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The familiar face of Bangladesh

Nayeem’s solo photo exhibition at Drik

Cultural Correspondent
Rivers get polluted and dry up, traffic jams become even more intolerable, natural calamities continue to decimate localities but the frequent pure, wide smile on the face of a hungry street urchin never fades. And this is the familiar face of Bangladesh.
As photographer Nayeem puts it: "Bangladesh, as we all know, is ridden with problems...But even in the dephfe’df despair that' 1 sothdtimes find all round me, I like to see a positive side...Despite their desperate poverty, the friendliness and goodness of the common people of my country is a shining example of inner strength. It is this strength that I try
to capture and reflect in my photographs."
Nayeem's solo photo exhibition, titled "The Face of Bangla," is now on at the Drik Gallery in Dhanmondi. The collection includes photos taken between 2007 and this year.
Photos at the exhibition have been arranged as part of several series. For instance, "Prakriti O Jibon" (nature and life) highlights riverine life in rural Bangladesh. Sailboats get the focus. The photos
<• v Juu uum , ^no«io<3i
(shot in ^aturia, 2007), however, seem to’ lack sharpness/clarity.
Perhaps, the resolution or the original images was not high enough.
"Kailanjir Baich" (Ghagor river, Tungipara. 2008) series features
traditional boat race. One image that stands out is of a participating boat rowed by women; older women singing and cheering die rowers in the back.
"Panam Nagari" (Sonargaon, 2007) series shows the facade of a mansion that had evidendy seen grander times. The two images --fittingly in black and white - articulate the crumbling glory of a once thriving city and its beautiful architecture.
^"Naach" (Dhaka, 2009) shows swirling Forms ‘on ^tagb. A’Split yet-‘' ond of dancers in motion has been captured, as the tide suggests.
"Padma" (Rajshahi, 2009) does not feature a mighty river and its tides. Instead the viewer sees a sandy plain from one end of the frame to
the other.
"Bok" or Cranes (Amua, 2007) series includes some of the most visually stunning images from the collection. The cranes are seen resting, taking off, and frolicking with each other - - in all their glory.
Then there are individual photos. "Bedey Polli" (Ghorashal, 2008) shows a serpentine queue of gypsy boats anchored. "Bali Sromik" (Mawa, 2009) features Safar Ali from Brahmanbaria, who works as a labourer. He shared his tale of wo^s with the^hdtugrapherthinking” ^is story might be published in some newspaper.
"Three Boys” (Dhaka, 2009) shows children with their backs to the camera. Covered in mud, two of them flash brilliant smiles.
One noticeable aspect is that the viewer can sense Nayeem's growth as a photographer from the exhibition, as the collective quality of his photos have gradually improved.
UK-based writer and translator Norman Thomas di Giovanni wrote in his appreciation, "...1\vice over, with my own eyes and Nayeem's, I came to witness the unforgettable face of Bangla -- and. joyously and miraculously, they were one. Now, with the gift of Nadeem's vision, it7s the landscape pfthe country/an^ the intrinsic dignity of the Bangladeshi that I hold with me and that I have brought back to England."
The exhibition will continue till July 11.