Alamgir Kabir
(film maker)
Alamgir Kabir (December 26,
1938 – January 20, 1989) was a renowned Bangladeshi film
director and cultural activist. He has made some of the most seminal films in
Bangladesh film history. Three of his feature films are featured in the
"Top 10 Bangladeshi Films" list by British Film Institute .
Early life and career
He was born on 26 December 1938 at Rangamati. He
completed the matriculation in 1952 from Dhaka Collegiate School and the intermediate in 1954 from Dhaka College.
After completion of bachelors from the Dhaka University in
Physics, he went to
England to study Electrical Engineering at Oxford University.
It is during this period that he came across the Seventh Seal by Ingmar Bergman. He
watched it several times and became attracted to filmmaking. He went on to
complete a number of courses on the history of the film industry, film
direction and aesthetics.
He also got involved with the Communist Party of England and became
a reporter of the Communist Party newspaper, the Daily Worker. As a reporter of the communist daily, he took
interview of Cuban President Fidel
Castro.He also took part in the wars of liberation of Palestine and Algeria. Alamgir
was the founder of organisations such as East Pakistan House and East Bengal
Liberation Front at London and was active in the campaign against racial
discrimination.
In 1966, Alamgir came back home. The Ayub government imprisoned him for his
involvement with the leftist movement. Later, he started his professional life
as a journalist and very soon became popular as a serious film critic. With the
start of the war of independence in 1971, he joined the Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra as the chief of its
English section. He also worked as the chief reporter of the Bangladesh
government in exile. This period also marks the start of his directorial life
with the making of documentaries.
After the war of independence, he started making feature films. His
films were critically acclaimed and were very popular.
Filmography Feature films
Dhire Bahe Meghna (Quiet Flows
the Meghna), 1973
Surya Kannya (Daughter of The
Sun), 1975
Simana Periey (Across The
Fringe), 1977
Rupali Saikate (The Loner), 1979
Mohana (The Mouth of a River),
1982
Mahanayak (The Great Hero), 1985
Parinita (The Wedded), 1984
Short films
Liberation Fighter
Pogrom in Bangladesh
Culture in Bangladesh
Sufia, Amulya Dhan (The
Invaluable)
Bhor Halo Dor Kholo (Open the
Door now at the Dawn)
Amra Dujan (The Two of Us)
Ek Sagar Rakter Binimoye (At the
Cost of a Sea of Blood)
Manikanchan (The Diamond)
Chorasrot (The Unseen Trend)
Awards
Cine
Journalists Award
Zahir
Raihan Film Award of Uttaran
Syed
Mohammad Parvez Award
Personal life
In 1968, he married Manjura Begum. After separation from her, he got married
to actress Jayasree
Kabir in 1975. He was the father of three daughters. He was killed
in an unfortunate road accident on 20 January 1989.
AND
Kabir,
Alamgir (1938-1989) film director, cultural
activist. Alamgir Kabir was born on 26 December 1938 at rangamati. His parents originally hailed from
banaripara of barisal. Alamgir Kabir started his
schooling in Hughli Collegiate School and in 1948, he was admitted to Dhaka
Collegiate School. He passed the matriculation examinations in 1952 from this
school with distinction in Mathematics. After passing the ISc examinations in
1954 from Dhaka College, he took admission in the Department of Physics of the
University of Dhaka.
He completed the honours courses
of the university and went to England, where he studied Electrical
Engineering at Oxford University. In England, he saw the Seventh Seal of the famous
filmmaker Ingmar Bergman several times and became attracted to filmmaking. He
also developed a liking for leftist politics and became a member of the
Communist Party of England. Then he became a reporter of the Communist Party
newspaper the Daily Worker.
He completed a number of courses on the history of the film industry, film
directing and aesthetics.
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Alamgir Kabir was the founder of
organisations such as East Pakistan House and East Bengal Liberation Front at
London and took active part in the 'campaign against racial discrimination'.
During his work in the Daily Worker,
he became acquainted with the strategies and methods of guerilla warfare and
had the opportunity to take an interview of President Fidel Castro. Later, he
took part in the wars of liberation of Palestine and Algeria. The French
government arrested him on one occasion and he spent eight months behind the
bars then.
Alamgir Kabir returned home in 1966
and got involved in the leftist movement. The Ayub government had arrested and
committed him to prison. Even after being released from jail, he was confined
under house arrest for a year. He started his professional life in East
Pakistan as a journalist for the Daily
Observer. Later he associated himself with the weekly Holiday. Very soon, he became popular
as a serious film critic. He then joined the Express, a weekly, as its editor. With the start of the war of liberation in 1971,
He joined the swadhin bangla betar kendra (the
radio centre of independent Bangladesh) as the chief of its English section. He
used the pseudonym Ahmed Chowdhury in reading English news and features over
the radio. He also worked as the chief reporter of the government in exile.
During this time he also started making films. One of his first documentary
films is on the liberation fighters. His voice was used for playback purpose in
some films made by others.
After the liberation of Bangladesh,
Alamgir Kabir made a number of feature films of high standard. Those included Dhire Bahe Meghna (Quiet Flows the
Meghna, 1973), Suryakanya (Daughter
of the Sun, 1976), Simana Periey (Beyond
the Borders, 1977), Rupali Saikate (Along
the Silver Beach, 1979), Mohana (The
Mouth of a River, 1982), Mahanayak (The
Great Hero, 1985), and Parinita (The
Wedded, 1984). The short films of Alamgir Kabir include the Liberation Fighter, Pogrom in Bangladesh, Culture in Bangladesh, Sufia, Amulya Dhan (The Invaluable), Bhor Halo Dor Kholo (Open the Door now at the Dawn), Amra Dujan (The Two of Us), Ek Sagar Rakter Binimoye (At the Cost
of a Sea of Blood), Manikanchan (The
Diamond) and Chorasrot (The
Unseen Trend). Alamgir Kabir is the author of a number of books including Film in East Pakistan, Film in Bangladesh, Suryakanya, Simana Periey and Mohana.
He also prepared cinematic adaptations of two plays, the Dhire Bahe Meghna and This was Radio Bangladesh in 1971. He
was honoured with the Cine Journalists Award, Zahir Raihan Film Award of
Uttaran, and Syed Mohammad Parvez Award.
Alamgir Kabir was first married to
Manjura Begum in 1968. After separation from her, he married Jayasri Kabir in
1975. He was the father of three daughters. His life was cut short by a tragic
road accident on 20 January 1989.
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