The Daily Star (TDS): What inspired you to make the documentary Tajuddin Ahmad: An Unsung Hero?

Tajuddin Ahmad was tragically killed in jail on 3 November 1975. His life was cut short at the age of 50. Yet, in this brief life, he had the rare opportunity to perform great service to his country — and he made full use of it.

I recall much of my formative youth in the United States spent sharing a home with struggling guests and families. Sharmin Ahmad “Reepi,” my mother and Tajuddin’s eldest daughter, once hosted a family of six whose two-month stay turned into several years until the guests could get back on their feet.

I do not remember who gave me the book—it may have been a friend, colleague, or a student of mine.

The period between 1945 and 1979 was one of Cold War and decolonisation. The Cold War entered a different trajectory with the rapprochement between China and the US and the Iranian Revolution.

History has a cruel way of dimming the light of those who served with quiet dignity while amplifying the voices of those who demanded attention. In the pantheon of Bangladesh’s founding fathers, few figures have been as systematically overlooked—and arguably mistreated—as Tajuddin Ahmed, the nation’s first Prime Minister.

The Daily Star (TDS): How and when did you first come into contact with Tajuddin Ahmad?

I did not personally know Tajuddin Ahmad, but he was a contemporary of ours, and the politics he practised was within the Awami League—though there were different strands within the party.

I first met Tajuddin Ahmad—or Tajuddin Bhai, as I knew him—in the 1960s, during the pre-Liberation period. After I joined the Awami League, Bangabandhu told me to meet Tajuddin Ahmad, as he would answer all my questions on politics and the party, and that he possessed deep knowledge of both politics and people.

The Daily Star (TDS): How do you view Tajuddin Ahmad’s early political journey and his emergence as a key national figure?

Every moment of the night of 25 March 1971 and the following two months will always shine brightly in the depths of my memory. Even though I might not be able to express all those living memories in words, I will try to articulate a possible description of the events.

As a person, Tajuddin Ahmad was an idealist. In his personal life and professional conduct, he was disciplined and guided by a deep sense of restraint and propriety.

The gig economy is rapidly reshaping urban life, yet digital labour platforms fail to provide adequate support to the workers who keep this economy running.

In the shadows of booming remittance flows and the quiet resilience of Bangladesh’s labour diaspora, a disturbing reality persists: numerous Bangladeshi female migrant workers, particularly those employed as domestic help in Gulf countries, are returning home in coffins.

When the traditional haor song Lechur Baganey (“In the litchi orchard…”) was repurposed as an “item song” in a recent Bengali film, it sparked an outpouring of debate among music lovers and across social media platforms.

Dr Rebecca Prentice, Associate Professor of Anthropology and International Development at the University of Sussex, has studied garment workers’ health and labour rights for over two decades.

The Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 was not just a struggle fought on the battlefields, but a humanitarian crisis that captured the world’s attention.

I stood beneath the January sun, locking eyes with a Birangona woman on a balcony above me. Her warm smile steadied my trembling heart. Inside, 21 Birangona women awaited us at Sirajganj Uttaran Mohila Sangstha. I was finally here. The year was 2010.

As per the blueprint of Operation Searchlight, the Pakistani army had four key targets in Dhaka city on the fateful night of 25 March 1971.

With the much vaunted and long awaited talks between the President and Mujib still in progress, it is no time to speculate about their likely outcome.