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Pahela Baishakh observed with festivity, displaying unity in cultural diversity

Published : Wednesday, 16 April, 2025 at 12:00 AM  Count : 377
Special Correspondent
The nation on Monday celebrated the Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bengali New Year-1432 across the country with festivity, displaying cultural diversities, harmony and unity.

A large number of people joined the New Year (Nababarsha) festivities while different socio-cultural organisations and educational institutions organised different programmes marking the day in Dhaka and elsewhere across the country.

Similar programmes were also taken to celebrate the Nababarsha festivals across the world including India where the Bengali speaking people are living.

The day was a public holiday.

The opening event of the day in Dhaka began at Ramna Batamul by the artistes of Chhayanaut followed by the traditional procession on the Dhaka University campus. Both programmes attracted a large number of people in the morning.

The programmes also expressed solidarity with the Palestinians who are fighting against Israeli aggression in Gaza.

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus greeted the country's people on the occasion of Bengali New Year 1432. In a video message, he called upon the countrymen to work with renewed pledge and enthusiasm to build a new Bangladesh.

"The 2024 mass uprising has given us an opportunity to build a discrimination-free country. Let us not lose this opportunity. In this New Year, building a discrimination-free Bangladesh should be our pledge," he said.

The Chhayanaut started their traditional cultural event with Raga Bhairabi rendered by vocalist Supriya Das early in the morning. Performing nine chorus songs and 12 solo musical performances with recitations by renowned singers and students of Chhayanaut, they also observed a one-minute silence in the memory of the Palestinians killed by Israel in Gaza.

The traditional colourful procession 'Barshabaran Ananda Shobhajatra' organised by Dhaka University addressed diverse political and cultural issues in the morning. The university authorities renamed the traditional Mangal Shobhajatra to Barshabaran Ananda Shobhajatra for the Bengali New Year 1432.

This year's procession featured motifs depicting the spirit of the recent student-led mass uprising and the rich cultural elements of Bangladesh, including the culture of national minorities.

Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki led the procession that was also attended by DU Vice-Chancellor Niaz Ahmed Khan and Faculty of Fine Arts Dean Azharul Islam Sheikh.

One of the motifs resembled the face of deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina symbolising the 'Face of Tyranny' while a bottle of water symbolising July uprising martyr Mir Mahfuzur Rahman Mugdho who distributed water among the protesters before his death on July 18.

A typographical embodiment of July 36 also paid tribute to the martyrs of the uprising while a motif of watermelon also expressed solidarity with the people of Palestine.

A 120-foot-long patachitra and some large motifs including a wooden tiger, a hilsa fish, a palanquin and a dove vibrantly visualised the intangible cultural heritage. A large number of people, carrying different placards addressing contemporary political and social issues, joined the procession, which paraded different streets on the campus.

Twenty-eight national minority communities displayed their cultural symbols at the procession, which also featured Old Dhaka's symbol rickshaws and horse carts.

Our DU correspondent adds, traditional attire dominated the scene as participants from diverse religious, ethnic and professional backgrounds marched together, creating what Dr Niaz Ahmed Khan described as "a vision of a just, inclusive and equitable society based on unity and harmony."

The UNESCO in 2016 recognised 'Mangal Shobhajatra' as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy with the support of the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, the Embassy of China in Dhaka, and Dhaka North City Corporation organised a musical concert and drone show in the capital's Manik Mia Avenue in the evening.

A 14-minute drone show paying tribute to the martyrs of the July-August student-led mass uprising displayed 12 images using 2600 drones. The event attracted a huge audience.

A cultural concert was also organized at the Rabindra Sarobar in Dhaka's Dhanmondi.

The Bangla Academy in association with the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation began a week-long Baishakhi fair on its premises on Monday.

The event, titled Baishakhi Mela 1432, featuring different art, crafts, clothes and food stalls as well as a special discount book shop of the Academy was jointly inaugurated by Industries Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan and Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki on Monday.

In Chattogram, Sammilita Pahela Baishakh Udjapan Parishad cancelled their event as the stage set up for the programme was vandalised by a group of attackers on Sunday.

The Marma community in Khagrachhari on Monday celebrated their traditional Sangrai festival with processions, traditional dances and joyful splashes of water as part of the larger Boishabi festival observed by ethnic communities in the Chattogram Hill Tracts, the United News of Bangladesh reported.

The water festival, known as Jol Utsab, is one of the key attractions of Sangrai, which symbolises bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new one.

In Panchagarh, Shararitu Gagdal organised a kite festival where more than one hundred competitors, mostly children, and youths, attended on Monday afternoon to mark the day.

In Feni, the district administration organised a Baishakhi procession and fair in the district town on Monday. The procession was participated by students of different educational institutes and members of different cultural organisations.


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