Aly Zaker Notun er Utshob 2023

Theatre Festivals in honour of the theatrical enigma

Aly Zaker Grant is alloted to organize a theatre festival called - Notuner Utshob 2023. The six -day long festival was held from January 21st to January 26th, 2023, and featured five new outstanding theatrical productions that were selected through a competitive process. The festival was jointly organized by Mongol Deep and Nagorik Natya Sampradaya – a pioneering theatre group of Bangladesh.

“Aly Zaker Notuner Utshob 2023” " was a celebration of the best in Bangladeshi theatre, featuring some of the most talented and innovative theatre workers in the country. A jury board was formed to elect the best out of the numerous scripts collected from nationwide, with members consisting of notable theatre personas – Asaduzzaman Noor, Sara Zaker, Abdus Salim, Masum Reza, Pantho Shahriar and Sudip Chakroborthy. The selected plays showcased a diverse range of stories that explored a variety of themes and genres, from comedy to drama to social commentary. Each of the plays was carefully selected for their artistic merit, and audiences were treated to some truly unforgettable performances. Selected five stage production were -

Selected five stage production were -

In addition to the five plays that were selected to perform at the festival, four prominent theatre workers contributing invariably to revitalize the theatre scene were endowed with honourary awards, titled after noted thespians during the event.

The festival was held at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, inaugurated by the celebrated theatre actor – Ferdousi Mazumder. Among all the distinguished guests that attended the inauguration ceremony, State Minister of Cultural Affairs, K M Khalid, MP was present as the chief guest; and the Director General of Shilpakala Academy, Liaquat Ali Lucky was present as a special guest.

Aly Zaker Smritite Sharanay Batighar

Celebrating Aly Zaker's Birthday

Inauguration of Batighar on 6 November 2021

The lighthouse of Asiatic 3sixty, Aly Zaker, built his rooftop office in the midst of colorful flowering plants in such a way that the surrounding glass walls let sunlight in and helped him stay connected to nature, and named it Batighar. With the aim of presenting his work, his thoughts, his inspirations and the philosophy by which he led his life to the new generation, Mongol Deep Foundation transformed his office into a memory place where the journey of his life can be experienced and his essence felt.

Onkur

Art Exhibition

very year, almost 3 lakh children are diagnosed with cancer in our country, of which only 20 percent get cured. To increase awareness and spread a wave of compassion for those helpless children, Mongol Deep Foundation organized a solo photography exhibition titled 'Onkur' -showcasing photographs taken by Farhana Satu.

Farhana Satu, a freelance photojournalist, and documentary photographer based in Dhaka, Bangladesh, has been working on depicting the sad realities of the children with cancer which are often overlooked or taken for granted by the casual witnesses through the photographs. After finishing her LLB honors she attended Pathshala South Asian Media Institute (Bangladesh) and Danish School of Media and Journalism (Denmark) for her Diploma in Professional Photography. She is well-versed in developing relationships with her subjects to understand and connect in a more humane presence.

The exhibition was inaugurated by Asaduzzaman Noor, Trustee of Mongol Deep and Rumana Dowla, Founder of Bangladesh Palliative Care Network for terminal cancer patients on November 20, 2022 (International Day of the Children). It was open for all till 9 December, 2022.

Letters to the City

Exhibition

“Letters to the city” exhibition was jointly organized by Dhaka Memory – an experimental collective of artists and architects that promotes art through community engaging activities, and the Mongol Deep Foundation. It was organized at Batighar from 18th March till 26th March of 2022.

Through combining art, architecture, and gender politics, the exhibition dove into gender relations from personal yet common perspectives. In August 2021, the Dhaka Memory team – led by Sadia Sharmin and Imran Hasan, issued an open invitation called 'An Open Letter to My City' for women and girls to express their opinions and aspirations for their towns.

129 letters in total were submitted in response, from women and girls of various backgrounds and ages. Each letter represents a complex story of nostalgia, aspiration, despair, hope and love. The emotions expressed in these letters create spaces for rethinking gender interactions with cities and male-dominated societal practices.

