Bangladesh’s storytellers bask in the spotlight

Some stories stay with viewers long after the screen goes dark. A memorable performance, a line of dialogue, a haunting melody or a scene that refuses to fade. Behind each are the creative minds who bring these stories to life.

Yesterday, it was their turn to take centre stage.

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Actors, filmmakers, musicians and digital content creators gathered at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in Agargaon for the fifth Blender’s Choice-The Daily Star OTT & Digital Content Awards, celebrating the best of Bangladesh’s OTT and digital productions of 2025.

Nuhash Humayun’s “Dui Shaw” dominated the evening with nine Critics’ Choice awards, including Best Actor (Male) for Mosharraf Karim, Best Director, Best Screenplay and six technical honours. Afran Nisho and Mehazabien Chowdhury won the top Popular Choice acting awards.

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Organised by The Daily Star with support from Ispahani Tea Limited, the ceremony honoured productions released between January and December 2025 across 28 categories. It began around 6:30pm with the national anthem, followed by a performance by Alifia Squad and Sarika Sabah.

In his welcome address, Ispahani Group Chairman Mirza Salman Ispahani said the growing volume of quality digital content made selecting winners increasingly difficult.

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“It’s becoming increasingly difficult to choose the right awardees because there is so much good content available,” he said.

He thanked the jury for ensuring fair and transparent selections, congratulated the winners and encouraged other nominees to keep striving.

Mahfuz Anam, editor and publisher of The Daily Star, called for greater recognition of artistes, writers and technicians whose work enriches lives and contributes to cultural development.

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Reflecting on his career in journalism, he said much of his work involved confronting political and social problems, making evenings celebrating creativity a welcome change.

“On evenings like this, I really get into the world of art, the world of creativity.”

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He praised OTT platforms for bringing new dimensions to literature and storytelling.

“OTT has added so many beautiful dimensions to our lives,” Anam said, praising scriptwriters, cinematographers and professionals working in lighting, sound and production for their contributions.

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“The world of art is just as important to our lives as the economy, our professions and our skills.”

He said memorable films and dialogue could leave lasting impressions. “This evening is not only a celebration of great performances; it is a celebration of our consciousness.”

The Star editor urged artistes to embrace technological change while preserving Bangladesh’s history and traditions, and thanked the Ispahani family for supporting the event for five years.

In the Popular Choice categories, Afran Nisho won Best Actor (Male) for “AKA” and Mehazabien Chowdhury Best Actor (Female) for “Neel Shukh”.

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Mehazabien said she had been so preoccupied with her dance performance that she had no time to prepare an acceptance speech. Thanking the production team, fellow artistes and her family, she dedicated the award to director Vicky Zahed and expressed excitement over his move into filmmaking.

Asked whether audiences could expect to see them collaborate on the big screen, she teased, “Something is cooking.”

Nisho thanked viewers for voting for him, along with director Vicky Zahed, the producers and his family. He said the recognition meant a great deal but did not diminish the achievements of his fellow nominees, all of whom deserved appreciation.

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He dedicated the award to the late actor Humayun Faridi, whom he considered his mentor.

Vicky Zahed won Best Director (Drama/Series) for “AKA”, thanking producer Shahriar Shakil and the entire team for believing in its challenging storyline. Describing “AKA” as his third OTT film, he said bringing such a story to the screen required considerable courage.

Raihan Rafi won Best Director (Film) for “Amalnama”. He said he had long wanted to explore a taboo subject and thanked Chorki for giving him the creative freedom to realise his vision.

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He described the production as risky because of its sensitive subject matter but said he enjoyed taking such risks. He also urged audiences to support Bangladeshi cinema by watching films in theatres.

Manoj Pramanik won Best Supporting Actor (Male) for “Omimangshito” and Runa Khan Best Supporting Actor (Female) for “Bohemian Ghora”.

Runa thanked viewers for their love and support for her portrayal of Ambia, as well as director Amitabh Reza Chowdhury, Hoichoi and the entire production team.

Hoichoi’s “Bohemian Ghora” was named Best Drama/Series, while Chorki’s “Ghumpori” won Best Film. “Daagi” received the People’s Choice award.

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In the Critics’ Choice categories, Mosharraf Karim won Best Actor (Male) for “Dui Shaw”, Tama Mirza Best Actor (Female) for “Amalnama”, and Chorki’s “Feu” Best Film/Drama/Series.

Accepting the award on Karim’s behalf, Nuhash called him “a national treasure” and praised his generosity towards fellow artistes.

Tama said she had not expected to win against so many accomplished nominees. Describing her mother, who attended the ceremony, as her lucky charm, she thanked Chorki and director Raihan Rafi for the opportunities that helped shape her career.

Nuhash accepted the Best Director (Film/Drama/Series) and Best Screenplay awards for “Dui Shaw” alongside his mother, Gultekin Khan.

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“I am dedicating this to my mom and to my whole Dui Shaw team,” he said, thanking the crew for bringing his script to life. He added that recognition in his own country made the awards particularly special.

“Dui Shaw” also won Best Cinematographer for Joaher Musavvir Jyoti and Abdul Mamun; Best Makeup Artist for Md Emon Hossen and Sworna Bhoumick; Best Editing for Fuad Shourav; Best Art Director for Rainirr Borshon; and Best Costume Designer for Edila Farid Turin. Rajesh Saha, Sajib Ranjan Biswas and Rasheed Sharif Shoaib shared Best Sound Design.

In the music categories, “Premeri Jokhom” from “Ghumpori” won three awards: Best Lyricist for Jahid Preetom, Best Singer for Mahtim Shakib and Shithi Saha, and Best Music Composer for Jahid Nirob. Nirob thanked the singers for bringing the song to life.

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Ishaan Mozumder won Best Music (Digital Platforms) for “Gulbahar”, while Ruslan Rehman won the Critics’ Choice award for Best Background Score for “Gulmohor”.

Ruslan said awards made his otherwise ordinary life feel extraordinary for a few days, bringing particular joy to his mother and elder brother. He thanked the organisers for recognising background scoring, saying such honours helped music directors overcome the social anxiety associated with working largely behind the scenes. He also thanked his colleagues and the “Gulmohor” team.

In the Individual Content categories, Sunehra Tasnim won Best Content Creator of the Year under Popular Choice, while Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy took the Critics’ Choice honour.

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“Awards have never been my primary motivation. It’s my audience, their love and the work that I get to create that keep me going,” Sunehra said.

Tanmoy recalled how a rickshaw puller once recognised his cartoons, convincing him that videos could take his drawings to audiences he had been unable to reach through newspapers over 15 years.

Nadir On The Go won Best Content Creator (Food & Recipe/Travel), while Sameerscane won Best Content Creator (Infotainment/Podcast).

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Sameerscane, who said he had previously attended the ceremony only to support friends, thanked his family.

“I just want to thank my parents for always allowing me to pursue content creation,” he said.

The evening also featured performances by Sunerah Binte Kamal and Irfan Sajjad, as well as Mehazabien Chowdhury. Musician Emon Chowdhury’s band -- Bengal Symphony -- also took the stage.

Rafsan Sabab and Afsan Ara Bindu hosted the ceremony.