With much fanfare another Ekushey Book Fair has started at the heart of Bangladesh's cultural Mecca. The ritualistic buying spree will continue for a month and a noticeable feature is absence of Indian Bengali book publishers who are reputed for bringing out quality contents and more professional in their dealings. For the last few years, a form of vice policing has also been put in place. Its goal is to seize any published contents that deemed taboo or not compliant with standard set by authority.
However, there is no short of contents. Stalls are glutted with books. Many of them are published to pander to the seasonal desire of local readers or with the money of amateur writers.
Of the crowd that thronged the fair every year, kids and adolescents constitute a larger part. In their fledgling years, books nourish their minds and build the repository on how to express their thoughts and ideas. Lack of good Bangla books hampers that process. Libraries that once stored these good books are dying. So are the sources to replenish the repository of young minds. Another source is the leading dailies. But only negligible few produce quality contents and provide space to writers from across the border. Some bought copyright of the their works and reprinted them here. Even that is not replicated widely.
By barring the foreign publishers in this fair we deprive the readers of good books and somehow slows down this process of sentence construction, articulation and argument making.
Given the seasonal nature of our publication industry, our publishers have never been professional and are far from ready to publish the quality contents in great quantity.
This book fair could have been a great platform to showcase all the Bengali books , published anywhere in the world. The grown stature of 21 February entails this global participation. Senseless protectionism creates obstacle even giving the fair a regional representation.
But the opposite is expected since Bangladesh is the sole country in the world that houses more Banglaphone speakers than any other country and is the beacon of Bengali culture. So it is a dream for those to showcase their works or perform their works in Bengali in front of the Banglaphones. Similarly a recognition to these Banglaphone writers and artists from the part government or private organizations will lift the status of Bangladesh among the league of countries that are connoisseurs and patrons of arts. Writers and artists in Anglophone and Francophone countries still long for and value awards and prizes provided by literary bodies or cultural or private organizations in those respective countries.
Unfortunately communal division runs so deep in the two factions of British Bengal that it casts an overarching shadow over our culture.In other parts of the subcontinent cultural relations between the countries are not so scornful. Despite regular clashes and casualties on both sides, Indian films are not banned in Pakistan. Urdu literature is flourishing in India. Kolkata still offers space for Urdu poets. And Bengalis in general highly value any awards from Kolkata, be it in any discipline of literature and arts.
Net result of this cultural division in Bengal is that the Bengali publication industry is at low ebb, Banglaphone writers and artists find it very hard to reach a broader class, creating knowledge and its dissemination in Bangla language has reached a dead end as very few books are written in Bangla at tertiary level education.
Far reaching damage is inflicted on economic front. Our cultural market shrinks. So is our cultural influence. Despite significant presence of Bengali diaspora in all major cities in the world , this division holds us back from having influence over literary and entertainment markets in those countries. What is worst back home we are losing our domestic audiences as well as market to foreign TV serials.
In their daily lives Bengal's thriving middle class incorporates enough ingredients that can make an impression on global audience. At the same time, its literature and entertainment industry catering to the need of typical Bengali mind that is progressive could also reach a welcoming audience in other countries, particularly the Muslim ones.
A regimented quarter in our country reinvented this "us versus them" in Bengali culture and weakened the cultural bonding. Generations representing the unified culture and divided one offer a striking contrast. Those who grew up in undivided Bengal outshined the ones grew up in divided Bengals in their respective fields and many found a global turf.
Even in the divided cultures, the one that is open and liberal creates enlightened society and highly qualified citizens. Just start counting the names and compare.
Spirit of Ekushey entails that our cultural events offer potpourri of artistic works.We need to discard this protectionist stance the day February 21 was declared international mother language day.Pursuing this protectionism in cultural arena for far too long only weakens our cultural leverages. By not allowing more qualified Bengalis from across the border in media, academic and publication industry we are gradually losing this soft cultural power. And our readers, particularly the young ones, do not get the chance to relish the sophisticated works of refined and superior Bengali minds.
However, there is no short of contents. Stalls are glutted with books. Many of them are published to pander to the seasonal desire of local readers or with the money of amateur writers.
Of the crowd that thronged the fair every year, kids and adolescents constitute a larger part. In their fledgling years, books nourish their minds and build the repository on how to express their thoughts and ideas. Lack of good Bangla books hampers that process. Libraries that once stored these good books are dying. So are the sources to replenish the repository of young minds. Another source is the leading dailies. But only negligible few produce quality contents and provide space to writers from across the border. Some bought copyright of the their works and reprinted them here. Even that is not replicated widely.
By barring the foreign publishers in this fair we deprive the readers of good books and somehow slows down this process of sentence construction, articulation and argument making.
Given the seasonal nature of our publication industry, our publishers have never been professional and are far from ready to publish the quality contents in great quantity.
This book fair could have been a great platform to showcase all the Bengali books , published anywhere in the world. The grown stature of 21 February entails this global participation. Senseless protectionism creates obstacle even giving the fair a regional representation.
But the opposite is expected since Bangladesh is the sole country in the world that houses more Banglaphone speakers than any other country and is the beacon of Bengali culture. So it is a dream for those to showcase their works or perform their works in Bengali in front of the Banglaphones. Similarly a recognition to these Banglaphone writers and artists from the part government or private organizations will lift the status of Bangladesh among the league of countries that are connoisseurs and patrons of arts. Writers and artists in Anglophone and Francophone countries still long for and value awards and prizes provided by literary bodies or cultural or private organizations in those respective countries.
Unfortunately communal division runs so deep in the two factions of British Bengal that it casts an overarching shadow over our culture.In other parts of the subcontinent cultural relations between the countries are not so scornful. Despite regular clashes and casualties on both sides, Indian films are not banned in Pakistan. Urdu literature is flourishing in India. Kolkata still offers space for Urdu poets. And Bengalis in general highly value any awards from Kolkata, be it in any discipline of literature and arts.
Net result of this cultural division in Bengal is that the Bengali publication industry is at low ebb, Banglaphone writers and artists find it very hard to reach a broader class, creating knowledge and its dissemination in Bangla language has reached a dead end as very few books are written in Bangla at tertiary level education.
Far reaching damage is inflicted on economic front. Our cultural market shrinks. So is our cultural influence. Despite significant presence of Bengali diaspora in all major cities in the world , this division holds us back from having influence over literary and entertainment markets in those countries. What is worst back home we are losing our domestic audiences as well as market to foreign TV serials.
In their daily lives Bengal's thriving middle class incorporates enough ingredients that can make an impression on global audience. At the same time, its literature and entertainment industry catering to the need of typical Bengali mind that is progressive could also reach a welcoming audience in other countries, particularly the Muslim ones.
A regimented quarter in our country reinvented this "us versus them" in Bengali culture and weakened the cultural bonding. Generations representing the unified culture and divided one offer a striking contrast. Those who grew up in undivided Bengal outshined the ones grew up in divided Bengals in their respective fields and many found a global turf.
Even in the divided cultures, the one that is open and liberal creates enlightened society and highly qualified citizens. Just start counting the names and compare.
Spirit of Ekushey entails that our cultural events offer potpourri of artistic works.We need to discard this protectionist stance the day February 21 was declared international mother language day.Pursuing this protectionism in cultural arena for far too long only weakens our cultural leverages. By not allowing more qualified Bengalis from across the border in media, academic and publication industry we are gradually losing this soft cultural power. And our readers, particularly the young ones, do not get the chance to relish the sophisticated works of refined and superior Bengali minds.
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