbal’s poems would appear in the anthology, Iqbal Theke (Papyrus, 2013). My grandmother was so delighted to be proven wrong. This is one atop a long list of reasons why I am indebted to Ghosh—for the sweetest memory of my grandma.
3y ago
Did we need a Boi Mela amidst a pandemic?
I was in the middle of a hectic shift at Dhaka Medical College Hospital a few days ago when I heard a close colleague was down with fever and severe body ache—symptoms typical of COVID-19. By the next day, his whole family had been critically affected. It is not very likely that his family will come out of this wrath unscathed. Instances like this do not shock me or my colleagues anymore; this has been routine for the last year.
3y ago
Sweet, Sour, and Savoury: A Post-Partition Tale
There are few pleasures in the life of a Bangali that come close to the sheer delight of basking in the rare but sweet Sun on a winter morning on the balcony, accompanied by the aroma of a cup of tea,
3y ago
Bangladesh at 49: A Portrait in Books
It has been almost five decades since Bangladesh became independent. After all these years, it is only natural to ponder over our failures and achievements as a nation. Here are a few books that can help one reflect on the state of our nation today.
3y ago
Shelves of deceit
When the lockdown was enforced and we were all confined to our homes, I began organising my bookshelf and no longer had stray paperbacks all over the house. I could finally spread my legs while taking a nap. This was received with great enthusiasm and approval of my mother, and confused glares of my cat.
4y ago
July 27, 2023
Leafing through this life
This century had started 14 years ago—and unlike the previous one—the world was not drafting 19-year-olds to a great war so that they could die in the trenches.
May 26, 2022
Marketing pills or monetizing pain? One family’s greed destroys thousands
Empire of Pain is a wondrous achievement of investigative journalism.
November 25, 2021
IN MEMORY OF HASAN AZIZUL HAQUE: Two tales of violence from the hands of a master
Hasan Azizul Haque, who passed away on November 15, 2021, began his career with the publication of the short story “Shokun” in 1960, and since its publication till today, it has shocked and stupefied most readers who have found their way to this unique and masterfully crafted story—reading it is not an experience one forgets easily, or ever.
April 27, 2021
Listening to Shankha at dusk: a requiem for a poet
My late grandmother would immerse herself in the rhapsodic melody of Muhammad Iqbal’s poems in Urdu, recite them aloud while taking a stroll around the house and say, “Eta ek alada shaad, banglay er khoj milbe na—this is a different taste, one wouldn’t find it in Bangla”. A few years later, Shankha Ghosh’s masterful translations of Iqbal’s poems would appear in the anthology, Iqbal Theke (Papyrus, 2013). My grandmother was so delighted to be proven wrong. This is one atop a long list of reasons why I am indebted to Ghosh—for the sweetest memory of my grandma.
March 25, 2021
Did we need a Boi Mela amidst a pandemic?
I was in the middle of a hectic shift at Dhaka Medical College Hospital a few days ago when I heard a close colleague was down with fever and severe body ache—symptoms typical of COVID-19. By the next day, his whole family had been critically affected. It is not very likely that his family will come out of this wrath unscathed. Instances like this do not shock me or my colleagues anymore; this has been routine for the last year.
January 14, 2021
Sweet, Sour, and Savoury: A Post-Partition Tale
There are few pleasures in the life of a Bangali that come close to the sheer delight of basking in the rare but sweet Sun on a winter morning on the balcony, accompanied by the aroma of a cup of tea,
December 17, 2020
Bangladesh at 49: A Portrait in Books
It has been almost five decades since Bangladesh became independent. After all these years, it is only natural to ponder over our failures and achievements as a nation. Here are a few books that can help one reflect on the state of our nation today.
October 8, 2020
Shelves of deceit
When the lockdown was enforced and we were all confined to our homes, I began organising my bookshelf and no longer had stray paperbacks all over the house. I could finally spread my legs while taking a nap. This was received with great enthusiasm and approval of my mother, and confused glares of my cat.
July 9, 2020
An Ominous Incense
There are two things that I believe are enough to make me lose my sanity during times of unrest—scrolling down my Facebook feed and the afternoon TV news. The characters in Megha Majumdar’s new novel, A Burning (2020), become unavoidably embroiled in both.
June 4, 2020
Isolation is personal and political in Olivia Laing’s ‘The Lonely City’
Ever since social isolation began in an attempt to contain the Corona virus, the internet has flooded with references to the American realist painter Edward Hopper, especially his iconic work, ‘Nighthawks’ (1942).
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