My Publications

Poonam: The upcoming star in your musicdom Rising from mixed albums Re/Evolution, Varitation No. 25 and Bonno, Poonam is the voice symbolising pure magnetism. Her yodelling vocal with creative flavour makes her forthcoming solo album one of the most anticipated, writes Faizul Khan Tanim photo by Andrew Biraj New Age (NA): How and when did you become inclined towards music? Poonam: My mother did a higher secondary course on music and, was my teacher since when I was two and a half years old. I was born in Doha, Qatar and moved to the USA at the age of eight; however, I never stopped taking music lessons. Music was always like an innate part of me. NA: When did you record your first single? Poonam: In the end of 2004, my aunt, Papiya, introduced me to music producer, Fuad Al Muqtadir, whom I affectionately call dadu. He heard my voice and instantly proposed to record a song called Basto Shohore, which later made to the album Re/Evolution in 2005. I am extremely grateful to my aunt for in...

Nima Rahman It was at the age of two-and-a-half that Nima Rahman first appeared on television. Faizul Khan Tanim finds out how this powerful stage and television actor is still going strong Be it the stage or television, she’s done it all. From a rigid, angry woman to a romantic, her presence is equally powerful. Over 42 television dramas and 16 theatre productions are a testimony to actor Nima Rahman’s skills. It’s no wonder that Nima was the first woman director and producer for a lifestyle show on Bangladesh Television in 1998 called Amader Kotha, which was later aired on Ekushey Television (ETV) as well. Recently, I caught up with this boisterous personality at her Gulshan bookstore Words n’ Pages. Between sipping on a glass of honey lemon iced tea and playing computer games, she described her struggle finding proper roles in both TV and theatre. She blames the politics in the media world for the fact that she does few selected roles nowadays. ‘I was and still am very straight for...

A gift of great value Faizul Khan Tanim finds out what the hair relic handed over on July 18 to a high-powered Sri Lankan delegation means to the Buddhist community photo Focusbangla On July 18, the handing over of the hair relics of Gautum Buddha from the Chittagong Buddhist Monastery at Nandan Kanan, Chittagong, to a group of Sri Lankan representatives, may have been treated as a fairly low-key event in Bangladesh, but in Sri Lanka, and in many parts of the world where Buddhists reside, it will be an event of great religious, political, economic and social value. A delegation of 30 members including five government ministers, led by Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama and four high priests were members of the Sri Lanka team who spent three days in Bangladesh. The delegation also included Mass Media and Information Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa, Cultural Affairs Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Religious Affairs and Moral Upliftment Minister Pandu Bandaranaike, and Minister fo...

The Bally Sagoo blitzkrieg Bally is a tall, funny man who believes that the distance between heaven and hell depends on what someone is doing. On his first visit to Bangladesh, he reveals with a smirk that, he is into music because his doctor forbade him to be involved in anything else. Writes Faizul Khan Tanim photo by Andrew Biraj Rated one of UK's top ten British musicians and also one of the pioneering artistes to have brought re-mix music in South Asia, Bally Sagoo was a brilliant blitz last week. Performing at the City's Regency Hotel arranged by JPR Events, he played popular songs like Gur Nalon Ishq, Aaja Nachle, couple of his new tracks from the upcoming film Sajna Ve Sajna and more. Reportedly, Bally was the show rocker for the night. Prior to the show, he sat with the New Age and related an amazing tale of his life surrounded by music. New Age (NA): How did it all start? How did you get in to music? Bally: When I actually started music it was 1974 and I was ten. Gr...

The memory remains Faizul Khan Tanim visits the War memorial at Mirpur Jalladkhana killing field and returns with haunting stories of an unforgettable legacy A surprising site at the gates of the recently opened war memorial is a group of street children, ranging from four to six years olds, lined up in front of the memorial gate, and singing patriotic songs like Mora ekti phool ke bachabo bole judhho kori and the national anthem Amar shonar Bangla ami tomai bhalobashi. They sung with so much passion and devotion that even commuters on the street took a break and stood for some time to see that emotional scene. As you enter the monument site, you realise it is a small area of land upon which different parts the memorial stands. On the left of the gate, a mural, made of burnt bricks, stands boldly. Eminent artist Rafiqun Nabi says, the first time he entered the site, he was pain-stricken trying to visualise the mass murders, and the idea of a mural struck him. Later, Nabi and Muniruzza...