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.  

Valentine’s Day 2023 has arrived to remind us of the beauty of love, passion, and care for our partner. Besides exciting gifts, a fulfilling homemade meal can make Valentine’s day more memorable for your partner. You can make the day special by arranging a Valentine's Day dinner. Why don’t you skip the restaurants this year and stir a delicious and romantic dinner for your valentine at home? Let’s find out our best valentine's dinner main course recipes. Romantic Valentine's Day Dinner Recipes for Home Kitchens  Kachchi Biryani Recipe Ingredients 2 lb mutton, 1 teaspoon ginger paste, 2 teaspoon garlic paste, 3-4 dry red chili, 2-3 sticks of cinnamon, 4-5 green cardamom, 1 teaspoon cumin, ½ teaspoon cloves, ½ teaspoon mace, ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg, 6-8 allspice, 3 tablespoon yogurt, ¾ cup ghee, 5 medium potatoes, ½ cup onion (thinly sliced), 4 cups basmati rice, 6 cups water, ½ cup condensed milk, 2 tablespoon milk, a pinch of saffron, 10-12 alubokhara, 4 eggs, and salt (as per required). Read More: Budget-friendly Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day

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.

“We are most alive when we are in love,” according to John Updike. People around the world celebrate Valentine’s day on 14th February as a day of love. Valentine's Day is an ideal opportunity to demonstrate how much you care for your partner. However, due to the economic slowdown, post-pandemic effect, and many other reasons, many couples can't spend money to get their partner expensive gifts on this special day. Let's find out some ideas to celebrate Valentine's Day in affordable ways. Affordable Ways to Have a Special Valentine’s Day Set a Budget for the Day The first step towards saving significantly on Valentine's Day is establishing a budget. Consider what additional costs you have for the month, what bills need to be paid, and the amount of money you will have left over after paying your bills. Most importantly, after you've established a Valentine's Day budget, adhere to it! If you and your significant other have a financial strategy or objective, they will appreciate this action. Read More: 2023 Valentine’s Day Deals, Offers by Different Brands in Bangladesh Make DIY Cards and Gifts For many celebrants, Valentine's Day is about spending time and expressing affection and appreciation for a loved one. Certainly, extravagant presents are lovely, but most recipients will not anticipate them. They may even want a more personalized approach. Anyone may acquire diamonds, but not everyone has the ability to be inventive and produce something valuable. By creating your own Valentine's Day card, you may immediately save a significant amount of money. It just requires scissors, paper, and a customized, sincere message. Add a piece of handmade music, bake a delicious treat, or take it to the next level by creating jewelry from craft shop supplies. Plan a Home Dining Event If you truly want to save money on Valentine's Day, have the whole supper at home. Then you may splurge on appetizers, entrees, desserts, and beverages at half the price. Additionally, this creates a much more intimate and personal encounter. Read More: 10 Valentine's Day Gift Ideas for Wife Create a customized playlist of your favorite tunes and light some candles. In addition, your significant other will appreciate the additional effort you are doing to establish the atmosphere. They won't even suspect you're attempting to save money by dining at home.

Like every year, the season of love is upon us. As romantics from all over the world celebrate love on the 14th of February, Chorki has lined up content to fit the occasion. This year too, Chorki has decided to make valentine’s day memorable with their latest web film “Unish 20” starring Arifin Shuvoo and Afsana Ara Bindu. Here’s a look back at the star cast and their works.  Shuvoo’s Critical Run Continues  Arifin Shuvoo has been a regular in the movie scene of Bangladesh. However, Shuvoo became an overnight sensation with the release of Mission Extreme in 2021. His dedication to the role and the grueling physical transformation got heaps of appreciation. The movie was an instant box office hit in Bangladesh and revived the struggling industry. The same year Shuvoo was featured in the Zee5 web series called “Contract”. And likewise, Shuvoo’s performance received rave reviews.  Read More: Pathaan Movie Box Office Collection: Breaking Records in 2023 Fast forward to 2023, and the critical acclaim continues with the release of Mission Impossible 2: Black War. The scale and grandeur at which the movie is pitched are unprecedented in the local cinema scene. This year Shuvoo also has several lineups ready with Raihan Rafi’s Noor and Shyam Benegal’s Mujib: The Making of a Nation based on the life of the father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.  “Unish 20” is Shuvoo’s first collaboration with Mizanur Rahman Ariyan with the movie being Shuvoo’s second release for 2023.  Bindu’s Comeback  Afsana Ara Bindu’s first appearance was on Lux Channel i Superstar back in 2006. She was the first runner-up in that season and became an instant face in the media. Bindu started her career with modeling and then subsequently moved to drama and movies.  Read More: Vicky Zahed's First Web Series 'Silence' to Hit Binge this February

