United News of Bangladesh

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) will organize a photo exhibition titled “Prottasha: Hope for Migrants” on Tuesday to raise awareness and to persuade the masses about sustainable reintegration, safe migration and migration governance. Storytelling is an effective tool to inform and make people aware of the issues of safe migration, sustainable reintegration, and migration governance. The exhibition will bring together a range of migration-related stories to help us understand the complex experience and contextualize some of the opportunities and challenges of migration in Bangladesh. read more: Swift return of irregular migrants to help promote legal migration: European Commissioner  It will also help understand migration and its complexities, said the IOM on Monday. Besides, the stories will present the impact and results of the work on safe migration and sustainable reintegration of returning migrants under the Prottasha project. The photo exhibition will remain open to all at Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka on Tuesday from 3pm to 7pm In addition, an infotainment show featuring pot songs, song performances, short films, and quizzes will be organized during the event. read more: Migrant workers’ rights: UN expert for monitoring recruitment process The photo exhibition is being organized under the European Union funded ‘Bangladesh: Sustainable Reintegration and Improved Migration Governance (Prottasha) project. Since 2017, IOM has implemented the project, under the guidance of the Government of Bangladesh and in partnership with BRAC.

To celebrate the 51st Victory Day of Bangladesh, 55 Bangladeshi and 20 international artists will participate in a special group art exhibition at Dubai International Art Center (DIAC) in the UAE from December 12 to 21. The 10-day art exhibition, "Bijoy" is organised by Funun Arts of the UAE and Mahfuz Canvas of Bangladesh. The participating self-taught artists will showcase their work, depicting that art is beyond borders, according to the organisers. Read: ‘Evolution’: Abdullah Al Bashir’s second solo exhibition begins at AFD The Consul General of Bangladesh in Dubai and the Northern Emirates BM Jamal Hossain and Emirati entrepreneur and Chairman of Al Zarooni Foundation Suhail Mohd Al Zarooni, a renowned Emirati collector and Guinness Book World Record holder, will inaugurate the art event. PowerPac, a concern of Sikder Group, is the title sponsor of the exhibition. "We are proud to sponsor this special tribute exhibition to the Victory of Bangladesh, with a specific focus on encouraging artists to improve their creations by giving them a global platform and encouraging them to honour the cultures of Bangladesh and history through their artworks," according to PowerPac. Read: Photo exhibition by Mongol Deep Foundation begins in city Mahfuzur Rahman, the founder of Mahfuz Canvas, said this endeavour is their greatest international achievement yet, and this is the largest overseas self-taught Bangladeshi artists' art exhibition to date. Shiba Khan and Farah Khan, founders of Funun Arts, one of the most vibrant art platforms in the UAE, said they aim to represent art and bring talents to light. "Artists are also given complete freedom to present themselves in their ways."

The artisanal knowledge surrounding France's iconic daily bread loaf, the baguette and traditional tea-making in China have been awarded special protected status by the UN's cultural body.  They were inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity during a meeting this week in Morocco's Rabat. Read more: Vietnam keen to work for development of Sylhet tea industry Also, the culture of Ukrainian borscht cooking was placed on a list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding. The inscription of the baguette, one of the quintessential staples of French life, on the Paris-based UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Intangible Cultural Heritage list honours the artisanal know-how and culture surrounding the loaf. A real baguette has just four ingredients – flour, water, yeast and salt. France's long, crusty and delicious loaf bread requires specific knowledge and techniques. It is baked throughout the day in small batches and the outcomes vary according to the temperature and humidity.

As part of its ongoing ‘16 Days of Activism’ campaign against gender-based violence, Zonta Club of Greater Dhaka conducted a handful of activities on Monday in the capital's Baridhara. The activities included tree plantation in the Baridhara Lake Park, which was followed by a special rickshaw rally. Zonta Club of Greater Dhaka executives and members joined the activities alongside the local rickshaw pullers wearing orange dresses, as a unity against violence against women and children.  Read more: Zonta Club of Greater Dhaka launches 16-days activism campaign against gender-based violence

Marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, The Zonta International, a globally acclaimed service organisation, has launched its ‘16 Days of Activism’ campaign on Friday against gender-based violence. Starting from November 25, the campaign will feature several events and activities on eradicating violence against women and girls in society and advancing women's rights, continuing till December 10, the International Human Rights Day. Six Zonta Clubs in Dhaka and Chattogram organised a rally at the Gulshan Society Lake Park in the capital on Friday afternoon to kick off the activism programmes, which was joined by the distinguished and eminent Zontians to celebrate their unity against gender-based violence.