Afterwards, a group of 30 artists came together to illustrate these letters and tell these unique stories in artistic ways, without words, such that its visual form was enough to convey the letters' messages. The emotions expressed in the letters build room for rethinking gender relations with the cities and dominant practices, reads the statement. The artworks have reflected on how women and girls negotiate and map out their movements based on various factors such as safety and public amenities.

In hopes of a future where cities can be inclusive and where gender inequality problems are addressed at their roots in artistic ways to achieve long-term solutions.

A Tribute To Our Mothers

Live Performance

In February 2022, Mongol Deep organized a sitar and poem recital night called ‘Tribute to our Mother’ at Batighar, where internationally renowned sitarist Alif Laila performed with renowned actor-director Sara Zaker in an extraordinary fusion of sitar and recitation.

Head in the Clouds

15 february 2024

On the second day of Falgun we let loose and our head was in the clouds as we revived the spirits of color, festivity and youth at Batighar premises with Chitropot , Nivaniya & The Head Office - Band presented by Karkhana!

Poetry Recitation by AN and Marina Ahmed

24 February 2024

A poetry recitation by our beloved Asaduzzaman Noor (MP) and classical Sufi recital by singer Marina Ahmad was organized by Batighar and Mongol Deep Foundation. The Saturday evening was graced by highly esteemed cultural enthusiasts at Dhaka Gallery, Banani.

Rabindra Adda

09 March 2024

সুর, তাল ও ছন্দে বাতিঘর প্রাঙ্গণ মেতে উঠেছিল রবীন্দ্র আড্ডায়। শিল্পী নাদিন মুরশিদ ও নাভিন মুরশিদকে অসংখ্য ধন্যবাদ এই সুন্দর সন্ধ্যার জন্যে!

Rising Echoes

20 January 2024

Rising Echoes’ – Art Exhibitionl showcased the tales of two cities in Southern Bangladesh. Photographer Mrittika Gain through her lens explored life of people, especially women who are intimately connected to land and water in Kalabogi village of Sutarkhali union of Dakop Thana in Khulna district. Shibsa river is slowly consuming the land in her womb, endangering the life of the inhabitants there. On the other hand, Hlubaishu Chowdhuri reflected a personal note through her artwork. The unique culture of stitching in the indigenous community is a feature of her paintings where she showcased the destruction of the reality of indigenous people with creation of Kaptai Lake in 1962. The names, culture and language of this area is close to a myth now. Mrittka and Hlubaishu had one thing in common in their artwork – the disfigurement of natural landscape due to infrastructural development. Erosion of Shibsa river because of climate change and creation of Kaptai Lake as a result of Kaptai Dam, both paint the dark picture of development in modern day.

The Beginning

Sadia Arin is a journalist by profession and an avid artist by passion. According to Arin, her paintings are a new time and lifestyle for her. The paintings resonated with Arin's experience during Covid. She wanted to heal the haunting and unending trauma and deal with the pandemic, mental stress, fear of losing loved ones and not meeting them for a long time. The paintings were her way to face reality.

Uncertainty Principle

Reminiscing the musical night from last winter archives of Batighar performances, with the dreamy voice of Shayantani Twisha that kept us company. Uncertainty Principle performed live at our space - Batighar and spread the magic of music in the air with harmonious melodies, making it an evening to remember!

Aly Zaker Grant to DU

Aly Zaker Research Grant to Department of Theatre and Performance Studies, University of Dhaka

“Aly Zaker Research Grant” - is entitled for the postgraduate students belonging to the Department of Theatre and Performance Studies in Dhaka University, who are selected based on their merit from the department.

Event Overview

This grant is presented to students for undertaking projects on research and direction of staging drama. A memorandum of understanding has been signed by Sara Zaker – Chairperson of Mongol Deep Foundation and Ashiqur Rahman Leeon – Chairman of the mentioned department that is dedicated for the study and development of theatrical performances. The signing ceremony was held on 16th July, 2023.

In honor of the venerable theater-lover Aly Zaker – who possessed boundless passion for performing arts, the grant is titled as “Aly Zaker Research Grant”. To support the practice of arts and theater is a core incentive of Mongol Deep, which provides a grant of BDT 500,000 (Five Lac Bangladeshi Taka) to the chosen students.

