Humayun Ahmed did not die from cancer: Ahsan Habib

Ahsan Habib is a popular cartoonist, editor and publisher of monthly satire magazine `Unmad’. He is the first row cartoonist of Bangladesh.

 

He had started learning cartooning from his home. In 1975 his first cartoon was published in the daily Bangladesh Observer. He completed his higher studies in Geology from the top ranking university of Bangladesh but worked in the banking sector. 

 

He could not concentrate in the time based banking job. Letter he left the banking job and sailed the fun magazine ‘Unmad’ (The Mad).  Another favorite hobby is jokes.  Collection and create jokes are his passion. Sometimes he himself makes jokes by saying himself a` Grandfather of jokes’. He is equally popular as humor writing. Ahsan Habib was interviewed by Taposh Roy.
 
Taposh Roy: Your father was fond of literature. Later, your three brothers have inherited the virtue from him. Question is how your father was influenced over?

Ahsan Habib: During our childhood, we frequently compete in writing competition at home. Father often organise that. If the write up was fine in quality prizes was given to us. We had to submit at least a write up to him in a week. My some brothers and sisters used to submit short story or poem. I become inspired of writing story much when I could submit any story to my father.  Even, if father was asleep, I rouse him up and forcibly read out my fiction whether he is asleep or not. Later, I sought prize to my father whether the story had quality or not. Father later compelled and ordered my mom to pay four paisa (penny) as `prize!’.

Not only inspired to my Sibling, but also inspired the children of our neighbor. Father had been serving in the police department but he had much passion in literature and culture.  My writer brother Humayun Ahmed had gotten his popular character `Himu’ from my father.  Once, my father bought a horse after drawing his total monthly salary.

On that period he had a camera. If he gets leisure hour, my father used to stage musical program in the house and travel in the jungle. He had such peculiar hobbies. Himu used to make gurgle with making big sound. Father also had same habit. Nature of Humayun was copy of my father. So influence of my father was high on Humayun Ahmed, it can be imagined.
 
My mother had gotten scholarship in class II. Some of her short stories were published in the ` Detective’ magazine.  Father also used to write on the magazine. By getting inspiration from my father, we used to publish handmade magazine during our childhood.  We used to publish special issues on marriage or travel. We are still carrying on this practice.  

Tapos Roy: Not as story teller, but your important identity is a cartoonist. How you become interested in cartoon?

Ahsan Habib: I did never think that I will paint. My inspiration was grown from my brother Muhammad Jafar Iqbal. Many of us don’t know that he used to art before. In 1972 he gave cartoon in daily Ganakantha. 

Taposh Roy: How you have joined with Unmad?

Ahsan Habib: The inception copy of quarterly magazine Unmad was published in May 1978. It was initiated by Istiak Hossain, Kazi Khalid Ashraf and Saiful Haque. Price of 64 pages Magazine was only Tk 2. I joined from the second issue. The publishing of the magazine was stopped after publishing 8th issue despite a hot cake to the readers. The publishing of the magazine was stopped as the editors and publishers become busy with their own business. Many of them had gone abroad due to career development. I also had joined in the banking career. But I could not suit with the time bound banking job. I again thought that how it could be if the Unmad is publish from new fashion? From that thinking, I started publishing the monthly Unmad from that period.
 
Taposh Roy: Unmad is continued to publish since 36 years. It is rare that publishing a satire magazine for long time. How you will explain this? 

Ahsan Habib: The Unmad always have remained a magazine of youth, it is the reason behind. The juveniles do not continue the readership of Unmad when they become youth. The new juveniles grab the position. Beside, Unmad has its own character. Through Unmad, we try to make people aware over different social, political and moral crisis by the satiric pattern of Unmad. Here, Unmad try to tell that though he (Unmad) is playing mad role, but are you sound’?
Taposh Roy: Have you face any barrier or embarrassment when you have depicted the political problems through satire?

Ahsan Habib: During the regime of Ershad, I had faced a pressure. I published an issue on mass uprising. It was a precedent in the history of newspaper.  Beside I face pressure when i published satire cartoon on Bangla films. The Unmad office was ransacked also. 

Tapos Roy: What was your experience about personal life over Unmad?

