Actor Chanchal Chowdhury returned to the theatre for the first time in two years with Aranyak Natyadal's popular play "Rarang" at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA). The actor made his comeback with the 199th and 200th showings of the fan-favourite play on Thursday and Friday at BSA's Experimental Theatre Hall, as part of Aranyak's 50-year celebration. Written and directed by actor and playwright Mamunur Rashid, Rarang explores the uprising of the Santal community, an indigenous minority population living in the country's northern region, against the persecution of the British authority. The Santal word Rarang means "a cry to rise up," and the play's narrative recounts the life of Alfred Soren, a legendary leader of the Santals who died a heroic death defending his community from British tyranny. Although the play marked Chanchal's long-awaited return, it did not undermine the story throughout the play. Also, he did not play the title character. Read more: Theatre is my home where I always belong: Chanchal Chowdhury Actor Hashim Masud played the character of Alfred Soren, while Chanchal and Akhomo Hasan, another popular face in the television industry, played the role of police characters. Rarang's original cast member and popular actress Tamalika Karmakar could not join the show as she is now living abroad.

Making a special return to the theatre for the first time in six years, popular actor Chanchal Chowdhury is all set to enthrall his audience once again for an exclusive staging of Aranyak Natyadal’s popular play “Rarang” at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) on Thursday. The National Award-winning actor will take part in the 199th and 200th shows of "Rarang" at BSA’s Experimental Theatre Hall on Thursday ( November 17) and Friday ( November 18), which will mark his first stage performance after 2016 when he last performed in Aranyak’s “Che’r Cycle”. Read more: Munshigiri: Another Epic Creation of Amitabh Reza Featuring Chanchal Chowdhury Talking to UNB about making his long-awaited comeback to the stage, Chanchal Chowdhury said, "Not appearing on stage on a regular basis does not imply that I am not involved with theatre activities. I started my career as a part of Aranyak, and I've always considered the stage as my home where I belong. As it will be my first time on stage in a long time, it brings me immense joy.” Chanchal Chowdhury started his career on stage before making a name for himself in television and movies. After getting admitted to Dhaka University’s Faculty of Fine Art as a student, he joined the Aranyak Natyadal theatre group and garnered acclaim for his performances in "Rarang" and "Songkranti," two of Aranyak’s most popular presentations. Read more: Web Series "Boli": Chanchal Chowdhury Again in an Unprecedented Character “I have performed in more than 150 shows of “Rarang” in my career, but it’s true that nowadays I cannot regularly take part in shows due to other commitments. It takes months to prepare for a new production, and theatre is such a place which deserves adequate time and attention. Although I cannot take part in theatre now on a regular basis, I try to attend whenever I can.” Eminent thespian, playwright and director Mamunur Rashid's play "Rarang" explores the uprising of the Santal community—an indigenous minority population living in the country's northern region—against the persecution of the British authority. The word “Rarang” is a Santal word meaning "a cry to rise," and the play's narrative recounts the life of Alfred Soren, a legendary leader of the Santals who died a heroic death defending his community from British tyranny. Read more: Chanchal Chowdhury like you've never seen him before Marking its 50-year celebration next year, Aranyak Natyadal will organise a special drama festival from January 24-February 1, according to the theatre group.