Lottery drama 2019

Lottery: A play by the visually impaired.

Through an attempt to include differently abled artists in the theater world, this play was produced by Mongol Deep in 2019, with 15 visually impaired actors. Through the performance, a dialogue began about the challenges faced by those who are differently abled and how we as a society need to be more conscious about the same. It was also featured in one of the most celebrated theater festivals of Bangladesh ‘Notuner Utshob 2019’, organized by one of the oldest and most renowned theater groups called Nagorik Natya Sampraday. It had more than 1000 viewers and stood out as one of the finest productions alongside other prominent plays featured in the festival.

Mental Health Campaign 2019

Mental health awareness campaign

To raise awareness about mental health and the well-being of adolescents and children, a mental health campaign was organized in 2019 by Mongol Deep Foundation. After having focus group discussions with students from different educational institutions, issues like depression, stress and anxiety came up that affected teenagers. Some short fictional pieces were made with young artists to bring these issues to the forefront. These audio-visual productions were promoted through social media reaching more than 12.5 lakh viewers and engaging with around 7,000 people. Educational sessions on mental health were held in 8 schools with around 500 beneficiaries, teaching them how to cope with grief and exam related stress.

Paint with Roy

‘Paint with Roy’

Development practitioner by profession and artist by passion, Diti Roy brings therapeutic art sessions filled with colors, expressing self and calming the inner chaos. The participants started their Saturday mornings with a fun loving activity of creating art blended with meditation. Anyone with a mind to play with colors and artwork were welcomed to join the session with Diti Roy, no prior experience were needed.

Self Defense Workshop for Employees

Self Defense Workshop

A 'Self Defense workshop' was hosted at Batighar on 26th October, facilitated by Edward Gomes from Tactical Krav Maga Bangladesh. Mongol Deep Foundation organized the session for Asiatic employees, who learnt basic techniques to defend themselves from life-threatening situations.

Yoga at Batighar

Yoga with Joysan

At Batighar, we believe in the art of practicing mindfulness and tranquility in the face of day-to-day stress from work-life balance. To bring this opportunity of connecting the mind and body with the soul as one, Batighar had run yoga classes with Joysan Yoga & Wellness Centre.

Aly Zaker Granthapath

A book reading project initiative

“Aly Zaker Grontho Paath” is a book reading project initiative undertaken by Liberation War Museum, in association with Mongol Deep Foundation. In memory of Aly Zaker, one of the founding trustees of Liberation War Museum of Bangladesh, this is a book reading activity for students to encourage reading more books on the liberation war. In the beginning phase, a planning meeting was held between the representatives of libraries under the museum’s network and officials of the museum. Initially, the project plan was to involve 50 libraries – 30 libraries from Dhaka Metropolis and 20 other libraries from surrounding areas like Munshiganj, Narayanganj, Gazipur, Manikganj etc, but ultimately, we went forward with 42 libraries. The coordination’s team was supervised by Mohammad Shahnewaz – representative of Dania Pathagar. It was decided that the activity will be divided into three categories depending on the age groups of students – school, college, and university level. The participating library members were provided with the selected book and asked to submit an essay/report on the book they have read. The best ten essays from each category were rewarded with books worth of Five Thousand Taka in addition with Five Thousand Taka prize money and certificates. The three books selected for the activity were –

Event Overview

We received around 250 essays in total from all the libraries where five sets of the three aforementioned books were distributed.

A panel of judges consisting of journalists from renowned daily newspapers and teachers was made for a primary round of selection to shortlist the essays for final assessment. To review the essays for selecting the top ten winners from the shortlisted ones, a jury board was set up, members being – Dr. Sarwar Ali, Mofidul Hoque, Sara Zaker, Minar Monsur, Dr. Abu Mohammad Delowar Hossain and Iresh Zaker who are all trustees of the museum.

“Aly Zaker Grontho Paath” is expected to be a recurring annual event which shall be executed within a three-month timeline (from November till January).

