The New Nation - Internet Edition

Enchantment of transcendental

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

“Those who have not seen Nurul Islam's works before will be pleasantly surprised by his versatility and artistry. He is not a familiar name in the Dhaka art circle and his works have not been presented to the public with the frequency that has been the case with other artists of his age or those younger to him. He is 75 and belongs to the third batch of students graduating from then Dhaka Art Institute in 1956 but has not enjoyed the same renown as his contemporaries. This is not because he lacked talent or due to innate indolence. His talent and commitment are amply revealed in the astonishing range and scintillating quality of his works. What is more, unlike many artists, he has developed a signature style, overcoming the early influence of his predecessors. It is a style that not only belongs to him but also distinctively represents Bangladesh, as do the works of Zainul, Qamrul, Sultan and Qayyum Choudhury," said eminent art critic Hasnat Abdul Hye about the works of veteran artist Nurul Islam at his 5th solo art exhibition 'The Enchantment and the Transcendental' at the Bengal Gallery of Fine Arts in the capital. The exhibition was inaugurated on June 11.

Nurul Islam was a student of Zainul Abedin and Qamrul Hassan. He is a talented and dedicated painter, who however, has not had the recognition that he deserves. This is perhaps because he was away for eight years working in Karachi, and although he worked as an informer for the Freedom Fighters in 1971, he did not achieve the success as say his contemporary Syed Jehangir did. Nurul Islam was also hampered by the fact that he was taking care of a large family and had an ailing wife for years.

The majority of the displayed works were paintings, numbering about 85, but executed there in mixed media - oil, acrylic, tempera and others. The subjects were mostly figurative and that too of women. His weakness for women as subject could be traced to his prediction for decorative frills. In ornaments, hairstyle, saris and the environment where women were situated he found ample opportunity for decorative accessories.

His paintings included portraits of buxom women with babies on their hips, fetching water from the river, cutting fish or fixing their hair. For him beautiful women were an obsession, which he presented in acrylic, oils and crayon. However, he also brought in Freedom Fighters, and men tending elephants, along with subjects such as boats, flowers, trees, birds, cows and snakes. The sleepy villages with their numerous trees and waterways also found their way to his canvases.

Nurul Islam said, "When I was in Karachi, I was offered large sums for painting subjects like 'kathak' dancers but I always stuck to the images that spoke of my village home, where I spent my childhood and which gave me my happiest days. I want to present the idyllic and the rhythmic and fill my canvases with elements of joy and contentment."

Nurul Islam tried to make a living by going into commercial art but there too he was not exactly a huge success. "I'm not able to please my patrons easily and am not good at public relations. I've worked hard and this present exhibition is a retrospective of my efforts over the decades," he said.

He recalled his solo exhibition in 1964 at Arts Council in Dhaka that was known today as the Shilpakala Academy. Noted personalities like Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Dr IS Osmani and Omar Qureshi had flown down for the opening and he sold 17 of his paintings at one go. This show gave him the intro to JW Thompson Advertising Agency in Karachi. In the 1965 Indo-Pak War, the financial support of the advertising house was bombed and he moved on to 'The Gallery' as its director where he had tremendous opportunities to paint. In 1970, however, he returned to Dhaka, as his father was ill. While in Bangladesh, he was arrested as one of his paintings bore the words, 'Amar Bangladesh,' after which he fled to the villages although his students offered to shelter him. After 1971, he set up 'Rupom Advertisers.' The exhibition will end on June 18.

TV Advertisement: Kotha Dilam-Banglalink new TVC

Art & Culture Report

Banglalink, country's second largest mobile phone operator, recently launched its new customer care campaign for television channels.

At present, it has eight million subscribers. Banglalink strives to give their customers the best of service and the fastest solution to their queries. To cater to the customer needs Banglalink has the largest network of customer service points spread all over the country. A passionate and vigilant team is there to provide quality and prompt service. To highlight their efforts in service excellence, they have launched a comprehensive campaign on customer care service.

Their customer care campaign talks about promises towards customers. The payoff line for the campaign is "We are there for you - we promise."

In the TV commercial, the central character is a Banglalink customer care representative who is shown interacting with people from different walks of life and how she helps them. These interactions portray the seven promises, which is the main theme of the campaign.

Carrot Communications was in charge of developing the concept for this campaign. The television commercial was filmed by renowned director Khislu from Carrot's script.

The agency also came up with the lyrics and Arnob composed the fun, sing-along tune, which has already emerged as the new favourite song for the audience.

The Banglalink customer care TVC has taken off as a huge success, and has established Banglalink's aim to provide excellent customer care to its clients very well indeed.

Banglalink TV commercial at a glance: Central character

- Faria

The makers:

- Kislu

Creative team:

- Saniat Hossain, General Manager, Carrot Communications

Banglalink brand team:

- Solaiman Alam and Irum Iqbal, PR & Communication Manager, Banglalink.

Exhibition: Two men’s painting show at Zainul Gallery

Art & Culture Report

An art exhibition entitled as 'Two Men's Painting Show' by two young artists Ayan Mazumder and HR Tutul was held at the Zainul Gallery of Fine Arts Institute at Dhaka University recently.

Eminent freedom fighter M Azad Asaduzaman inaugurated the show on June 3 while artist and cartoonist Shishir Bhattacharya, Professor of Fine Arts Institute, art critic Mainuddin Khaled and Munir Ahmed Khan, Chairman of Unitrend also attended the inauguration of the exhibition.

The show featured 34 paintings including 18 by Ayan and 16 by Tutul. The works were mainly of acrylic, oil painting, digital print and installation media.

Tutul said, "The subject of my art was the fragile society and its various elements. Yet I believe that in the mid of this fragile society thee is dream and lyric of hope. A viewer can find these reflections on my works." "The feelings and realisation expressed in the paintings presented in this exhibition are nearly the unwanted forms of the abuse of capitalism and misuse of power in our society, which has another name - hunger," said Ayan. Tutul and Ayan, both are freelance artists, have done their MFA from Dhaka University in 2007.