Kolkata
New documentary to depict Bangabandhu's life in Kolkata
The new documentary on Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman titled “Kolkatai Bangabandhu (Bangabandhu in Kolkata)” will depict his life in Kolkata and describe how his each step was driven by big dream and enormous courage, says its director and renowned filmmaker Goutam Ghose on Friday.
In a media briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said Kolkata played a very important role in Bangabandhu’s political life and he will try his best while making the documentary as there are some emotions attached to it.
Also read:Star Cineplex to open new branch at Bangabandhu Military Museum Thursday
“There had been many writings but less work on audiovisual. I think The Unfinished Memoirs and books compiled by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina are authentic and I made my script for the documentary based on their remarks,” said the Indian filmmaker, adding that “there must be a cinematic element and I tried on that front.”
Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam also spoke at the media briefing.
Sharing personal experience, Momen hoped that it will be a very good documentary and unique one and all required support will be extended for a good production.
Shahriar said film director Goutam Ghose will visit different places in Dhaka and Tungipara in the next one week and will do the necessary shooting work for the production of this documentary. He also has an interview with the Prime Minister.
“We hope that by the end of the shooting period in Bangladesh and the rest of the work in Kolkata, we will be able to release the documentary by next June,” he said.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on 19 March 2022 at the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata to make the documentary.
Tipu Munshi meets West Bengal CM Mamata in Kolkata
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi met Chief Minister (CM) of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata on Tuesday and discussed the issues of common interest in the area of trade and investment.
The Commerce Minister is leading the Bangladesh delegation to two-day business event ‘Bengal Global Business Summit’ that started on Wednesday, said a press release.
At the bilateral meeting on Tuesday, both the Commerce Minister of Bangladesh and the Chief Minister of West Bengal agreed that closer collaboration will be mutually beneficial for business sectors of both Bangladesh and India, particularly West Bengal.
Issues like the need of improving infrastructure at the border for trade facilitation, working together for investment in jute and leather sectors, as well as the possibility of establishing border haats came up during the meeting.
READ: Bangladesh keen to sign FTA with South Korea, Tipu Munshi tells Ambassador
Earlier, Tipu Munshi and Mamata Banerjee recalled the close and warm relationship between the peoples of Bangladesh and West Bengal.
The Commerce Minister referred to the whole hearted support of the people of West Bengal in 1971 during the great war of liberation.
Tipu Munshi is also expected to visit Mizoram at the invitation of the Minister of Industries of Mizoram during his trip to India.
60-yr-old Bangladeshi woman dies in Kolkata guest house fire
A 60-year-old Bangladeshi woman was charred to death while two others sustained injuries in a major fire that broke out at a guest house in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata early on Saturday morning.
The blaze started at the reception on the second floor of the guest house in Mirza Ghalib Street at 4am and soon engulfed 11 rooms in the building, officials said.
"Some 28 Bangladeshi nationals were staying at the guest house at the time of the fire. While the elderly woman died in the fire, the two other Bangladeshi nationals have been hospitalised with injuries," a senior Kolkata Police officer told the local media.
The deceased was identified as Samimatul Begum, the officer said.
A Kolkata Fire Service official said that three tenders took nearly two hours to contain the blaze. "The 11 rooms were completely gutted in the fire," he said.
READ: 7 dead in India slum fire
An electrical short-circuit seemed to have triggered the deadly fire, the official said. "Anyway, a probe has been ordered and we will also check if the guest house had fire safety clearance from the department."
Fires are common at guest houses and small hotels in India because of lax enforcement of inferno safety regulations.
READ: 12 buses set on fire in Faridpur
Jaya receives best actress award for ‘Binisutoy’ in Kolkata
Actress Jaya Ahsan’s well-known popularity in West Bengal recently brought her another achievement of receiving the best actress award for the film ‘Binisutoy’.
The actress announced the news on her verified Facebook page on Monday.
