“I was born two days after the passing away of Rabindranath Tagore. That was the 24th day of Sravan in the year 1348 of Bengali calendar, or 9th August, 1941, in Christian calendar,” reads the first two lines of Ramendu Majumdar’s autobiography, the English translation of which is slated for release this month.

Feroza Begum was a once in a generation artiste, having devoted her life to promote and teach Nazrul Sangeet, as well as becoming one of the most well-known exponents of the craft in South East Asia.

Vicky Zahed started his career as a director with short films. Striving towards his passion, he soon rose to fame on television. He is known for redefining the thriller, supernatural, and suspense genres on screen. His Eid-ul-Azha television productions, “Chirokal Aaj”, “Punorjonmo”, “Ditiyo Shuchona”, “Prio Adnan” and “Kaykobad” were well-received by viewers. In a candid chat with The Daily Star, Vicky Zahed talks about what his process of directing looks like, and more.

National Film Award-winning actor Zakia Bari Mamo has garnered her career with several accolades. She has been lucky in this respect. “Daruchini Dwip”, a film based on Humayun Ahmed’s novel of the same name and directed by Tauquir Ahmed, was the first movie she starred in. Her first film received immense praise. 

Architecture is a form of art that is most present in our lives. We are surrounded by urban design every day and while some buildings are more functional than decorative, others are designed to display architectural finesse and an abundance of skilfully crafted ornaments. Whether their appearance appeals to one’s personal liking or not, we can’t escape the effect architecture has on us.

Today marks the 80th death anniversary of Bengali poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter Rabindranath Tagore. The Nobel Laureate continues to inspire generations, years after his demise. On this day, young and promising Rabindra Sangeet practitioners reflect upon his legacy, and his impact on their lives. 

Different organisations will observe the 80th death anniversary of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore today, with online programmes featuring performances by noted Rabindra Sangeet singers, recitations, and discussions.

Indian filmmaker Hansal Mehta recently announced his next film, “Faraaz”. Billed as an action thriller, the movie will depict the Holey Artisan café attack that shook Bangladesh. It is backed by filmmaker Anubhav Sinha and producer Bhushan Kumar.

The first ever Bangla feature film, “Mukh O Mukhosh”, directed by Abdul Jabbar Khan, was released on August 3, 1965. Actor Pyari Begum played one of the main roles in the film. At that time, she was a first- year intermediate student at Eden College. She shared her fond memories of being a part of “Mukh O Mukhosh” with The Daily Star.

Popular actor Ferdous has written his first novel, which he hopes to release at the forthcoming Ekushey Boi Mela.

Johnny Depp has won a legal ruling from a New York judge that will force the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to reveal how much money his ex-wife, actor Amber Heard, actually donated to them after Heard claimed that she donated half of her divorce settlement with Depp to the organisation.

Filmmaker Kamar Ahmad Simon’s “Neel Mukut” was slated for release on March 27, 2020. However, the film had to be indefinitely postponed amidst the coronavirus pandemic.  Over a year has passed since the last announcement. The wait is finally over, as “Neel Mukut” is set to premiere on streaming platform Chorki on August 8, which also happens to be Kamar’s birthday.  

Rubaiat Habib from Bangladesh is one of the members of the ‘Character Animator’ team that won an Emmy last year, in the technology and engineering category. Currently living in Seattle, Rubaiat completed his undergraduate studies in Computer Science and Engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology. He is a senior research scientist at Adobe Research by profession and an artist by passion.

Shilpa Shetty has broken her silence on her husband Raj Kundra’s arrest for his alleged involvement in a pornography case. She urged everyone to respect the family’s privacy for the sake of their two children - Viaan and Samisha - and maintained that she is a proud law-abiding Indian citizen.

Thea White, who voiced Muriel on the animated series “Courage the Cowardly Dog”, has passed away at the age of 81. Her brother John Zitzner announced the sad news on Facebook, writing in another post that White died after battling liver cancer, which she was diagnosed with months ago. He said she underwent two surgeries, before passing away peacefully on the morning of July 30 at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

Popular duo Moushumi and Omar Sani have been married for 25 years. The couple tied the knot on August 2, 1996. “We have had a wonderful journey so far, with people’s blessings and love. I look forward to many more beautiful years with my life partner,” adds Moushumi.

Disney’s response to Scarlett Johansson’s “Black Widow” lawsuit is being branded by Time’s Up, Women in Film Los Angeles, and ReFrame as a “gendered character attack.”

The Concert for Bangladesh, a pair of benefit concerts organised by former Beatles guitarist George Harrison and Indian sitar player Ravi Shankar, were held on August 1, 1971, at Madison Square Garden in New York City, to raise international awareness of, and fund relief for refugees from the then East Pakistan, following the Bangladesh Liberation War. Expanding on the 50-year legacy of the concert, Samdani Art Foundation (Dhaka) and UBIK Productions (London) collaborated to host a mixed reality musical event, titled ‘Concert from Bangladesh’.  The initiative is supported by the British Council Digital Collaboration Fund.

Netflix's acclaimed series about the British royal family, "The Crown", will return with a fifth season. Production of the show is now underway, and the makers have unveiled the first look of Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth II.  The role was previously played by Olivia Colman, who portrayed the monarch for Seasons 3 and 4, while Claire Foy played the central role for the first two seasons.

Recently, Scarlett Johansson filed what is shaping up to be a monumental lawsuit against the Walt Disney Company for allegedly breaching her contract by releasing “Black Widow” on Disney+ at the same time it hit theatres.