Valentine's Day is celebrated worldwide on February 14 showing respect to Saint Valentine who died for love. Later it has become a celebration of romance and love in most countries of the world. Valentine’s Day is the time to show how much you love your wife. So, we are here with 10 romantic valentine’s gift ideas for your wife.  Best Romantic Gift Ideas for Women on Valentine's Day 2023 AirPods Pro If your wife loves music, get her the gift she really wants this year which is the AirPods Pro. It has an active noise cancellation feature that blocks outside noise. It's adaptive EQ tunes the music to your ears. The three sizes of silicone tips of AirPods pro give you an extra-customized fit. Moreover, a sensor lets you easily answer calls, adjust the volume, and more. So, what stops you from giving AirPods Pro to your lovely mate? Jewelry  Females love jewelry. You can give her gold, diamond, or pearl jewelry. It can be earrings, necklaces, or pendants. She might have many collections but a gift on valentine’s day can make her feel special and loved.  Read More: 15 Gift Ideas for a Newborn Baby Stainless Steel Ice Cream Maker Treat your wife with a handy gadget like an ice cream maker. It is a fully automatic device. It can create two quarts of frozen yogurt, ice cream, and sorbet in 25 minutes to 30 minutes. It will be a unique and exceptional gift for her and most importantly it will be usable. When she uses it, she will recall her love for her.  Portable LED Lamp Lighting can be the best gift for her if she loves interior design. An indoor or outdoor rechargeable lamp design can help her decorate the home or garden. A portable LED lamp radiates a beautiful, warm light as much as your Valentine. It has different brightness settings that help you to give extra vibrancy to the room.  Leather Cardholder Working women love leather wallets. You can give your wife a leather cardholder that she really loves to get. Various types and brands of leather cardholders are available in the market. You can choose a fancy one for your wife to wow her this Valentine's day.  Read More: Mother's Day Gift Ideas: Best Presents for the Best Person You Know Love Note Messenger Definitely, this gift comes directly from the heart. It is the messenger that can send notes, photos, images, and animations, and the heart on the box spins when there's new content to take in. Show your creative and affectionate side with this lovely gift to your lovely wife. 

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.

Smartphone brand Infinix co-partnered with G-Series to become the title sponsor of a romantic drama that was released this Valentine's Day Monday. Tanjin Tisha, brand ambassador of Infinix, is the lead actor of the drama "Party is On." She has paired up with Tawsif Mahbub. The drama is directed by Osman Miraz and was released on YouTube in the evening. Also read: Actress Tanjin Tisha stays on as Infinix brand ambassador Also, Infinix announced a campaign for its fans on Facebook. Anyone can participate in the campaign to win the budget gaming smartphone Infinix Hot 11s. Hot 11S is one of the very first smartphones with a MediaTek Helio G88 Dual-Chip gaming processor, 6.78" FHD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate and 50MP ultra night camera. The phone is available at Tk14,990 for the 4GB RAM variant and Tk15,990 for the 6GB RAM. Also read: Infinix Hot 11 Play Review with Price in Bangladesh

The notecards poking from bouquets rushing out of a Chicago florist all carry similar messages: “looking forward to celebrating in person.”

Bangladeshi electronics band Walton is conducting a special campaign centering the upcoming Valentine's Day.