Rafiqul has been forced to move 22 times in as many years, a victim of the
annual floods that ravage Bangladesh. There are millions like Rafiqul in
Bangladesh and in the future there could be many millions more if
scientists’ predictions of rising seas and more intense droughts and storms
come true. Bangladesh is a country that stands to be one of the first to
suffer from global climate change, and the time to act is now.
Climate change already touches every corner of the world and every aspect of
people’s lives. As global temperatures increase, its impact will become even
more extreme. The impact of climate change worldwide is already causing food
and fuel crises. World Bank and IMF have sounded a larger alarm pushing 100
million people in low-income countries deeper into poverty.
In Bangladesh we are seeing rice-crises first hand every day. The long
queues on the roadside subsidizing rice sale centers are probably an
indication of the coming hunger, when 30 million people will face
starvation. In Bangladesh natural disasters like SIDR, river erosion,
drought and flood mass migration of people from the countryside to the
cities. Experts say a third of Bangladesh’s coastline could be flooded if
the sea rises one meter in the next 50 years, creating an additional 20
million Bangladeshi displaced from their homes and farms.
Photodocumentary / photojournal by Bangledeshi and Deputy chief photojournalist for
The Daily Prothom Alo newspaper, Monirul Alam
Note : My photo story Published on Photojournle . Please click above link
Dhaka February 2011.Bangladeshi cricket fans showing their hands and took picture their mobile phone the ICC World Cup trophy arrives in Dhaka, Bangladesh for display at the cricket ground. The 14-nation tournament, which is also co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India, It will start at Dhaka on Feb 19. Copy Right: Monirul Alam
Dhaka, Bangladesh january 2011- Long hour clash between police and villagers protesting the proposed Bangabandhu International Airport in Munshiganj Arial Beel has left a policeman killed and more 100 people and journalist injured. Around 11,250 acres of land is needed for the project estimated to cost Tk 5000 billion.Copy Right: Monirul Alam
What of the photography made out of nothing ? What about painting with light? Is it photography ? Surely if we can paint with dreams,create the morning mist or the afternoon glow. Is it face? Hardly. Whatever else may be false in this tenuous existence of ours, imagination is not. All that we value, that we strive to uphold, all that gives us strength,has been made of dreams,and we must dream on. If pixels be the vehicle that realizes our dreams,be it so.
-Pedro Meyer, celebrated Mexican photographer
The biggest Asian photography festival Chobi meal vi kicked off in Dhaka with a vow to fight against injustice around the world. A number of photographers with their cameras march from National Press Club to inauguration venue at National Theatre Auditorium, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. Six representative six continents inaugurated the festival Chobi Mela VI, by lighting candelas at exhibition hall.Festival director Shahidul Alam said to media, ” I dream that Chobi Mela will play a role in re-writing the history of photography”.
Dhaka January 2011. The biggest Asian photography festival Chobi Meal VI kicked off in Dhaka with a vow to fight against injustice around the world.Copy Right:Monirul Alam
Some of the biggest name in International photography, including Pedro Meyer (Mexico), Morten Krogvold (Norway), Robart Plege (UK/ France) and Chris Rainier ( Canada) in the inaugural venue. With 29 exhibition featuring over 400 images by photographers from 31 contraries ; 33 digital presentation; 9 workshops conduct by seasoned photographers, mobile exhibitions on 10 rickshaw vans.
Achievement Awards conferred at the inaugural program this year three personalities from different continents- Naib Uddin Ahmed ( Asia/Bangladesh), J.D.Okhai Ojeikere ( Africa/Nigeria) and Pedro Meyer (North America/Mexico) received the awards.
Dhaka January 2011.Six representative six continents inaugurated the festival Chobi Mela VI, by lighting candelas at exhibition gallery.Copy Right:Monirul Alam
Among the Bangladeshi photographers , Debashish Shome, Munem Wasif and Sayed Asif Mahmud will participant at the festival with their respective stories- Dhaka: My Dreams, My reality. Salt Waters Tears and My City of Uhheard.
Chobi Mela was first held in 2000. The festival Chobi Mela VI will continue till February 3,2011.
Dhaka January 2011. Hundreds of Thousands revelers celebrated in the New Year 2011 with full of spirit early hours at Dhaka University Campus. Copy Right:Monirul Alam
My photography set-up an agenda, which is unfolded in our wider world . To me camera is as like a weapon, which I use to make a truth. I recorded many times as an eyewitness. My main interest lies in new era with concerning environmental and social issues. . . monirul alam
Highlights of the Year:
I celebrated my kids [MEGH] 1st birthday which is held on 1st July. I am very happy and really enjoy and spend times with my love ones baby.
