Hasan Masud quits acting, says he has become religious

Actor, director and writer Hasan Masud has been away from acting for a long time. Once a regular face in television dramas and films, he has now almost completely stopped acting. Hasan Masud has said that he has undergone a change in his life and is now focused on a religious path.

In a recent interview with a private television channel, he spoke about his current life and the reasons behind his withdrawal from acting.

Hasan Masud said, "I have actually withdrawn a bit. I don't act anymore. A change has come in my life. That is why I now only do commercials if I get them, otherwise I don't. I have become a bit of a thinker. That is to say, I have become more religious."

Speaking about his recent religious journey, Hasan Masud said he had performed Hajj this year and had spent 41 days in Makkah and Madinah.

He said, "I performed Hajj this year. That is why I was there for 41 days — in Makkah and Madinah. But the change actually came much earlier. I am now completely changed, you could say."

Alongside this change in his life, Hasan Masud also spoke about his reading habits. He said that although he used to read a lot, he no longer reads books.

Hasan Masud said, "The chapter of reading books actually ended a long time ago for me. I read so much, so much, that towards the end I had become like a machine. No emotions worked inside me."

He said that reading had created a kind of numbness within him. Giving an example, Hasan Masud said, "If someone died under a truck in front of me, I would think — the person died because of his own fault. I had become like that kind of machine. No sentiment worked inside me."

He later decided to sell off the large number of books in his collection. He said he sold about 1,200 books in Nilakhet and has not read any since.

Hasan Masud's career did not begin with acting. He joined the Bangladesh Army as a cadet in 1985. He retired as a captain in 1992.

After retiring from the army, Hasan Masud took up journalism. After working at The New Nation, he joined The Daily Star as a sports reporter in 1995. He also worked as a correspondent for BBC Bangla from 2004 to 2008.

Alongside journalism, Hasan Masud also made his mark in acting. He made his acting debut in 2003 with Mostofa Sarwar Farooki's film 'Bachelor'. He then continued acting regularly in films and television dramas.

He acted in several films, including 'Made in Bangladesh', and appeared in numerous television dramas. His performances in 'Houseful', 'Taxi Driver', 'FDC', 'Bou', 'Khunsuti', 'Graduate', 'Ronger Dunia', 'Amader Sansar', 'Goni Saheber Shesh Kichudin' and 'Batashar Ghor' were praised by audiences.

Alongside acting, Hasan Masud was also involved in music. He lent his voice to the song 'Ajke Na Hoy Bhalobaso' from the film 'Bachelor'. His first music album 'Hridoyghotito' was released on Valentine's Day in 2006.