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Endeavour

"Shako" aims at stirring up a storm

Five senior female artists form a group with high hopes

FAYZA HAQ
SHAKO" (Bangla for bridge), a five-women painters' association, has been established at Dhaka recently. This is not the normal "grouping" as one knows that exists in the fine arts scenario in the metropolis. These eminent women artists have got together as they feel that they must build up a niche of their own to fight against the slings and arrows that women artists face every day. This vision of theirs applies both locally and world-wide. These major female artists feel that women, in general, have not been acknowledged for their efforts; and that women have to work twice as hard as their male counterparts to be accepted in their arena or anywhere else,
viewed globally.
The five artist who have joined hand in this effort for the welfare oriented project consists of Farida Zaman (president), Nasreen Begum (vice-president), Kuhu (secretary), Kanak Chanpa Chakma (assistant secretary) and Fareha Zeba (treasurer). There are also eight other working members with a provision to create a sub-committee for any required activities in future. Zaman has her PhD from India, Begum has her Masters from India, Kuhu is from the Fine Arts and has won acclaim in Bangkok and uSA, Kanak has come flush from success from uzbekistan while Fareha has attracted connoisseurs in the 70s as a 1st year student.
"In 'Shako' (as the name sug-
gest) we wish to act as a bridge," said Fareha Zeba, "between us and other talented women who have potentialities. We got the inspiration from a film on TV on one of our teacher, Mahboobul Amin who was critically ill and needed help but who succumbed to his illness as help was not forthcoming. We wanted a link between women artists and the average art lover. It has been alleged that we artists are selfish in building up our own world: seeing to securing our careers and seeing to our personal comforts. By this organisation we hope to provide help to individual problems of young female artists and others with time. 'Shako' is meant to provide shelter for Bangladeshi women in general some time in future. The organisa-
tion has only emerged but we are confident about its future achievements We want to help the ordinary needy person directly with time."
Elaborating on the function of "Shako", said that they were confident about being able to race forward to help needy artists, whether male or female, with time. Later on, they will face the need of the average neglected persons in their vicinity, Zeba said. This, she added was to create a better understanding of women artists' works and the art lovers and connoisseurs. Their first project, she pointed out is a female artists' workshop to be held on October 17-19, at the Mirpur CRP (Centre for Rehabilitation of the Paralysed) which will also include the painting by the mouth-painter, Lovely, a young paraplegic. There will be a talk on workshop by Mostafa Monwar. The opening will be done by Ericha Smith-Thomas. The participants will be Kanakcanpa Chakma, Nasreen Begum, Kuhu, Farida Zaman, Fareha Zeba, Naima Haque, Laila Sharmeen, Shulekah, Farzana Islam Milky, Rebeka Sultana, Lovely of "CRP" and Rubina Katun of "Acid Survivors" Foundation).
Let's wish "Shako" bonne chance and hope that their end results will be magnifique.