Tareque Masud important for understanding society

The department of dance and drama of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy organised an event, Monishi Shoron, in memory of the late filmmaker Tareque Masud.

At the event, writer A-Al Mamun presented a paper on the present-day relevance of Tareque Masud's films at the event held on Sunday evening. The session was presided over by poet and executive editor of Prothom Alo, Sajjad Sharif. In his paper, A-Al Mamun explored Tareque Masud’s perspective on secularism versus religious extremism, the concept of the nation-state and idealism.

The three discussants on the paper were sound recordist and Tareque Masud’s brother Nahid Masud, film critic Sadia Khalid Riti and filmmaker Antu Azad.

Nahid Masud said, “The journey of Tareque bhai was not an easy one. He ventured forward against the odds. He used to say that it was an extremely unequal battle. 'Muktir Gaan' faced significant challenges. It was a struggle between the state and the individual.”

He shared that after its release the film was screened for nearly a month at the public library in Dhaka, attracting large audiences. However, there were attempts to ban the film. When ‘Bhorer Kagoj’ published a report on the issue, all copies of that day’s newspaper were removed from circulation.

Nahid Masud mentioned Tareque Masud had planned to make several more films but was unable to complete them.      
Sadia Khalid Riti stated, “Tareque Masud is a highly significant figure for our generation. The themes portrayed in his films were unlike anything we had seen in contemporary cinema. He was a great source of inspiration for us.”

Filmmaker Antu Azad said, “When we submit films to festivals, we often find ourselves making films that resemble Korean or Iranian cinema. Instead, we should focus on creating our own distinct films”. He emphasised the need to follow the path set by Tareque Masud in developing an independent cinematic identity.

In his closing statements, Sajjad Sharif said, “Following the July uprising, both positive and negative changes have taken place in the cultural sphere. In this context, Tareque Masud remains a crucial figure for understanding our society and culture. He addressed significant historical questions, such as secularism versus religious extremism, the concept of the nation-state and idealism”.  

The event started with a welcome speech by Mohammad Jasim Uddin, director of the dance and drama department at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. A documentary on Tareque Masud was also screened during the event.