Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2023 has doubled the festive mood and joy among the students and the people who came to celebrate Pahela Falgun or Valentine's Day or both at the Dhaka University campus area on Tuesday. Since the morning students, people from different professions and irrespective of colour, creed or religion started gathering in the Dhaka University area wearing colourful Panjabi and Shari as the area has traditionally been a venue for Pahela Falgun and Valentine's Day celebration, while Boi Mela takes place at nearby Bangla Academy every year.  Besides the huge arrangements of Bosonto Utsab Udzapon committee at the Bakultola of Fine Arts faculty of Dhaka University, several programs have been arranged in Dhaka University area like ‘Somogit Bosonto Utsob' at the historical BotTola of Dhaka, three-day cultural festival at the department of political science and Sangit Utsab at the faculty of Business Studies of Dhaka University to welcome Spring, the king of all season.  Marking the special day, various floating stalls of flowers and food almost everywhere in the campus area have been set to meet the demands of visitors. Lower markets are busy stocking red roses for the day. Abid, an eleven-year-old boy who is selling flowers and floral bands walking around busy areas of campus, said that he came in this area from Mouchak of the capital in the morning to sell flowers hoping for better profit.  “My mother sent me here to sell flowers as many people from different area came here to observe the day and they buy flowers from us. From the morning I have bagged around 800 taka,” he said. Besides, flower sellers are also waiting to celebrate the day with massive stocks of roses and bouquets for people who are eagerly waiting to celebrate the day with their loved ones. The flower shops at the Shahabag crossing were seen very busy and filled with the traffic of customers.  

Falgun, the first month of the festive Spring season and the eleventh month in the Bengali calendar, will be welcomed Tuesday and will also be celebrated on the same day as Valentine's Day, which has been a tradition in Bangladesh since 2020. The second largest celebration in the Bengali calendar year, Pahela Falgun meaning Falgun 1st, used to be celebrated on February 13 every year; however, it was merged with Valentine’s Day in 2020 when Bangla Academy revised Bangla Calendar to align it better with the Gregorian calendar. Welcoming the king of all the six seasons which breathes the life back into brings vibrant sunshine and mild heat in the weather after the short-lived Winter season in the country, the nation is ready to greet the first day of Falgun amid colourful festivities and yellow-red festive attires. Read More: Budget-friendly Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day Keeping pace with the rest of the world, Bangladeshis will also celebrate Valentine’s Day with their beloved ones, a day symbolising and celebrating love among their beloveds. Although the added festivities of Pahela Falgun brought a new and refreshing tone to the day, netizens especially the youths have been observing the day for the last couple of decades now.  Different organisations and businesses will be celebrating this festive February 14 with multiple festivities this year, marking the return of grand in-person celebrations after three long years of battling with the Coronavirus pandemic and its aftermaths. The tradition of celebrating the Pahela Falgun in Bangladesh started in the Bengali calendar year 1401. Since then, the Jatiya Bawshonto Utsab Udyapan Parishad has been celebrating Pahela Falgun regularly with colourful cultural festivity at the Bakultala of Charukala (Dhaka University Faculty of Fine Art) in the morning every year. Read More: 10 Valentine's Day Gift Ideas for Wife Although the Parishad could not arrange the regular festivities in 2022 due to the pandemic, this year the organization will observe the Pahela Falgun festivities in Charukala Bakultala at 7 am and 3 pm with two different seasons. It will also host similar festivities in the afternoon on the open stage at Uttara Rabindra Sarani and Bahadur Shah Park in the capital. Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) will organise a special cultural event at its Nandan Mancha at 4pm. The event will feature musical performances, recitations, dance recitals and choreography of Spring-themed Bengali fashion; however, it also obligated the female festival-goers to must wear flower garlands and males to wear flower garlands in their hands, which infuriated many netizens on social media as they believe such events should not make such obligations. The ongoing Amar Ekushey Book Fair at Bangla Academy and Sohrawardi Udyan already observed an influx of crowd on Monday, the long-standing usual day of Pahela Falgun in the past; and the book-sellers and fair authorities are expecting an even bigger crowd on Tuesday amid the festivities. Read More: Tracing the Roots of Ekushey Boi Mela.