Bruce Lee was a martial artist and actor from Hong Kong and America. He was the creator of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts concept that combined elements from many combat styles. Lee is regarded for his matchless contribution to contemporary Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). By bridging the divide between East and West, Lee is regarded by critics, the media, and other martial artists as the most influential martial artist of all time and a 20th-century pop culture icon. Lee was well-trained in Wing Chun, tai chi, boxing, and street fighting. The talented martial artist incorporated these disciplines along with influences from a variety of sources to create his own martial arts philosophy called Jeet Kune Do (The Way of the Intercepting Fist). On July 20, 1973, Lee passed away at the age of 32. Even after his death, Bruce Lee's martial art techniques and acting left significant influences on contemporary popular culture, including movies, television shows, comic books, animation, and video games, as well as combat sports like judo, karate, mixed martial arts, and boxing. Lee was ranked among the top 100 historical figures by Time magazine. Read More: Best Martial Arts for Women: Know the purposes, risks, requirements He is remembered for his parts in five full-length Hong Kong martial arts movies from the early 1970s: Golden Harvest's Way of the Dragon (1972), directed and written by Lee; Lo Wei's The Big Boss (1971) and Fist of Fury (1972); and Golden Harvest.  How Excess Water Consumption Cause Bruce Lee's Death The martial arts actor Bruce Lee died of cerebral oedema, a swelling of the brain. Doctors at the time thought a painkiller was to blame for brain enlargement.  A recent study, released in the Clinical Kidney Journal, shows that Bruce Lee may have passed away from consuming too much water. According to a team of researchers, hyponatraemia caused oedema. In this study, the Researchers suspected that Bruce Lee passed away because his kidneys were unable to get rid of additional water. Read More: Best Martial Arts For Fitness Scientists speculate that the actor's cause of death relates to hyponatraemia, a condition that happens when the body's sodium levels get diluted by drinking too much water. Such imbalance causes the enlargement of body cells, particularly brain cells. Researchers also revealed that Lee had a number of risk factors for hyponatraemia, including: - high fluid intake, - thirst-enhancing actions, like marijuana use - actions that reduce the kidneys' ability to excrete water, such as prescription drug use, alcohol consumption - having previously suffered kidney damage - low solute intake. Read More: "Before I Die": The First British Bangladeshi Martial Arts Film to Release Internationally The researchers wrote in their conclusion that they hypothesized that Bruce Lee died from a specific sort of kidney dysfunction that causes an inability to eliminate enough water for maintaining a tubular function called water homeostasis. Researchers also added that when excessive water intake is not matched by the amount eliminated through urine, this may lead to hyponatraemia, and cerebral oedema (brain swelling). This condition may finally cause death within hours. This consequence matches the timing of Lee's demise. Matthew Polly, the author of "Bruce Lee: A Life" book published in 2018, mentioned Bruce Lee's daily water intake. Lee's wife, Linda Lee Cadwell, mentioned his "carrot and apple juice" fluid-based diet.  Read More: New "Ip Man" film depicts Chinese martial arts master's trip abroad Bruce Lee made the famous adage 'Be water my friend,' but ironically excess water might have killed him.

A photo exhibition titled ‘Onkur’ has been organized by Mongol Deep Foundation at The Asiatic Center in the capital with a view to provide a glimpse into the lives of the children suffering from cancer. The exhibition was inaugurated at ‘Batighar- Smritite Shorone Aly Zaker’ located in the Asiatic Centre (House - 63, Road – 7/B, Block – H, Banani) on November 20, 2022. The exhibition depicts an intimate look into what life is like for children with cancer. Photographer Farhana Satu, a photojournalist and documentary photographer based in Dhaka, has depicted the sad realities of the underprivileged children with cancer which are often overlooked by most people. Read more: 'The Story of Hajong Tale' at JU draws to a close About the exhibition, Asaduzzaman Noor, Chairman of Asiatic 3Sixty Group and a Founding Member of Mongol Deep Foundation, said that the core purpose of creating the Foundation was to be associated with various cultural and philanthropic activities. “As you know about Aly Zaker, he was a pioneer both in the world of advertising and the world of drama. He always tried to do something for people within his capacity. We’re trying to do something in the continuation of that, and today’s exhibition is a part of that,” Asaduzzaman said. Iresh Zaker, a Founding Member of the Foundation, said that their aim is to provide promising artists an outlet to showcase their works without worrying about the cost. “Through Batighor, we want to ensure such opportunities for young and talented artists. We have organized Onkur with this very objective. This is not the end. We hope to create some more platforms to showcase the skills of young and talented artists in the country,” said Iresh. The exhibition will continue till December 3, 2022. It’s open for everyone from 3:00pm to 8:00pm every day.

A five-day photo exhibition on the life, norms, culture, festivals and stories of the Hajong people, an ethnic group from northern parts of Bangladesh, ended at the Jahangirnagar University (JU) Saturday. "The Story of Hajong Tale" by Ruposhree Hajong, a masters student of the fine arts department of JU, started Tuesday to let people know more about the ways of Hajong – mainly living in Haluaghat and Dhobaura of Mymensingh; Shribordi, Jhinaigati and Nalitabari of Sherpur; Sunamganj Sadar upazila, Dhorompasha, Taherpur, Bishwambharpur and Duarabazar of Sunamganj – life. Twenty-four photos were showcased at The Story of Hajong Tale.