The award ceremony titled ‘Cinemar Somabarton’ arranged by West Bengal Film Journalist Association (WBFJA) was held last Friday at Kolkata.
Also read: Jaya Ahsan becomes UNDP goodwill ambassador
Bangladesh to open first official visa application centre in Kolkata
Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata has announced that it will soon open its first official visa application (VAC) centre in Kolkata.
The announcement came to culminate a year of celebrations on the glorious occasion of the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, in tandem with what is also considered the year of digitalization of Bangladesh.
Read: Visa Free Country List for Bangladeshi Passport Holders in 2021
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md. Shahriar Alam said functions related to diplomacy and business are the main objectives of a diplomatic commission.
“We are planning to separate visa centres, especially in embassies where there is an increasing rush of service-seekers,” he said.
As a part of this plan, the State Minister said they are separating it from the main embassy or high commission. Bangladesh has diplomatic missions in 75 countries around the world.
Read:Indian tourist visas to be issued from Oct 12
“That is why the Bangladesh government has set up a separate visa centre in Kolkata,” he said adding that Bangladesh has diplomatic missions in 75 countries around the world.”
Bangladesh mission in Kolkata pays homage to Sheikh Russel
The Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata Tuesday paid homage to Sheikh Russel on the occasion of his birth anniversary.
Sheikh Russel was assassinated at the age of 11 along with Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and most members of his family on August 15 in 1975.
The birthday of Sheikh Russel, the youngest son of Bangabandhu, was observed at the mission premises with love and respect.
The day-long events began with Deputy High Commissioner Muhammad Towfique Hasan, mission officers and staff placing floral wreaths at Sheikh Russel's portrait at the Bangladesh Gallery.
READ: Bangladesh's Delhi mission plants 100 saplings on Sheikh Russel's birthday
A doa was offered seeking divine blessings for Sheikh Russel and his family.
Lunch boxes were distributed among the underprivileged children in the afternoon.
Screening of a documentary film on the life of Sheikh Russel and cultural show by children were also part of the birthday celebration.
The deputy high commissioner later joined a memorial discussion on the life of Sheikh Russel at the chancery.
READ: Sheikh Russel Day: PM releases postage stamp
Councilor Rezaul Islam and Secretary (Commerce) Md Shamsul Arif read out messages from President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
Eminent writer and columnist Showgato Chattarjee and Sheikh Russel's childhood playmate and neighbour Natasha Ahmed also shared their memories with him.
AFC Cup: Kings’ do-or-die match against Kolkata Mohun Bagan Tuesday
Bangladesh champions Bashundhara Kings will play Indian champions ATK Mohun Bagan FC in a 'do or die' Group D match of the AFC Cup Football'2021at the National Football Stadium in the Maldives capital Male on Tuesday.
BPL champions Bashundhara Kings, which bagged four points from two matches with a win and a draw, will meet the oppoents at 5 pm (BST) in a must-win situation to clinch group D title.
The Kings need to win to qualify for the Inter-Zonal Semifinal as 2nd Bangladesh team after Dhaka Abahani in 2019.
READ: 2021 SAFF Championship: Bangladesh Seek First Title Since 2003
But the Indian Super League champions are in the upper hand securing full six points from straight two wins and need just a draw to assure their inter zonal semifinal berth.
Though it will be tough match, the Kings can still win on Tuesday.
For the Bangladesh champions, it will be Brazilian forward Robson Robinho who scored against Maziya S&RC in the first match, their main source of inspiration in the attack alongside Raul Becerra of Argentina.
Big budgeted Bashundhara Kings, which clinched the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) crown recently with four matches to spare, is the only group D team of the AFC Cup which did not concede any goal in two matches and remained unbeaten.
Bashundhara Kings made a good start in their first AFC Cup campaign outplaying Maldivian side TC Sports Club by 5-1 goals in Dhaka in the last year's cancelled tournament, also a made a good start in this year’s AFC Cup, beating Maldives champions Maziya Sports & Recreation Club by 2-0 goals last Wednesday (Aug 18).
