interview

'Islamisation in Bengal has no parallel in South Asia'

Deeper Brahmanical roots in West Bengal made the East more receptive to Islam’s later scriptural arrival.
6 April 2026, 00:00 AM

MasterChef UK star Ismail Hossain shares inspiring journey

Celebrate Ismail Hossain reaching the MasterChef UK semi-finals by showcasing authentic Bangladeshi cuisine. From Dhaka street food to London kitchens, he blends professional British techniques with traditional flavours like beef bhuna to inspire global audiences.
5 April 2026, 17:11 PM

‘Zone-based school timings could ease Dhaka’s morning traffic nightmare’

One of the main reasons for traffic congestion during school hours is that guardians in private cars drop off and pick up students directly in front of school gates. Since our road capacity is limited, the pressure spills onto the main roads.
5 April 2026, 11:00 AM

Reclaiming the unwritten: Kanika Gupta on colonialism, embodiment, and the art of remembering

Gupta shares her insights on reclaiming forgotten histories, reimagining myths, and connecting ancient narratives to contemporary ecological and social concerns.
22 November 2025, 11:51 AM

A story of separation and return: Clare Adam on crafting ‘Love Forms’

Accompanying the Booker Prize long-listed novels of this year, Clare Adam’s <I>Love Forms </I>(Faber, 2025) offers an enthralling tale of Dawn, the protagonist of the novel, who is in a lifelong search for her long-lost illegitimate daughter. Although Dawn continues her strides in life from gett
5 November 2025, 18:00 PM

Reading power: How everyday texts shaped life under the British Empire

At the heart of Required Reading are forgotten readers from the past.
28 October 2025, 10:46 AM

The ghosts of memory, regret, and guilt return: A conversation with Ayman Asib Shadhin

He debuted as a screenwriter with the dark comedy–thriller Mainkar Chipay (2020), the first Bangladeshi ZEE5 original film, followed by Contract (2021), the platform’s first Bangladeshi original series, which he co-wrote and adapted from Mohammad Nazimuddin’s bestselling thriller.
3 October 2025, 19:29 PM

Embracing the bizarre and ‘An Eye and a Leg’

The Asia regional winner of the 2025 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, Faria Basher, in an interview with The Daily Star, opens up about her journey from lifelong reader to emerging writer.
4 June 2025, 18:00 PM

An evening at Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay and Dhaka Sessions

In one of their most recent episodes, Dhaka Sessions featured three young artists from Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay to perform in the intimate and literary, lush space of Bookworm Bangladesh
30 May 2025, 18:10 PM

Carbon emissions, climate change, and the cacao tree

In conversation with Shams-il Arefin Islam where he talks about his work and sheds light on how the cacao tree acts as an early climate alarm bell.
20 February 2025, 11:46 AM

ISD celebrates 25 years of success with a new strategy in place

ISD is celebrating its 25th anniversary. On this occasion, Rising Stars sat down with Steve Calland-Scoble, the Director of ISD and an accomplished educator, to talk about the school and its plans going forward.
28 November 2024, 08:35 AM

The old and new Bangladesh from the eyes of a historical fiction writer

In the West, South Asian literature is primarily dominated by works from India and then Pakistan. This dominance has made it difficult for Bangladeshi authors to receive the attention they deserve for their work
1 November 2024, 18:00 PM

Unconventional realities and intense friendships

Saikat Majumdar writes with a sharp poignancy that arrows straight to the core of the heart.
11 October 2024, 18:00 PM

Into the world of speculative fiction: An Interview with 'Small World City'

This past August, Dhaka’s speculative fiction magazine 'Small World City' enjoyed their first anniversary. The magazine, over this last year, has published some of the more striking works of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry coming out of the country
3 September 2024, 14:30 PM

Outliers take centre-stage in Shah Tazrian Ashrafi’s debut collection

It’s hard not to recall our many conversations about literature as I try to summarise Shah Tazrian Ashrafi’s debut collection of short stories. They were always short discussions, opening and closing off in spurts, as happens over text. Exclamations over a new essay collection by Zadie Smith, or a new novel by Isabel Allende.
26 June 2024, 18:00 PM

A look at AAPI representation in tech with Kyla Zhao of ‘Valley Verified’

This week, Kyla Zhao, the author of Valley Verified (Penguin Random House, 2024), graced us with an exclusive interview to give us insights into the changing trends in Asian American literature.
19 June 2024, 18:00 PM

Of language and free will

'We are truly prisoners of the mind', says Sanya Rushdi, the author-narrator of Hospital (Giramondo Publishing, 2023)
5 June 2024, 18:00 PM

On making zines with Aqui Thami

A big believer in social exchanges and developing safe spaces to position art as a medium of healing in community, Thami works on ceremonial interventions, performances, drawings, zine-making, fly posting, and public intervention, brought together by participant involvement
29 May 2024, 18:00 PM

A perfect cup of literary ‘saa’

Priyanka Taslim greets me with a gentle smile as we meet over Zoom. She is eloquent and our conversation flows organically, akin to an adda over a cup of saa (cha).
8 May 2024, 18:00 PM

Uncovering history through storytelling

In conversation with Reem Bassiouney on the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, 'Al Halwani', and bridging the cultural gap
21 April 2024, 14:00 PM