Remembering natyacharya Selim Al Deen

Wednesday marks the 72nd birth anniversary of the Ekushey Padak-winning late dramatist Selim Al Deen, regarded as the pioneer of theatre in Bangladesh, reports UNB.

Like previous years, the day is being observed by several cultural bodies across the country. Due to the ongoing pandemic, the majority of these events are taking place online, the same as last year.

Jahangirnagar University's (JU) department of drama and dramatics that was founded by Selim, Bangladesh Graam Theatre co-founded by him, theatre troupe Swapnadal and other cultural bodies are organising these programmes to commemorate the life and legacy of the eminent playwright.

Teachers and students of JU's Drama and Dramatics Department, led by its chairman Dr Soma Mumtaz, placed floral wreaths on Selim's grave on the university campus in the morning.

Later, a special programme, titled 'Selim Al Deen in the story of Barin Ghosh's picture', took place around 12 noon.

Another programme, Masterclass, was held at 3:00pm which was joined by professor Afsar Ahmed as the keynote speaker. 'Salim Al Deen in movies', another programme, took place at 4:00pm, which was joined by media personality, director and Dhaka DocLab chairman Nasiruddin Yousuff, apart from Morshedul Islam, Abu Sayeed and Nargis Akhtar.

All of these programmes was streamed live on the Facebook page of the drama and dramatics department of JU.

Theatre troupe Swapnadal is organising a two-day Selim Al Deen birth anniversary festival on Facebook, from 18 August to 19 August. A documentary titled 'Opariharja Selim Al Deen O Swapnadal-er Bondhur Obhijatra' will be streamed as part of the festival on Wednesday evening.

Alongside the discussions, a video production of Selim-penned theatre production 'Hargaj' will be streamed on Thursday from Zahid Reepon’s Facebook page.

Bangladesh Graam Theatre, Dhaka Theatre and other organisations are also scheduled to commemorate the great dramatist through their own virtual programmes and webinars.

Regarded as the pioneer of neo-theatre in the country, Selim was born on 18 August 1949, in Senerkhil village of Feni. He was the third child of Mofizuddin Ahmed and Firoza Khatun.

Born on 18 August 1949 in Feni, Selim Al-Deen joined the Bangla Department of Jahangirnagar University as a lecturer in 1974. In 1986, he founded the Drama and Dramatics department and served the department as its founding chairman.

A founding member of Dhaka Theatre, Selim co-founded Bangladesh Graam Theatre in 1981-82 with playwright and filmmaker Nasiruddin Yusuff.

'Jaundice and Miscellaneous Balloons' (1985), 'Basan' (1985), 'Keettankhola' (1986), 'Keramatmangal: (1988), 'Chaka' (1991), 'Hargaj: (1992), 'Nimajjan' (2002) are some of his most notable plays.

For his noteworthy contribution to art and culture in the country, Selim received several awards, including Ekushey Padak in 2007, Bangla Academy Award in 1984, and National Film Award for Best Dialogue in 1994.

Selim Al-Deen died on 14 January 2008, at a private hospital in Dhaka. He was buried near the central mosque on the Jahangirnagar University campus.