Book launch and film
Wednesday 25 March 2009
17.00-19.00
Common Room, Spinhuis
UvA, O.Z. Achterburgwal 185
1012DK Amsterdam
A study of the London School of Economics revealed that the happiest people on earth live in one of the world's poorest countries, Bangladesh. Where can happiness be found in a country chiefly famous in the West for media images of poverty, underdevelopment and natural disasters? Bangladesh (which did not exist as an independent state until 1971) is a new name for an old land whose history is little known to the wider world.
Book: A History of Bangladesh by Willem van Schendel (Cambridge University Press, 2009)
Willem van Schendel's history reveals the country's vibrant, colourful past and its diverse culture as it navigates the extraordinary twists and turns that have created modern Bangladesh. The story begins with the early geological history of the delta which has decisively shaped Bangladesh society. The narrative then moves chronologically through the era of colonial rule, the partition of Bengal, the war with Pakistan and the birth of Bangladesh as an independent state. In so doing, it reveals the forces that have made Bangladesh what it is today. This is an eloquent introduction to a fascinating country and its resilient and inventive people.
Film: The happiest people in the world (Shaheen Dill-Riaz, 2004)
After ten years abroad, Bengali director Shaheen Dill-Riaz goes back to his native city, Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. There he follows several characters through the chaos of this so-called paradise of 10 million people living packed together in miserable conditions. He discovers how extremely difficult it is to map out one's life free of the restrictions imposed by family and the ancient patriarchal attitudes that see daughters being married at 14, little boys leaving school to work as rickshaw drivers, and men spending more time on religion than politics.
Programme
17.00 Introduction by Dr. Ellen Bal (Free University)
17.10 Book launch by Prof. Willem van Schendel (University of Amsterdam)
17.30 Introduction to the film by Dr. Zakir Hossain Raju (Monash University)
17.40 Screening of The happiest people in the world (2004, Shaheen Dill-Riaz)
18.00 Discussion
18.15 Drinks and Bengali snacks
During this event the book A History of Bangladesh will be available at a special price!
Organized by ASiA and Kwakiutl.