Scenic reading of the two contemporary German plays translated into Bangla have been held at the Bangladesh Mohila Samity  in the capital. While welcoming the audience during her inaugural speech on Sunday evening, Dr Kirsten Hackenbroch, Director, Goethe-Institut Bangladesh highlighted the significance of the project titled “Contemporary German drama in South Asian Languages” to the local theatre scene. This project aims to familiarize contemporary German plays to the South Asian local theatre scene and audiences alike. This project has been launched by Goethe-Institut Mumbai in 2020, focusing on the selection of plays, as well as identifying qualified German to local language translators at the initial stage.  Afterward, 46 translations were produced out of 20 German plays. Some of these plays were translated by just one person, others by several; altogether they were translated into six languages: Bangla, Hindi, Marathi, Sinhalese, Tamil, and Urdu. According to the Goethe-Institut Bangladesh, contemporary German-language drama is characterized by enormous variety. It has long been and continues to be shaped by both a rich tradition and significant international influences. Many playscripts written in German are known to audiences in Asia primarily through their English translations. It would of course be far preferable to present these plays to the public in Asian languages – in translations carried out by competent translators working directly from the German.  This would also make it possible for theatre companies who operate in local languages to familiarize themselves with the current German theatre scene, according to the institution. Read: Dhaka Theatre’s new play opens with metaphoric presentation on ‘virus’ Those reflections are what gave rise to the project: contemporary German-language drama in six South Asian languages – Bangla, Hindi, Marathi, Sinhalese, Tamil, and Urdu. These translations are intended first and foremost to be used within India, but will also be available to other Goethe-Instituts in Dhaka (Bangla), Colombo (Tamil and Sinhalese) and Karachi (Urdu), and in principle to Goethe Centres and additional theatre companies throughout South Asia. On Sunday evening, Prachyanat staged the scenic reading of the German play titled “DER ZINNSOLDAT UND DIE PAPIERTÄNZERIN” by Roland  Schimmelpfennig. Romit Roy translated this play into Bangla. Directed by Kazi Toufikul Islam Emon, the play featured performances by Diana Meriline, Urmi Saha Ray, Farhad Ahmed Shamim, AKM Itmam, Abdulla Mohammad Sakib, Prajna Tasnuva Rubayyat, Tanji Kun, Yead Khorshid Eashan, Swatee Bhadra, Gopi Devnath, Supti Das Chaity, Nahida Akhter Akhi, Ucchas Talukder, Mohammad Abu Imran, and Audree Ja. Social organization Bonhishikha staged the scenic reading of the German play titled “ICH LIEB DICH“ (ভালোবাসি) by Kristo Šagor on Monday evening. Parthapratim Chattopadhyay translated this play into Bangla. Directed by Shararat Islam, the two-person scenic reading was performed by Shararat Islam and Samina Yasmin, narrating different roles. Followed by around 50 minutes of scenic reading, a panel discussion moderated by Syeda Samara Mortada was held.    Sanjida Anwar Preety, Actor, Prachyanat Theatre Troupe and Samina Luthfa, Associate Professor, Dhaka University and Playwright and Actor, theatre troupe Bottala, were among the panellists.

Young and promising theatre troupe Batighar staged the fourth show of its new play 'Monkey Trial' at National Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) on Thursday. Directed and staged by Sanjoy Sarker Muktnil, the play is based on Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee’s 'Inherit the Wind' fictionalising the 1925 'Scopes Monkey Trial', an American legal case. The storyline of the play showcases the trial of Bertram "Bert" Cates, a science teacher at a public school in Hillsboro, Tennessee, who was convicted of ignoring the 1925 Butler Act and teaching students Darwin's theory of theism and evolution in his class. READ: Theatre activists celebrate World Theatre Day at BSA Known in its days as 'The Trial of the Century', later as the 'Monkey Trial', the Scopes trial pitted two famous lawyers against one another -- three-time presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan for the prosecution and renowned attorney Clarence Darrow for the defence. The Butler Act was originally passed by the Tennessee Legislature in March 1925, declaring the teaching of any doctrine that denies divine creation illegal. The case was widely reported in the media and caught the attention of the whole world. The judicial process sparked a national debate over the truth of evolution, helping to bring scientific evidence to the public's attention.  Such debates continue today across the world, and very recently Hridoy Chandra Mandal, a science teacher at Binodpur Ramkumar High School in Munshiganj, was sent to jail and later released on April 11 after spending 19 days behind bars on charges of "hurting religious sentiments". Batighar’s 'Monkey Trial' was first staged on December 31, 2021, at BSA’s experimental theatre hall.