The Embassy of Japan inaugurated an exhibition of master artist Mohammad Kibria at the new Annex Building of the mission in Dhaka Friday to celebrate 50 years Bangladesh-Japan ties. The "Kibria-A Retrospective" is organised in cooperation with the Society for Promotion of Bangladesh Art (SPBA) and the Durjoy Bangladesh Foundation. It showcases the best of Kibria with his 50 works, most of which have never been displayed publicly. Kibria received a scholarship from the Japan government to study at the Tokyo University of the Arts from 1959 to 1962. During his years in Japan, he was greatly influenced by Japanese aesthetics reflecting simplicity. Read: Stamp on Royal Opera House Muscat launched at Aga Khan Award function Cultural Affairs State Minister KM Khalid attended the exhibition today as a chief guest. Salman F Rahman, an adviser to the prime minister, Anjan Choudhury, chairman of SPBA, and Syed Durjoy Rahman of Durjoy Bangladesh Foundation, were also present. At the function, Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ito Naoki said his country will continue to stand by Bangladesh in its development journey. The exhibition is only open to invited guests till November 20.

The 74th birth anniversary of legendary writer, lyricist, academician, playwright and filmmaker Humayun Ahmed is being observed on Sunday. Often regarded as one of the best writers in Bengali literature Humayun Ahmed is credited with revitalizing Bengali literature and is best known for his iconic fictional characterisations such as ‘Himu’, ‘Misir Ali’, ‘Baker Bhai’ and others, as well as for his ‘magic-realism’ based storytelling. Making the breakthrough in the Bengali litmosphere with his debut novel Nondito Noroke (1972), Humayun wrote over 200 fiction and non-fiction books, all of which were bestsellers in Bangladesh and are still popular among his readers. Read more: Remembering Humayun Ahmed on his 10th death anniversary Unanimously regarded as the bestseller author at the Ekushey Book Fairs during the 1990s and 2000s, the majestic litterateur received Ekushey Padak, Bangla Academy Award, Lekhak Shibir Award, Shishu Academy Award, Michael Madhusudan Padak, Bachsas Award and more, for his outstanding contributions to the Bengali culture and entertainment sphere. As a successful content-maker in television, Ahmed debuted with his drama 'Prothom Prohor' (1983) for Bangladesh Television (BTV).  His successful journey in television continued with popular drama serials 'Ei Shob Din Ratri', 'Bohubrihi', 'Ayomoy', 'Nokkhotrer Raat', 'Aaj Robibar' and most notably, 'Kothao Keu Nei' for the character of ‘Baker Bhai’ played by eminent actor Asaduzzaman Noor. Humayun Ahmed also explored success as a filmmaker in the early 1990s and went on to make a total of eight films in his filmmaking career, each based on his own novels. Two of his films, 'Sjyamol Chhaya' (2004) and 'Ghetuputra Komola' (2012) were the official Bangladeshi submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in their respective releasing years. He received seven Bangladesh National Film Awards in different categories for the films Shonkhonil Karagar' (as scriptwriter), 'Aguner Poroshmoni', 'Daruchini Dwip' and 'Ghetuputra Komola'. Read more: Remembering Humayun Ahmed, a polymath par excellence Commemorating his life and legacy, family members and different organisations along with his admirers are set to observe Humayun Ahmed’s birth anniversary today. Humayun Ahmed’s widow and cultural personality Meher Afroz Shaon, alongside their sons Nishad Humayun and Ninith Humayun, began the day with admirers of the legendary litterateur at their house ‘Dakhin Hawa’ in the capital through a cake-cutting ceremony at 12 am. Himu Paribahan, a noted fan group of the eminent writer, has been observing his birth anniversary for many years. It organised a special procession where the members walked barefoot on the Dhaka University campus and placed floral wreaths on Humayun’s grave in Nuhash Polli, Gazipur, in the morning. Among other events, Channel-i will organise a daylong Humayun Mela at its Tejgaon office and theatre troupe Bahubachan will premiere its play ‘Ami Ebong Amra’, based on the famous book of Humayun’s ‘Misir Ali’ series, at the Experimental Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA) at 6:30 pm. Meanwhile, the EXIM Bank-Anyadin Humayun Ahmed Literary Award 2022 was presented among the recipients, marking the eve of the 74th birth anniversary of Humayun Ahmed at Bangla Academy’s Abdul Karim Shattya Bisharad Auditorium on Saturday. Ekushey Padak-winning renowned writer Anwara Syed Haq received the award this year for her literary contribution to the country’s literature arena, while Mouri Morium won the award in the Young Litterateur Category which is awarded to under 40-year-old writers, for her novel ‘Fanus'. Read more: Humayun Ahmed: The Creator of Versatile Fictional Characters Agriculture Minister Mohammad Abdur Razzaque was present as chief guest at the ceremony, while State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid also joined the event as the special guest. Anyadin Editor Mazharul Islam, EXIM Bank Additional Managing Director Shah Md Abdul Bari and Meher Afroz Shaon spoke at the event, which was presided over by the EXIM Bank-Anyadin Humayun Ahmed Literary Award jury board President and eminent academician Syed Manzoorul Islam. Since 2015, the ceremony is being held annually on November 12, the day before the eminent litterateur's birth anniversary. So far, 14 young and senior writers have received the award till date.