Marking the occasion of the 75th anniversary of its Faculty of Fine Art, Dhaka University, in collaboration with the Durjoy Bangladesh Foundation (DBF), is hosting a unique exhibition titled ‘Rise of a Nation’ at the Zainul Gallery, Faculty of Fine Art, Dhaka University in the capital.

Curated by artist Zihan Karim, the exhibition features the captivating photographs of the 1971 Liberation War by world-renowned Indian photographer Raghu Rai, a member of the esteemed Magnum Photos, who ventured into the war zone in 1971, walking tirelessly alongside freedom fighters (Mukti Bahini) and Indian forces on the battlefield.

The exhibition was inaugurated on Sunday by the Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque as the chief guest, who was joined by Dr Sarwar Ali, the founding trustee of the Liberation War Museum, as a special guest,

Dr Rubana Huq, Vice-Chancellor of the Asian University for Women; Anjan Chowdhury, Director of Square Group, and Durjoy Rahman, Founder of Durjoy Bangladesh Foundation (DBF) also joined the inauguration ceremony among others, and the event was presided over by freedom fighter and film director Nasir Uddin Yousuff Bacchu while DU Faculty of Fine Art Dean Nissar Hossain delivered the welcome speech.

Raghu Rai’s unpublished photographs provided a poignant visual narrative of that historic period, and those remarkable images, which earned him the prestigious Padma Shri award, the fourth-highest civilian award of India in 1972, offer Bangladesh a valuable photographic record of its struggle for independence, the speakers said at the event. He was the first photojournalist to achieve this state honour.

The exhibition will continue till May 19 from 11 am to 8 pm.