Syeda Fatema Rahman

The boundless possibilities of books

Books are often staple travel companions. But as the reader leafs through its pages, they are blanketed by the warmth of its faint-yet-familiar scent, and submerged into a linguistic hinterland hiding infinite possibilities. As pages and letters metamorphose into a world unfettered by human limitations, books become much more than mere companions we literally travel with. Rather, they are transfigured into vehicles through which we embark on a more figurative journey—one of the intellect and the imagination.

2w ago

The English-Bangla conundrum continues

When my literature professor heard I had been delving into Bangla literature and cultural media in pursuit of a self-undertaken project to finally learn Bangla, she suggested I see the 1970 film Jibon Thekey Neya.

6m ago

On ‘Gaza Monologues, the Land of Sad Oranges’: A theatrical performance by Prachyanat

How do you attempt to understand testimonies of mass public trauma?

8m ago

The Palestinian crisis, Holocaust production, and ‘Maus’

This is part of a grand narrative that, offensive as it is, asks why the Jewish people let themselves be killed, instead of asking why the system enabled it to happen–the same narrative also exists in the cases of colonialism and slavery.

9m ago

Genocide, ecology, and Zahir’s ‘Life and Political Reality’

As we remember the joys and the agonies brought forth by 16th December 1971, we often forget or, rather, neglect the nuances embedded in the struggle

9m ago

‘Bare life’ and Partition

“Can one break a country...Will the earth bleed?” asks eight-year-old Lenny in Bapsi Sidhwa’s Cracking India (1988)–a tale about Partition. “No one’s going to break India. It’s not made of glass!”

1y ago
September 20, 2024
September 20, 2024

The boundless possibilities of books

Books are often staple travel companions. But as the reader leafs through its pages, they are blanketed by the warmth of its faint-yet-familiar scent, and submerged into a linguistic hinterland hiding infinite possibilities. As pages and letters metamorphose into a world unfettered by human limitations, books become much more than mere companions we literally travel with. Rather, they are transfigured into vehicles through which we embark on a more figurative journey—one of the intellect and the imagination.

March 23, 2024
March 23, 2024

The English-Bangla conundrum continues

When my literature professor heard I had been delving into Bangla literature and cultural media in pursuit of a self-undertaken project to finally learn Bangla, she suggested I see the 1970 film Jibon Thekey Neya.

February 3, 2024
February 3, 2024

On ‘Gaza Monologues, the Land of Sad Oranges’: A theatrical performance by Prachyanat

How do you attempt to understand testimonies of mass public trauma?

December 22, 2023
December 22, 2023

The Palestinian crisis, Holocaust production, and ‘Maus’

This is part of a grand narrative that, offensive as it is, asks why the Jewish people let themselves be killed, instead of asking why the system enabled it to happen–the same narrative also exists in the cases of colonialism and slavery.

December 16, 2023
December 16, 2023

Genocide, ecology, and Zahir’s ‘Life and Political Reality’

As we remember the joys and the agonies brought forth by 16th December 1971, we often forget or, rather, neglect the nuances embedded in the struggle

August 10, 2023
August 10, 2023

‘Bare life’ and Partition

“Can one break a country...Will the earth bleed?” asks eight-year-old Lenny in Bapsi Sidhwa’s Cracking India (1988)–a tale about Partition. “No one’s going to break India. It’s not made of glass!”