Humayun Ahmed’s birth anniversary today

Staff Correspondent: The 67th birth anniversary of Humayun Ahmed, a legendary litterateur, dramatist, screenwriter, playwright and filmmaker, is being observed today (November 13) in a befitting manner.

To mark the day, a three-day Himu Mela is being arranged in the city today.

Different socio-cultural organisations have organised different programmes to mark the occasion. Television channels have also chalked out special programmes in celebration of the day.

Bangladesh National Museum has organised a 15-day exhibition featuring photographs, manuscripts and personal belongings of Humayun Ahmed. 

Humayun Ahmed was born at Kutubpur in Netrakona in 1948. He studied chemistry at the Dhaka University and later taught chemistry in his alma mater. He emerged in the Bengali literary world in the early 1970s.

His father Foyzur Rahman Ahmed, a police officer and writer, was killed by Pakistani military force during the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971.

His mother is Ayesha Foyez. Humayun’s younger brother, Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, a university professor, is also a noted writer.
His breakthrough occurred with the publication of his first novel, Nondito Noroke in 1972.

He was an associate professor of the Department of Chemistry of Dhaka University.

Notably, as of February 2004, Ahmed continued to top the best seller list of a Bangla Academy (Bangladesh) book fair, a feat that had been maintained over the previous two decades.

Humayun Ahmed was appointed as a special advisor to the Bangladesh Mission in the United Nations in 2012.
As a writer, Ahmed often displays a fascination for creating stories around supernatural events; his style is characterized as magic realism.
Another brother, Ahsan Habib, is a painter and the editor of Unmad, a cartoon magazine.
Ahmed was married to Gultekin, granddaughter of Principal Ibrahim Khan, in 1973. The couple got divorced in 2003. Ahmed later married his long time affair, a TV actress, Meher Afroz Shaon.

He passed the School Certificate examination as a student of Bogra Zilla School. He stood second in the merit list in the Rajshahi Education Board.

Later he was admitted to the Dhaka College from where he passed the Intermediate examination. He planned to study economics but suddenly changed his mind and got admitted into the Dhaka University to study Chemistry.

He passed both BSc (Hon’s) and MSc with first class. He joined the Dhaka University as a Lecturer in Chemistry.

Later he went to the North Dakota State University in the United States to study for PhD. After having studied physical chemistry for two years he was impressed by the lecture of a professor of polymer chemistry; and eventually secured a PhD degree in polymer chemistry.

He returned to Bangladesh and resumed teaching at the Dhaka University. He retired as a teacher around mid 1990s to devote all his time to writing and production of film.

Humayun explored the film industry both as an author and director. He directs films based on his own stories. His first film, “Aguner Parashmoni”, based on the liberation war, won the ‘National Film Award’ in total eight categories, including Best Picture and Best Director.

The theme of the Liberation War often comes across in his stories, often drawing upon Ahmed’s in-depth memories of that war and his father’s execution during the war.

In recognition of his versified contributions to the society, Humayun was awarded ‘Ekushey Padak’, ‘National Film Award’, ‘Lekhak Shibir Prize’, ‘Bangla Academy Award’, ‘Shishu Academy Award’, ‘Jainul Abedin Gold Medal’, ‘Michael Madhusudan Medal’, ‘Bacsas Prize’, ‘Humayun Qadir Memorial Prize’ and ‘ShellTec Award’.

Risingbd/DHAKA/Nov 13, 2015/Mukul