Golper Bikel 2023

Afternoon of Stories - Let's Tell and Listen to Tales

“Golper Bikel ” Golper Bikel – Golpo Pori Golpo Shuni, is a transformative book reading project dedicated to nurturing the minds of young readers. Designed to improve literacy skills such as reading, vocabulary, and critical thinking, Golper Bikel engages children in interactive storytelling and other enjoyable activities. Six young professionals volunteered to become Readers and underwent training in dramatic reading techniques and effective session coordination. The reading sessions were being held in five libraries across Dhaka City, they are – Mukul Fouj Pathagar, Shimanto Grothagar, Kamal Smriti Pathagar, Tahmina Iqbal Public Library and Utsho Bidyaniketan.

The project aimed to reach more than 900 children aged 7 to 10 years in the first phase over 6 months. The second phase of the project will start from August 2024. A variety of age-appropriate books, including fiction and non-fiction, have been carefully curated to enhance their attentiveness and literacy skills. Beyond literacy, the project aims to foster creativity, enhance social and communication skills through group discussions, and instill a profound, lifelong passion for books. This project is initiated by the Mongol Deep Foundation in memory of educator and storyteller Alia Amin, mother of Sara Zaker, who passed away in 2022.

WOW Bangladesh (Dhaka) 2023

WOW Bangladesh 2023

Mongol Deep Foundation in partnership with the British Council and CCD Bangladesh organizes WOW festivals in Bangladesh. WOW - Women of the World is an international festival that celebrates the achievements of women and girls and looks at some of the obstacles they face across the world. The aim of the festival is to bring people together to combat the inequality and discrimination they face in society and provide support and encouragement by fostering a safe space for dialogue. This all-inclusive festival features Panel Discussions, Pop-up performances, WOW Bites, Under 10's Feminist Corner, Workshops, Speed mentoring, Marketplace, and musical performances.

WOW Bangladesh 2023 was held in Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy on 24 and 25 February 2024 with over thirty thousand audiences. From inspiring speakers to interactive workshops the weekend was full of celebration and connection. Some of the notable participants include Azmeri Haque Badhon, Rubaba Dowla, Nazifa Tushi, Jaya Chakma, Masha Islam, Ridy Sheikh, Tosiba and bands like Khiyo and Chirkutt.

Thought-provoking discussions about impacts of colourism and biases based on skin tone, social perceptions and moral policing based on clothing, pressurization of childbirth and the perception of feminism in wider communities had the audiences captivated throughout. Workshops topics like toxic parenting and property rights of women stood out as highly important issues for festival goers.

WOW Dhaka 2019

WOW is an international festival that celebrates the achievements of women and girls and looks at some of the obstacles they face across the world. The British Council, in partnership with the WOW Foundation, brought WOW for the first time to Dhaka on 5 - 6 of April 2019 at the Bangla Academy premises. WOW Dhaka 2019 featured panel discussions, pop-up performances, WOW Bites, 'Under 10’s Feminist' corner, workshops, speed mentoring, a marketplace and a musical concert. Mongol Deep Foundation embarked on the journey of social change through WOW by being one of the nine curators, arranging ‘Under 10’s Feminist Corner’ with Rafiath Rashid Mithila and a panel discussion titled ‘Bhalo Meyer Shonga Ki’.

A glimpse of the festival can be seen through this video -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELy5BK7X-nc&list=PL6sQ-WCTbX77pnn-FLY96hiCaTENdIRLE&index=4

WOW Divisional Chapters 2022

Khulna Chapter saw the first in a series of WOW Chapters held across Bangladesh in 2022. It was held on 12 March at Khulna University and brought together women from all over the district. The event invoked meaningful conversations between teachers, community leaders, artists, activists, filmmakers and entrepreneurs. More than three thousand people attended the event from all over Khulna.

Sylhet Chapter was held in May 2022 at the Sylhet District Stadium with almost five thousand attendees. It featured panel discussions, traditional cultural performances by local artists and a musical concert by Sylhet’s singing sensation Tosiba Begum.

