DU Fine Arts dean says ‘Sarat Utsob’ was postponed, not cancelled

Dhaka University's Faculty of Fine Arts Dean Azharul Islam has said reports of the “Sarat Utsob”, organised by Satyen Sen Shilpi Group to mark the arrival of autumn, being cancelled due to "objections" from some quarters are wide of the mark.

The festival has merely been postponed, rather than cancelled, and meeting will be held over the matter on Saturday, according to him.

“We have postponed the allocation we had made for Friday to avoid chaos after an allegation was made that one of the organisers of Satyen Sen Shilpi Group’s Sarat Utsob was an ally of the fascists,” he said.

“Representatives of the Satyen Sen Shilpi Group have also been called to the meeting on Saturday. A decision will be taken after examining their alleged involvement with fascism,” he added.

When asked who objected, Azharul said: “We received a complaint from an organisation called Anti-Fascist Writers, Journalists and Artists Society that an attempt was being made to rehabilitate the banned Awami League in the name of the Sarat Utsob. We have postponed the matter for now to investigate.”

Although the Sarat Utsob organised by the Satyen Sen Shilpi Group was not allowed to take place at the Faculty of Fine Arts, the “Shororitu Udjapan Jatiya Parishad” held a programme at Bakultala on Sept 26.

The newly formed platform "Shororitu Udjapan Jatiya Parishad” was formed after the July Uprising.

The convener of the platform is novelist and journalist Ehsan Mahmud, while Dipanto Raihan serves as member secretary.

On Sept 26, Ehsan told bdnews24.com that they would regularly celebrate festivals of Bengali culture and tradition.

“The Basanta, Nabanna, Sarat, and Barsha festivals will be celebrated not only in Dhaka but across the country,” he said.

When asked whether he would attend the meeting called by the Fine Arts Faculty on Saturday, Satyen Sen Shilpi Group General Secretary Manzar Chowdhury Sweet said: “We will participate in the meeting. We will also talk about some other issues there.”

Asked what he planned to raise at the meeting, Manzar said: “We organise different festivals throughout the year at Bakultala of Charukola -- Basant Utsob, Sarat Utsob, and Nabanna Utsob -- there’s a long tradition behind them. Now we will talk about how we will continue to organise them.”

Regarding the alleged involvement of fascist forces with the event, he said: “The Awami League has no involvement with this festival. This is a universal event. People of all castes and religions, regardless of party affiliation, have participated here in the past, and it will remain universal in the future.”