Kings maintained their unbeaten run in the group D like Kolkata Mohun Bagan FC after playing goalless draw with another Indian side Bengaluru FC, led by Indian captain Sunil Chhatri.
Mohun Bagan FC earned hundred percent success in the ongoing meet beating Bengaluru FC 2-0 in the first match and also outplayed Maziya S&RC by 3-1 goals in the 2nd match.
Marco Pezzaiuoli's Bengaluru FC ( one point) and Maldivian Maziya S&RC (zero) were already eliminated from the meet and will meet each in the last group D match on Tuesday (Aug 24) at 10 pm (BST) at the same venue.
Ahead of the Tuesday's match, Kings Spanish coach Oscar Bruzon said, "We are still in the race and have another opportunity to reach the next round. We want to utilize this big opportunity".
READ: Bangladesh Women's Football Team to Play 2022 Asian Cup Qualifiers in September
ATK Mohun Bagan head coach Antonio Lopez said," We have six points, and no other team has that. We have the possibility to draw, but we don’t have to think that way, only possibility for us is to try to win, and this will be our target for the next match.”
"Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale" inspires women to remain unstoppable
Sweta, a 27-year old movie lover from Kolkata, never misses biopics or autobiographies on the female changemakers.
Watching 'Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale' , she was deeply moved by the journey of Sheikh Hasina from being a survivor of an assassinated family to struggling against a military dictator to become the Prime Minister for three consecutive terms.
Read: Another chance to watch "Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale" Monday
“I can’t imagine how a lady informed of the murder of her almost entire family could still gather the courage to move on. If you were denied access to the very country your father had liberated and you had to endure an agonizing wait for six years to get back to your motherland, it would feel like the end of the world. But, she refused to give up and now she has made Bangladesh a developmental role model,” said Sweta, a management professional living in Kolkata.
She was effusive in her appreciation for the docudrama on Sheikh Hasina as a daughter of Bangabandhu after it was screened on a news channel in Kolkata for the first time.
“I have read the life story of Maya Angelou, a black woman in the USA whose lifelong agony is reflected in her autobiographical novel ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’. I also know about Mayawati, a Dalit woman whose endless struggle to become the chief minister of her state inspired a movie."
But, Hasina’s story sends a stronger message to all the women who want to fight against all the odds, she went on saying.
Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale, directed by Piplu Khan, zeroes on the darkest chapter in the history of South Asia – the murder of Bangabandhu’s family by some disgruntled army officers in 1975.
That foreshadowed the challenging years lying before her and the entire journey was neatly depicted in the docudrama that brought forth every relevant detail from Bangabandhu’s Dhanmondi-32 residence where the assassination took place to the house in Belgium where Sheikh Hasina was staying at that time.
Read: 'Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale’ to be aired on television on her birthday
The rendition of Bangabandhu’s favorite song ‘Amar Sadh Na Mitilo, Asha Na Purilo’ (My wish unmet, my hope untouched) dominating the background adds to the movie’s appeal.
Shreya, a college student in Kolkata, felt a strong personal connections with the docudrama due to her ancestral roots in Bangladesh.
“My forefather hailed from Bikrampur in Bangladesh. The people of Bangladesh resisted a genocide under the leadership of Bangabandhu. Shockingly, he was murdered on the very land he liberated. Watching this movie, I came to know that Hasina had to struggle so long with so much patience to reclaim her space in the country,” she said.
Earlier, the film, produced by Radwan Mujib Siddiq and Nasrul Hamid Bipu of the Centre for Research and Information (CRI), was screened at Dhaka Lit Fest, Bangladesh Film Festival in Kolkata, and International Film Festival of India (IFFI).
The film on Hasina has won international acclaim because it reflected the untold stories of her life as the daughter of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, according to CRI.
In an attempt to get a peek into her life, the camera followed her inside her kitchen and library.
It took around five years to make the 70 minute film, which captures through Hasina's eyes the freedom struggle in Bangladesh, the arrest of her father by the Pakistani forces, and finally, the assassination of Bangabandhu and his entire family.