Pahela Falgun (first day of spring on Bangla calendar), Shaheed Dibash (International Mother Language Day and Language Martyrs Day), and Valentine’s Day all fall in the month of February and flowers are a must-have for these occasions. Understandably, this month brings smiles to flower farmers and traders across Bangladesh. Flower farmers of Godkhali union under Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore district, one of the largest flower markets of the country, is busy with the hope of selling flowers worth around Tk 300 crore. Godkhali, known as the “flower capital” of the country, has taken on a mesmerizing look with red, blue, yellow, purple and white flowers. This year, local farmers have cultivated various flowers on about 600 hectares of land in Godkhali. Ninety percent people of this village make a living by cultivating flowers. Read More: Peshawar, the city of flowers, becomes epicenter of violence Flowers cultivated in 75 villages of Jhikargacha, 25 kms from Jashore town, include marigolds, roses, gladiolus, gerberas, daisies, gypsies and dahlias. Every year flowers worth around Tk 500 crore are grown in the fields. Flower farmers and traders make huge profits every year in February as demand for flowers increase during the three major events – Pahela Falgun, Valentine’s Day and International Mother Language Day. Abdur Rahim, president of Bangladesh Flower Growers’ Association, said that a lion’s share of roses comes from Jashore’s Godkhali area. Not only roses, other varieties of flowers are also grown here. Read More: ‘Broom flowers’ of Sitakunda hills being exported to Middle East As the weather was favourable this year, farmers are working day and night in the fields – optimistic about big sales, he added. Flower farmer Bablur Rahman said, many wholesalers and retailers from different parts of the country have started thronging the Godkhali market of Jhikargacha. Ismail Hossain, a farmer of Panisara village, said, “Tulips have added a different dimension this year in this flower kingdom. No one imagined that this flower – from cold countries – would bloom here.”

Godkhali flower market in Jhikargachha, Jessore, was buzzing ahead of Pahela Falgun, the first day of Spring, and Valentine's Day.The prices of all kinds of flowers went up ahead of these festivals.Flower grower Mahbubur Rahman said that each rose, depending on its quality, is being sold for Tk 15 to 20, which was only Tk 1 to 3 a month ago. Gerberas are being sold at Tk 8 to 12 while a thousand Marigolds are fetching up to Tk 700 which was earlier Tk 200-300 only.After two years of Covid-19, the flower market has been revived ahead of Valentine's Day and Pahela Falgun. Also read: Godkhali flower traders fret over declining prices It will help us to make up for the partial losses incurred in the last two years by selling flowers this year, Mahbubur added.

Dhaka has worn a colorful look as festival-loving Bangladeshi people are celebrating the first day of the most anticipated season Basanta (Spring) and globally celebrated Valentine's Day on Monday, all amid the pandemic. Over the past couple of years, people, particularly in Bangladesh, had become used to celebrating a two-day festivity in February, with the 13th being the day of Pohela Falgun and the 14th as Valentine’s Day. However, both the days are being celebrated on February 14, due to the changes made in the Bengali calendar. Falgun is the eleventh month in the Bengali calendar and the first month of the season, Spring, the king of all the six seasons that brings back warm sunshine, budding flowers and dancing of birds. Keeping pace with the rest of the world, Bangladeshis also celebrate Valentine's Day with their beloved ones. Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is an ancient Roman tradition which has been celebrated in European countries for ages. These days it is widely celebrated in Asia, including Bangladesh, thanks to its fast globalisation. Read: Spending Romantic Valentine’s Day at Home? Get Delectable Lunch, Dinner Ideas

After surviving what has been a dreadful year in any calendar, dominated for the most part by an invisible killer, Bangladesh is set to awake Sunday to festivity and celebrations rooted in its own natural environment: its people, its rivers, the flora and fauna. Spring is across most cultures and geographies the King of Seasons, a wellspring for life in all its forms to revive itself.

Books are considered as someone’s best friend and what occasion can be greater than the day of love to gift one to the dearest?

Pahela Falgun usually falls on February 13 but this year it coincided with Valentine’s Day as Bangla Academy revised Bangla Calendar to match it with the Gregorian calendar and cultural attractions like the ongoing Dhaka Art Summit (DAS) - 2020 draws a large number of visitors, as a result.

The celebration of Pahela Falgun, the first day of spring, Valentine’s Day added colour to the Amar Ekushey Book Fair on Friday, turning it into a meeting  place for thousands people of all ages.

Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka wore a festive look with the participation of youths, couples, cultural activists, and children on Pahela Falgun, the first day of spring, and the Valentine’s Day on Friday.