Portraying the picturesque rural and urban beauty of Bangladesh, popular actor Mir Sabbir’s film ‘Raat Jaga Phool’ is scheduled to be released on New Year’s Eve this Friday across the country, making it the very last release in 2021. A storyteller by passion, the popular actor has been directing television plays and drama serials for a long time in his two-decades-long career in television. He left no stone unturned for his debut film as its director, actor lyricist and producer. Talking to the journos at a press conference arranged at the Dhaka Club on Wednesday evening, Mir Sabbir alongside his cast and crew members described the journey behind the film, which has already created a buzz in the cinema sphere for its subtle, beautiful and promising presentation through its trailer, songs and unique promotional campaigns. “This was certainly a great challenge for me and my team. As it is already known to all that we got Tk 60 lakh from the government as a grant, however, we had to add a lot more to our budget because I wholeheartedly wanted to make this film as enthralling as possible, for our beloved moviegoers,” Sabbir said at the press conference. READ: 'Shaan' gets Censor Board clearance    With an ensemble cast featuring Mir Sabbir as ‘Roiss,’ the main protagonist of the film, alongside new generation actors Rashed Mamun Apu, Miss World Bangladesh 2018 Jannatul Ferdous Oishee, Abu Hurayra Tanvir, Tanin Tanha, Shahid Shahriar with seasoned actors Fazlur Rahman Babu, Dilara Zaman, Sharmilee Ahmed, Joyraj, Dr Ezaz, Naresh Bhuiyan, Ahsanul Haq Minu and more - the film has already created high expectations among the audiences before its release. When UNB asked Sabbir about the idea behind the selection of this ensemble cast, Sabbir said: “I have been moving with the story of ‘Raat Jaga Phool’ with myself for a very long time, and when it came to select the casting, my imagination matched with these popular and versatile actors. We all have truly worked not just as co-workers but a family for the entire period of this beautiful journey.“

The High Court on Tuesday issued a rule asking the government to explain as to why the ineffectiveness of the authorities concerned in preventing scenes depicting smoking in movies and plays, should not be declared illegal. The HC bench of Justice JBM Hassan and Justice Razik-Al-Jalil issued the rule following a writ petition. It also asked the authorities concerned to explain as to why directives should not be given to them for implementing the Narcotics Control Act. Also read: Polluting canal: HC issues contempt of court rule against 5 govt officials Secretaries to the Public Health and Family Planning, Law, Home, Information and Bangladesh Film Censor Board Chairman have been made respondents to the rule which is returnable in four weeks. Advocate Maniruzzaman Linkon stood for the petitioner while deputy attorney general Tushar Kanti Roy represented the state. On February 3, Bangladesh Cancer Society, Anti drug organisation ‘Prattyasha’ and Population Development Organisation (PDO) filed a petition seeking ban on use of smoking and showing smoking scenes in movies and plays. “There is a law on using drugs and tobacco but it is ineffective,” said Advocate Maniruzzaman. On March 11, 2020, a legal notice was sent to the Secretaries to the Public Health and Family Planning, Law, Home, Information and Bangladesh Film Censor Board Chairman seeking implementation of the law. But no response came from the respondent, he said. Also read: HC issues rule on ethics code for news media According to the writ, Bangladesh has signed the ‘Framework Convention on Tobacco Control’ (FCTC) in an effort to discourage people from smoking and tobacco during the 56th conference of World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2003. To make the issue a success, the government enacted a law on Smoking and Using of Tobacco Products (Control) Act, 2005. According to the law, smoking in public places is an offence and there is a provision to fine Tk 300 to those who are found smoking in public places or public transport. As per the section 5 (1) of the law, Prohibition of advertisement of tobacco products. -(1) No person shall-display advertisement on tobacco products in cinema hall or government and non-government radio and television channel, and shall not make any exhibition of photographs audible or made audible :print or publish or make published any advertisement in any books, magazines, handbills, bill-board, newspaper or printed papers published in Bangladesh; and distribute or supply to public any leaflet, handbill or documents containing the name of brand of tobacco product, colour, logo, trade mark, sign, symbol or advertisement.

The National Skills Development Authority (NSDA) Wednesday launched the Creative Media Industry Skills Council (CMISC) for creative skills training and development.

The theatre scene in Bangladesh has never lacked its share of enthusiasts but like everything else was forced to bite the dust once the pandemic arrived and the country went into lockdown mode. Good news awaits however, as theatres are expected to get permission to stage shows once again, according to Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation's Secretary General Kamal Bayazid.

Veteran Bangladeshi actor KS Firoz, known for portraying versatile characters in television, theatre and films, passed away on Wednesday at CMH at the age of 76

The 2nd National Campus Theatre Festival 2020 got underway at the National Music and Dance Centre of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) on Friday.