I got to go on vacation with my families to St. Martin Island and also had spending a great times fill of happiness.
I continued run my blog and post to sharing my thought with people through my photos which I took https://monirul.wordpress.com/
I joined as a VII Visionaries http://viiphoto.ning.com/profile/MonirulAlam member which run VII Photos Agency and met so many great photographers and their works I really learned a lot . . .
I opened a new account Twitter which name is [meghmonir]
Several time I traveled our district town covered assignment for our news paper Prothom Alo and got many impotent issues,which I planning follow up for next year.
I continued published photographers works to my on line magazine BLADE
I experienced to observed a two great photographers presentation Ron Haviv from VII Photo Agency and Philip Blenkinsop from NOOR Photo Agency.Which I knows more about photography and photographer point of view. This presentation conduct by Pathshala & Drik in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
I continued my teaching at Pathshalaas a lecturer which I really enjoy with met to a new students .
I think Two Thousand Eleven year will bring peace, promises, success and happiness to all of us and from the past year which is worst we forget it.
Dhaka, Bangladesh. December 28 2010 - Festival director Shahidul Alam speaks a pre-event press conference at Drik Gallery.The Chobi Mela VI - International Festival of Photography will be held from 21 January to 3 February, 2011 in Dhaka Bangladesh. Copy Right:Monirul Alam
South Asian bigest evnt of the Chobi MelaVI – International Festival of Photography will be held from 21 January to 3 February, 2011 in Dhaka Bangladesh and will present the work of creative artists participating from 30 countries. Please see all details . . .
A peacock mutates from a princely pet to a goddess blurring boundaries between reality and illusion reinventing the Panchatantra (Indian animal fables in prose and verse) for the 21st century. Festival theme photo from the "India Song" exhibition by Karen Knorr UK/Puerto Rico, Courtesy of Tasveer.Chobi Mela VI to Open a Portal to a Restive World of Dreams
“All that we value, that we strive to uphold, all that gives us strength, has been made of dreams”
Dhaka, Bangladesh. 28 December, 2010: The Chobi Mela VI – International Festival of Photography will be held from 21 January to 3 February, 2011 in Dhaka Bangladesh and will present the work of creative artists participating from 30 countries. The festival with its theme “Dreams” is designed to be a birthplace of ideas, and a crossover meeting point for many artists. It will open a portal to a mystical world of images showcasing new trends in photography and bringing to the fore issues of our troubled world.
The unique festival will be launched on the 21 January, 2011 at the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. Parallel exhibitions will be held at Alliance Francaise, The Asiatic Gallery of Fine Arts, The British Council, Drik Gallery, The Goethe-Institut and the Lichultala at Faculty of Fine Arts, Dhaka University. In congruence with the exhibitions there will be 8 workshops, 2 portfolio reviews and a week-long discussions, seminars and lectures at Goethe-Institut Auditorium that will initiate debates and discussions on issues central to contemporary photographic practice.
The main attraction on the 22 January at Goethe-Institut will be a video conference with Dr. Luis Moreno-Ocampo, Prosecutor, International Criminal Court. In this position, his mandate is to select and trigger investigations and prosecutions of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community, namely genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The first Chobi Mela festival (Dec.1999-January 2000) was launched by Drik and Pathshala South Asian Media Academy to fill the need for a forum for sharing work and ideas, a platform for debate that was missing on this side of the globe. This inaugural festival focused on ‘Differences’ in the world we live in and in a sense was prophetic. The twin towers disaster followed and buried beneath the rubble the freedoms that the world has since lost. “In a world ravaged by war, to turn to ‘Dreams’ after ‘Differences’, ‘Exclusion’, ‘Resistance’, ‘Boundaries’ and ‘Freedom’ is to return to what holds us together in the face of all our obstacles, the focus of all our longings. In a vastly unequal world, it is our insistence on justice and our ability to ride the waves, which still keeps us dreaming,” says Shahidul Alam, Festival Director and Managing Director of Drik. “I dream that Chobi Mela will play a role in re-writing the history of photography, and correcting the extremely Eurocentric version of history that is currently propagated.”
Dhaka, Bangladesh. December 28 2010 - Photographer's and media persons attend at a pre-event press conference at Drik Gallery. Copy Right:Monirul Alam
Many bodies of work that went on to become well known were first shown in Chobi Mela. Considered to be the most demographically inclusive photo festival and the resulting pollination has led to many exciting exchanges, and given rise to several new festivals in the region for which Chobi Mela has been the catalyst.