Read:Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale screened in Seoul
According to CRI, people had earlier thought that it would be a typical narrative on the prime minister. But, it is the less-explored aspects of her life that intrigued them.
The movie, produced by Radwan Mujib Siddiq and Nasrul Hamid of Center for Research and Information (CRI), offered the first-person narrative of Sheikh Hasina and her sister Sheikh Rehana on how the world seemed upside down when they heard the news of the assassination of their father and the entire family, how they struggled to get back to the very country liberated by their father, and how Sheikh Hasina reclaimed her space and became the prime minister.
Biman to resume flights to Delhi and Kolkata from Aug 22
Biman Bangladesh Airlines has announced a new schedule to operate flights from Dhaka to India from August 22 (Sunday).
Flights will operate on the Dhaka-Delhi route two days a week - Sundays and Wednesdays.
On Dhaka-Kolkata route it will fly three days a week - Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, said a media release on Wednesday.
The state-of-the-art Dash 8-400 aircraft manufactured by Canada's De Haviland will be used on the Dhaka to Delhi and Kolkata routes.
READ: Biman temporarily closes online ticketing
These new aircraft have HEPA filter technology that will make the indoor air bacteria, viruses and other germs free in just four minutes.
Passengers must undergo RT/PCR (Covid test) within 72 hours of boarding the flight and must follow hygiene rules, the release said.
READ: Two Biman chartered flights take off with stuck students, expat workers
Tickets for these routes can be collected through any of Biman's sales offices, Biman Call Center - 01990 996 996 and authorized travel agencies.
Mamata's election case: High Court asks top poll panel to preserve voting machines
A higher court in the eastern city of Kolkata on Wednesday ordered India's top poll panel to preserve all voting machines in an election petition filed by Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over her defeat in May's assembly polls.
The Kolkata High Court also issued a notice to Bengal's main opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the case lodged by Mamata challenging the election of her former protege-turned-rival from Nandigram in the assembly polls.
"Justice Shampa Sarkar asked the Election Commission of India to preserve all records, and devices, such as electronic voting machines and video recordings, apart from issuing the notice to Suvendu," Mamata's lawyer Sanjay Basu told the media.
Justice Sarkar took over the case from another judge against whom the Bengal Chief Minister had levelled allegations of "conflict of interest" in the wake of his alleged links with India's ruling BJP.
But before quitting the case, Justice Kaushik Chanda had imposed a fine of 5 lakh rupees (7,000 USD) on Mamata for her "preplanned move to malign a judge".
READ: Mamata thanks Sheikh Hasina for gift of mangoes
On May 2, Mamata single-handedly pulled off a landslide victory in the assembly election for the third time in a row, bucking anti-incumbency and staving off a massive challenge from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP.
Though her Trinamool Congress party swept back to power with a resounding majority, Mamata lost her own seat in Nandigram to BJP's star campaigner Suvendu by a thin margin of 2,000 votes.
Last month, Mamata moved the high court to declare Suvendu's election win null and void on the grounds that he had indulged in corrupt practices and sought votes on the basis of religion.
"Suvendu Adhikari has indulged in several corrupt practices that have enhanced his winning chances and materially altered Mamata Banerjee's chances of success in the election," her petition read.
In her petition, Mamata also alleged discrepancies in the counting of votes, Mamata's lawyer had said.
Though Mamata had conceded defeat to Suvendu in Nandigram -- the potboiler of the assembly election in Bengal -- the Trinamool supremo said on the counting day only that she would challenge the result in a court of law. "I will move the court against Suvendu's win," she had said.
READ: Mamata Banerjee fined Rs 5 lakh for 'maligning judge'
West Bengal had witnessed the most high-profile contest in India's recently held state elections. While Mamata harped on being Bengal’s daughter, the BJP asked people to vote for "change and socio-economic development" after nearly 50 years of Communist and Trinamool Congress rule.