After conquering hearts in Bangladesh, Mejbaur Rahman Sumon’s film “Hawa” is now thriving in the United States, placing among top 30 films in US box office, the film’s distributors say. On September 2, the film premiered in 73 theaters in US and 13 in Canada. This is the first time a Bangladeshi movie has ranked in the top 30 in US box office, according to Md Waliullah Sajib, President of Swapna Scarecrow Bangladesh, which is the distributor of the film in North America. Read: ‘Aat Ta Baje Deri Korish Na’: hidden gem of ‘Hawa’ soundtrack released According to Swapna Scarecrow Bangladesh, the gross box office collection of "Hawa" is $213,461 till now, a combined collection in Canada and USA. A total of 25,444 people (9,930 in Canada and 15,514 in US) have seen “Hawa”, a record for a Bangladeshi film. “Hawa” is the second Chanchal Chowdhury-starring movie that has been commercially successful in North America. The 2018 film “Debi”, starring Chanchal and Jaya Ahsan, secured a lifetime box office collection of $125,414. With its collection of $127,149 in the US market and $86,312 in Canada, “Hawa” broke the record in just three days. Read:Wind of 'Hawa' blows full “We observed a whirlwind by 'Hawa' in the US box office, thanks to the enthusiasm of the Bangladeshi audience in Canada and the United States. We had no idea the response would be as intense as it was,” according to Sajib. Following a “bede” (gypsy) woman who is rescued and sheltered on a fishing boat that has become stranded in the middle of the sea while narrating a story in the style of magic realism, the film features an ensemble cast including Chanchal Chowdhury, Nazifa Tushi, Sariful Islam Raaz, Sumon Anwar, Nasir Uddin Khan, and Sohel Mondal in the lead roles. The screenplay was written by Sukarna Sahed Dhiman, Zahin Faruq Amin, and Sumon, while Sumon wrote the story and dialogue for the movie. Read Environment Ministry to withdraw case against Hawa upon 'agreement' “Hawa” has been produced by Sun Music and Motion Pictures. Jazz Multimedia is the distributor of the film in Bangladesh.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change will take the initiative to withdraw a case filed against the movie 'Hawa’ for allegedly violating Wildlife Conservation and Security Act of 2012. Steps will be taken to withdraw the case filed by the Wildlife Crime Prevention Unit under the ministry, upon the appeal made by the Hawa team confessing they were unaware of the provisions of the act, it said in a press release on Sunday. The Director of Hawa Mejbaur Rahman Sumon applied to the Wildlife Crime Control Unit. The wildlife crime control unit submitted it to Dhaka Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court to withdraw the case on Sunday. Also read: Legal notice seeks complete ban on screening Hawa As the case is compoundable according to section 43 of Wildlife Conservation and Security Act, 2012, and section 248 of CrpC, the appeal was submitted. The court has heard the appeal and fixed the next hearing to pronounce a verdict in this regard. On August 17, four officers of the Wildlife Crime Prevention Unit filed a case after seeing the movie released on July 29. Also read: Wind of 'Hawa' blows full On August 22, a legal notice was served to ban screenings of the film Hawa, for violating the Wildlife Conservation and Security Act. The notice demanded the license of the film be revoked, and to ban its screening worldwide, not just locally. Besides, it said the Censor Board should be reconstituted to include members of the Wildlife Crime Prevention Unit, lawyers and environmentalists. Read Iranian director reveals everything Ananta Jalil has been saying about their film In addition, before giving the Censor Board's clearance to any movie in the future, it must be ensured that a film does not violate any section of the Wildlife Conservation and Safety Act-2012. According to the notice, in the movie, a bird named Shalik is seen kept captive inside a cage on a trawler. At one point the bird is killed and eaten. Besides, there are several scenes in the movie which are clear violations of the Wildlife Conservation and Protection Act, 2012. Read Ananta Jalil responses to 'Din: The Day' director's allegations As a result, people will be encouraged to hunt, cage and kill birds. No permission was taken from the Forest Department to promote this scene, added the notice. The entire episode however drew ridicule from some quarters, and artists in particular. Read 'Golpo Bolar Swadhinata Chai': Artists place five-point demands