Ensuring the general public’s access is an important part of the festival and admission for the festival is free. Mobile exhibitions on rickshaw vans are now a trademark of the Chobi Mela festivals. The festival provides an opportunity not only to enjoy the outstanding work of national and international photographers but also raises important social issues critical to our existence.
That winter night (24 Dec,2010) I was in office and doing my work. Suddenly I received a phone from Air Port area, one residents told me, that they saw a huge fire on the sky not to understood what is happening but they think maybe is plane crash or something is happened. Do you know what is happened ? I said him we look after the matter and informed you latter. . .
Yes, Somethings is happened fire service and our other sources said, A coil factory explotation in Khilkhet area of Dhaka city. I reached on the spot within half an hour and covered it . . .
Local people and fire fights jointly work and removed burn bodies from the factory. A devastating fire, followed by an explosion, in a mosquito coil factory in Dhaka, khilkhat has killed at least five workers.The fire erupted at Coil Factory at Namapara around 9:30pm and was followed by a loud explosion. Fire chief Abu Nayeem Mohammed Shahidullah told reporters at the scene that they had recovered five charreds bodies. Copy Right: Monirul Alam
Hole area is black out huge number of eager people rush on the area to observed the situation. The security person stand on the spot and firefighters all ready works. I saw one charred body lie-in on the road with a pice of cloth after that I enter the factory.
A groups of firefighter and local people work in the factory. Inside the room is more darker only firefighters work their own light and local people work their mobile lit, suddenly one people shout, “don’t go to the next step” ! I stooped and saw another charred bodies left in front of me. After that I am working more carefully.
I saw more than three cheered bodies on the factory and it is difficult to identify. The hole factory broken out huge number of burn spray cans left on the factory. Suddenly I wet by a firefighters water.
My news editor is just waiting for my news photos I left the area on the way to my office . . .
According to the news at least five workers were burnt alive and six others severely injured, in a coil ( anti-mosquito coil and spray warehouse) factory, as a fire broken out in Khilkhet Namapara area last night. The fire started around 9.30 pm and gutted the factory within half an hour. The injured person’s rush to admitted the Burn and Plastic Surgery Unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Fire fighters, who reached the site and recovered five charred bodies form the spot. The dead could’t be identified immediately. One injured told reports the fire broken out when the workers were removing chemicals form date-expired cans using a machine.
On June 3, the National inferno claimed the lives of 123 people in the capital and afterwards the government took several measure to ensure that flammable chemical are not handle or stored in populated areas.
Update ( 27 Dec, 2010): Death toll from the fire at Khilkhet coil factory warehouse rose to eight. as another injured worker has died Iqbal Hossain, 26. Earlier, the victims who died in the blaze at the factory were identified as Anwar Hossain, 23, Russel, 17, Yousuf, 25, Tofazzal, 20, Aminur, 25, Almas, 25 and Jewel.
When I come back to my home I really surprised to see my computer table, PRIVATE! Yes, International review of photographs magazine PRIVATE, on my table- Private global report published my photo story ” People’s Struggle”. I pick it up and shortly look it’s nice, collectable and should be archives value. Around the globe total 17 photographers work published in this winter 2010-11 edition.
Dhaka,December 2010. Private,Global Report an International Review of Photographs.Copy Right:Monirul Alam
The issue is [Anthropology] As unique and special the scenes are that the photographers for this issue have chosen to focus on,the similarities (what we have in common,what we share) that can be found around the globe are striking said their editorial. . .
Canadian photographer DONAL WEBER work Chernobyl issue,his work titled “Bastard Eden,Our Chernobyl” Donald began visiting this region, as he says, because he wanted to see what was there. His question was simple: What was daily life actually like, inA POST-NUCLER WORLD?
Hans Durrer write his editorial on my work, […] from “People’s Struggle” with the floods that ravage Bangladesh each year to a Kalahari previously not seen (my favorites pics of all are the two first ones in blue).
Hear I am write the photographers name who their worked is Published in this Magazine at the same time I am very glad to Private Magazine to published my work and well reviewed . . .
Dhaka,December 2010. Private,Global Report an International Review of Photographs.Copy Right:Monirul Alam
Photographers:
Donald Weber
Isabelle Pateer
Kirk Ellingham
Guido Gazzilli
Nadia Shira Cohen
Daniel Traub
Antonia Zennaro
Alex Tomazatos
Monirul Alam (me)
Silvia Boarini
Martin Errichiello
Tessa Bunney
Nicola Lo Calzo
Tamas Paczai
Alessandro Toscano
Lene Munch
Matteo Bastianelli
7, December 2010
PRIVATE International review of photographs | People's Struggles by Monirul Alam
Tuesday, Dhaka
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MONIRUL ALAM 