Editorial Assistant
Sri Sri Sudharam Baba was a Hindu ascetic. While he was quite known among the people of Old Dhaka, he also had countless devotees and disciples throughout the country. Despite being a Hindu saint, he was respected by Muslims as well. Although there are no books dedicated to him, many stories about him are passed on through local traditions.
The Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2025 has concluded amid concerns over low customer turnout and various uncertainties. Traditionally, on the last day of the fair, Bangla Academy announces the total sales amount, but this year, no such data has been released, raising numerous questions and uncertainties.
Publishers had high hopes for the final day of the book fair, especially since it coincided with Friday, a weekly holiday. They expected large crowds of visitors and a surge in book sales. However, the turnout was relatively low, leaving most publishers deeply disappointed with their sales. Although the number of visitors increased slightly in the evening, sales remained poor.
Comic books are rapidly gaining popularity alongside books featuring mystery, thrill, and horror stories among children and teenagers. One of the main attractions of the Amar Ekushey Book Fair is its comic book collection.
At the entrance to the Suhrawardy Udyan of the Amar Ekushey Book Fair, any visitor will see small banners of painters. The banner reads, 'Here you can draw photo directly in just 5-10 minutes.' A few painters can be seen sitting on tools on the sidewalk. Those who want to draw their own pictures are sitting still in front of them. Basically, portraits are painted here. They charge a courtesy fee of Tk 500 to 800-1000 taka for a picture. However, the cost of painting from the phone is a little higher. If someone does not have money, they will do their work for 200 taka. They make a living based on these. This time too, 8-10 painters were seen at the entrance to the book fair. This seems to have created a different attraction in the fair.
From the early hours of Friday (February 14), the entrance of the book fair was lined-up with long queues. Most of the visitors were young men and women. The young men wore colorful panjabis while the young women wore sarees and colorful bangles. White and red flower garlands adorned their hair, while bouquets, flower headbands, and necklaces were in their hands. The youth walked hand in hand, engaged in conversation, and took pictures at various spots of the fair.