Chattogram Chapter was held in M A Aziz Stadium in June, with over four thousand people in the festival audience. Well-known educationist and writer, Dr Anwara Alam, inaugurated the program. The line-up included performances by various indigenous artists, workshops on self defense, WOW Bites and many more highlighting the challenges faced by women while sharing inspirational stories.

Rajshahi Chapter held in July 2022 in Rajshahi College with over seven thousand people attending the event. Speakers included professors, gender activists, youth politicians, social entrepreneurs, athletes and more. The event turned more festive for the traditional Alkap performance and a shadow puppet show performed by persons with disability, curated by Together We Can.

Rangpur was the last in the series of WOW Chapters with the highest turnout of more than sixteen thousand people. Held at Begum Rokeya University in September 2022, the event had colourful and energetic activities ranging from workshops and panel discussions, to poetry and traditional Kushan pala and a concert by popular singer Dola.

WOW Virtual Bangladesh 2021

First ever online festival focusing on women and girls

WOW Virtual Bangladesh 2021

Strategic partners British Council, CCD Bangladesh and Mongol Deep Foundation organized Bangladesh’s first ever online festival focusing on women and girls named ‘WOW Virtual Bangladesh’ from 29 to 30 July 2021. The two-day festival aimed to celebrate women and girl’s voices across the country, living in or beyond the margins of society and featured counter narratives of women who do not belong to the majority or mainstream but venture out in paths less travelled and succeed in paving new ways for gender equality.

The online event featured different WOW Bites, where women’s unheard challenges were brought to focus, highlighting their achievements. Through their counter narratives, the stories reflected on barriers faced and how they were overcome by marginalized communities every day. The festival also featured an online WOW Marketplace, where women business owners shared their experiences of running businesses online during the pandemic, and how their highlighted products were divisional specialties. The entire program can be viewed through the following links:

Day 1 - https://www.facebook.com/mongoldeepfoundation/videos/4620293871338156

Day 2 - https://www.facebook.com/mongoldeepfoundation/videos/1168075550342980

WOW Virtual Bangladesh 2022

After the success of the first online festival, another virtual WOW took place from 26 to 28 May 2022. With the theme ‘Celebrating the indomitable’ in heart, the virtual event celebrated the resilience of women and provided further support by fostering a safe space for dialogue. The first day of the event began with performances by Umme Habiba, contemporary and Bharatnatyam dancer, and Sushma Das, folk singer and Ekushe Padak winner. Shirin Akter, former fastest female sprinter of Bangladesh and Bangabandhu Krishi Award winner, Alpana Rani Mistri shared the stories of their journey through WOW Bites. Through a one-on-one conversation Jenny Sealy, artist director of Graeae, UK and film producer Esha Yousuf, shared their experiences as arts practitioners of different cultures. The second day included a panel discussion under the topic of ‘What it actually means to be an ally’ with social media influencer Sakib Bin Rashid as moderator and four speakers including, Sharmin Rahman, head of Corporate Branding and Engagements in Grameenphone, well-known stand-up comedian Naveed Mahbub, Rumana Dowla, founder of Palliative Care and Supportive Care Foundation, and Sabeena Akhter, writer and senior programmer in WOW Foundation, UK. The discussion was followed by a drama performance by Tropa Majumdar and Pantha Shahriar.

During the third day, the festival began with a muppet video by Sisimpur on ‘Unwanted Touch’ followed by a dance performance by Colours of Hill, an indigenous dance group. Sanjiboni, a transwoman working in BRAC Bank and Salma Sultana, listed as one of the top 100 Asian Scientists shared stories through WOW Bites. Sara Zaker, chairperson of Mongol Deep Foundation and founder of SBK Tech Ventures and SBK Foundation, Sonia Bashir Kabir participated in the event through a one-on-one conversation sharing their unique experiences as women leaders of different industries.

The entire program can be viewed through the following links:

Day 1 - https://www.facebook.com/mongoldeepfoundation/videos/1036606373915539

Day 2 - https://www.facebook.com/mongoldeepfoundation/videos/5653311381375126

Day 3 - https://www.facebook.com/mongoldeepfoundation/videos/966506210678224