The 76th birth anniversary of eminent playwright Selim Al Deen will be celebrated today.
To mark the day, Jahangirnagar University drama and dramatics department will bring out out a commemorative procession titled Smran Shobhajatra on the campus today.
An art exhibition titled Chobir Frame-e Amar Jibannatya by Barin
Ghosh will also be inaugurated on the campus, while the department staged Natoker Gaan, presenting selected songs from Selim Al Deen鈥檚 celebrated plays.
In addition, a seminar was held at the laboratory of JU drama and dramatics department where a paper titled Global Stages, Local Narratives: Theatrical Encounters through Selim Al Deen鈥檚 Swarnoboal was presented.
Beyond the JU campus, a four-day Selim Al Deen festival began on Friday at Bangladesh Mahila Samity in Dhaka, organised by Dhaka Theatre.
The festival opened with the premiere of Deyal, written by Selim Al Deen and directed by Anik Islam.
Widely regarded as one of the pioneers of modern Bangladeshi theatre, Selim Al Deen enriched the stage with his works such as 鈥楽hakuntala鈥�, 鈥楰ittankhola鈥�, 鈥楰eramat Mangal鈥�, 鈥楬athadai鈥�, 鈥楥haka鈥�, 鈥楯aibati Kainyar Mon鈥�, 鈥楬argaj鈥�, 鈥楤onpangshul鈥�, 鈥楴imajjan鈥� and 鈥楧habman鈥�.
Over his illustrious career, he was honoured with numerous awards, including the Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1984, the National Film Award in 1994 and the Ekushey Padak in 2007.
Born at Senerkhil in Feni on August 18, 1949, Selim Al Deen joined Jahangirnagar University as a lecturer in the Bangla department in 1974 and later established the university鈥檚 drama and dramatics department.
He passed away on January 14, 2008.