‘The Nation & Its Imaginations’ conference concludes at IUB

The two-day international conference “The Nation & Its Imaginations”, organised by the Department of Media and Communication under the School of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences (SLASS) at Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB), concluded on April 10, 2026 at the university’s Dhaka campus.

The conference brought together academics, researchers, students and practitioners from Bangladesh and abroad to examine the intersections of media, culture and creative industries, and their role in shaping contemporary notions of the nation.

The inaugural session on April 9 was attended by Prof. Dr. M. Tamim, Vice-Chancellor of IUB; Prof. Dr. Daniel W. Lund, Pro Vice-Chancellor; and Professor Dr. Bokhtiar Ahmed, Dean of SLASS, among others. The opening day keynote was delivered by Prof. Craig Batty, Pro Vice-Chancellor of the College of Creative Arts, Design and Humanities at the University of Adelaide, Australia, focusing on creative practice and research innovation.

The second day began with a keynote by Prof. Lund, who addressed the relationship between media, audience perception and cognitive dissonance.

Across the two days, four parallel sessions featured a total of 36 research paper presentations by scholars from various universities and institutions. The sessions covered a wide range of themes, including digital economy and platform labour, media globalisation and cultural production, gender and representation, youth identity and social media, folk culture and heritage, film and visual media, urban subcultures, and political iconography.

The conference featured three panel discussions. The first, “Pixels, Platforms, and Creativity: Technology Reshaping the Creative Industries,” examined the impact of technological change on creative practices. The second, “Diversity Dynamics: Creative and Culture Industries in Flux,” focused on evolving structures within the cultural and creative sectors. The final panel, “From Ecosystem to Screen: Sustaining Bangladeshi Cinema,” brought together practitioners and academics to discuss the challenges and future of the national film industry.

A workshop titled “Creative Practice Research: Practical Workshop of Imagination in Action” was held on the second day, offering participants insights into research methodologies in media and cultural studies. The conference also included a screening of the film Delupi (2025).

On the evening of the first day, a conference dinner was held, during which the Bangladesh Cultural and Creative Industries Research Group was formally launched. The initiative marks the country’s first scholarly network dedicated to the study of culture and creative industries.

Participants included academics from institutions such as the University of Dhaka, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh, United International University, American International University-Bangladesh, Daffodil International University, Stamford University Bangladesh, BGMEA University of Fashion & Technology, and others.

The conference provided a platform for interdisciplinary dialogue and critical engagement, with discussions focusing on how media and cultural production continue to shape social, political and economic narratives in Bangladesh. Organisers said the event aimed to contribute to ongoing conversations on the development of the country’s creative industries and to encourage collaboration between academia and industry.