Ahsan Habib:  Hahaha, Well. Absolutely nice. My marriage tie was going to untie for this because guardin of a wife always wants a groom to be stable and sound financially. I was an editor of a satire based magazine Unmad. The identity could not make them happy. Meanwhile, I worked in the bank.  I had to face trouble to make the relation (marriage) fruitful. Before marriage mother said, let the marriage do then leave it. But as I left the job before marriage and become busy with Unmad, the counter side opposed. The marriage, however, finally happened for the effort of my wife.

Taposh Roy: You had published issue No-’32 and Half’. All of you have ‘Unmadio’. Where from you get so many ideas?

Ahsan Habib: I mentioned that it was strength of youth. Many established cartoonist of today had started their career through Unmad. Youth are always idealist. I tell them Idealist. Their brains are always busy and full of with new and fresh ideas like Bugs. All actives of Unamd have some madness. Many of cartoonists were not studied in Fine Arts institute but they work much better.  At the initial stage, some interesting incidents took place in our house (Unmad magazine house). In our team those member could not go in marriage, we made his/her Executive Editor. Surprisingly, after getting the position, they got married.

Taposh Roy: You are called Grandfather of Jokes. Is joke a literature?

Ahsan Habib: Jokes is called miniature literature. Someone told that if the list of shopping is written nicely it can become a literature. If the term is true, the joke also can term as literature. It is not only matter of fun or laugh. Here a element of lot of learning existing.

Taposh Roy: But is the political joke always happened with true story? Many gossips also remain there. 

Ahsan Habib:  All we know that Isaac Newton discovered the sources of gravitation by sitting under an apple tree. But it is not true. Real fact is that everybody wants to know how the sour was discovered. People had query.  Being disturbed by a lot of question, he made such story of under an apple tree. The political jokes are all the same. But the celebrity jokes are many times composed by true fact.

Taposh Roy: Example, please!

Ahsan Habib: In the classroom, teacher asked to Kazi Anwar Hossain to frame a sentence by word ‘fool’. He answered that-My father (Kazi Motaher Hossain) is a fool. Hearing this, the teacher shouted on him and said how dare you to saying your father is fool? This is called celebrity jokes. The celebrity jokes have some problem. Once Minar Mahmud was driving a taxy in the New York City. The passenger suddenly asked him, do you know writer Taslima Nasrin? Minar Mahmud replied saying that Yes, she is my wife. Hearing the answer, the passenger sent him to police. He thought why a husband of a writer will drive taxi?

I wrote this event in a joke. I heard Minar Mahmud was searching me and I become feared much.
 
Taposh Roy: The jokes books means collection and reader are not serious over the collection book. But you have written many books on jokes.
 
Ahsan Habib: I don’t worried over who gave importance or not. I collect jokes and then make them well edit. Later publish those jokes after making editing. Many jokes create such ways. I have planned to publish real life jokes book in the next book fair. Several days back, I went to buy mango for my mother and asked the salesman that whether the mango is sweet or not. The salesman replied, if you have suffered with diabetes, you should not buy this sweet mango. I n such way I get many jokes. Actually if you want to jokes and cartoon, you have to open your eyes, ears and senses. No alternative of those.

Taposh Roy: There many jokes program are being airing in the neighboring country television channels. But no sign is visible here. 

Ahsan Habib: They are not doing program on jokes because telling jokes and comedy is not all the same. By using jokes, they are doing comedy because their jokes are not understandable. Their presentation is like jokers. Jokes should be told in a cool brain. He will tell but will not laugh and audience will laugh. Another thing is dirty jokes. It is available in every country but that is beyond the pages of book. It is not possible to visualize those. But they are trying to do that.

Taposh Roy: What is basic difference between cartoonist and artist?

Ahsan Habib: Cartoonist can paint better but an artist cannot be a good cartoonist over the night. Cartoonist should understand humor. The political cartoons are popular in Bangladesh. According to me, the political cartoons should be symbolic.
 
Taposh Roy: Let’s discuss about different matter. Recently we are seeing the debates over death of popular writer also your brother Humayun Ahmed…

Ahsan Habib:  Well, Humayun Ahmed did not die from cancer; rather he died of a heart attack because he had a successful operation. He was taken to home. If he would not drop from chair on that night, he might not be died. It was an accident. So we have to understand this. Beside those who were beside him during his treatment, they done a lot for him. So there is nothing of debate on this issue. Another matter is that he married Shawn by his own choice. They have two young children. We should not make more debate over the death of Humayun Ahmed after thinking his children.

Risingbd/Dhaka/ September 14, 2014/ Taposh Roy/ SM Humayun Kabir