The New Nation - Internet Edition

Recipe for Shab-e-Barat

Egg Halwa

Ingredients

- 4 eggs

- 1||2 cup khoya

- 4 tbsp. ghee or butter

- 1||2 cup sugar, or according to taste

- 1||2 cup milk

-1||2 tsp. ground green cardamom

Method

1. Mix the eggs, khoya, sugar and cardamom's powder together with a fork or a beater until sugar is dissolved.

2. Heat ghee in a heavy based saucepan. Pour the egg mixture and stirring all the time fry on medium heat for 5-8 minutes until the eggs are cooked. Don't over cook the eggs. Remove from fire and transfer to a serving plate.

Moog Daal Halwa

Ingredients:

2 cups Moong Daal

2 cups ghee

1 cup sugar

2 cups water

6 pods green cardamom split

1 cup khoya

1 cup finely chopped mixed dried fruits of your choice

Method:

Wash thoroughly and soak the moong daal in water plenty of water, overnight.

The next morning, grind to a smooth paste in a food processor. Do not add any water while grinding.

Prepare sugar syrup of one-thread consistency. When done, turn off the fire and add the split cardamom pods to the syrup. Cover and keep aside for later.

Heat the ghee/clarified butter in a heavy-bottomed (preferably non-stick) pan on a medium flame till warm.

Add the moong daal paste to this ghee and stir to mix. Cook the moong daal, stirring frequently till it begins to turn golden and release its aroma. Another sign of doneness to watch for is, the separation of the ghee from the moong daal.

Add the khoya and mix well. Cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Now add the sugar syrup (remove cardamom pods before adding) and mix to blend.

Cook on a medium flame for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the dried fruits and cook for another 2 minutes. Turn off the fire.

Garnish with chopped nuts and serve. You can also add a dollop of vanilla ice-cream if desired.

Milk-gourd halwa

Ingredients:

4 cups grated milk gourd remove skin and seeds before grating

6 heaped tbsps ghee/ clarified butter measure when solid

1 cup khoya

2 (400gms each) cans sweetened condensed milk

5 green cardamom pods, seeds removed and powdered with a tsp of sugar in a mortar and pestle

1/2 cup almonds, blanched and cut into thin slivers

Method

Heat the ghee/ clarified butter in a heavy-bottomed (preferably non-stick) pan on a medium flame till warm.

Add the grated milk-gourd to this ghee and stir to mix. Cook, stirring frequently till the milk-gourd turns transparent. Another sign of doneness to watch for is, the separation of the ghee from the milk-gourd.

Add the khoya and mix well. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Now add the sweetened condensed milk, cardamom powder and mix to blend.

Cook till most of the moisture evaporates from the Halwa and it turns to a thick pudding consistency. Stir frequently to prevent scorching and burning. When done, turn off fire and allow to cool till just warm.

Garnish with almond slivers and serve.

Badam Halwa

Ingredients

- 225g almonds

- 1.4 liters water for soaking

- 568ml cold milk

- 225g sugar

- 150ml water

- 225g Ghee

- Silver leaves or halved almonds for decoration.

Method

Soak the almonds in the water overnight. They should be puffed up and double in size the next day. Skin the almonds and place them in a blender or food processor. Grind them to a smooth paste on a low speed, adding the milk gradually. Do not grind the almonds first on their own and then add the milk as too much of the almond oil will get lost. In a heavy based pan dissolve the sugar in the water, boil it rapidly for about 10 minutes to half its quantity. Add the ground almond paste and stirring very

frequently, simmer the mixture for 11/4 hours until it thickens. At no stage should it be allowed to stick to the bottom and scorch, as that will ruin the taste of the fudge.

In another pan, melt the ghee. Slowly pour a little ghee into the almond paste and stirring continuously, see that it is absorbed completely into the paste. Within a few minutes the paste will start releasing the ghee. As soon as that happens, pour in a little more ghee and once again stirring continuously, see that the has been absorbed. Repeat this process until all the ghee has been used up and the rich almond paste is glossy.

Decorate with silver leaf or halved almonds it wished. Lift off Burfi with a spatula and arrange on a serving dish.

Habshi Halwa

Ingredents

250 gm wheat extract

5 litres milk 500 gm

khoya 1 kg

sugar 1 kg

ghee 1 tsp

saffron 1 tsp

kewra jal 1 blade mace

1 pinch nutmeg

10 green cardamoms

Method

In a kadhai, mix the wheat extract and milk and cook on a slow fire, stirring constantly. This process is important to obtain the right consistency. When the milk is reduced to half, add mashed khoya, stirring constantly to blend to a smooth mixture. Then add dissolved saffron in kewra jal and sugar. Keep stirring. When the sugar is incorporated into the mixture and it becomes thick and difficult to stir, add ghee from the sides and stir well for about 20-30 minutes. When the halwa no longer sticks to the kadhai and becomes a cohesive mass, turn it out in a greased tray or ?thali?. Finely grind the mace nutmeg and cardamom. Sieve and sprinkle on the halwa. Then mark out diamond shaped pieces and serve when set. This can be stored for even a month in a cool place. Samnak: Take germinated wheat made from 1 kg wheat. Wash and grind the germinated wheat using some water. Then pass through muslin cloth to obtain the extract.

Tri Colored Halwa

Ingredients:

Sooji : 2 cups

Sugar : 3 cups

Ghee : 1 cup

Water : 5 cups

Salt, a pinch

Green Color, few drops

Orange Color, few drops

Method:

Heat ghee in a wide bottomed pan.

Add Sooji, and fry on low, till it gives a very nice aroma.

Meanwhile keep water for boiling.

Add boiling water to sooji, while mixing well, to avoid lumps.

Keep stirring on medium, till all the water has been absorbed.

Add sugar and salt, and mix well.

Stir till it forms halwa consistency.

Divide the halwa into 3 portions.

Mix orange color in one, and green in an other.

Take a wide plate, and put the halwa mixed with green and even it.

Then put the one without any color and even.

Lastly put the orange one and flatten.

Leave it cool.

Cut into desired pieces and Serve.

Beetroot Halwa

Ingredients

2 big beetroots (grated)

5 tbsp sugar

Some roasted nuts

2 tbsp ghee

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Method

Heat the ghee and add grated beetroot to it. Keep stirring until the beetroot gets cooked by itself without adding any water.

When beet gets cooked in about 10 to 15 minutes time, add the roasted nuts,cardamom powder and sugar. Mix well till the sugar melts and you get the halwa kind of consistency.

Papaya Halwa

Ingredients

Ripe Papaya - 1 cup as cubes

Sugar - 3 tbsp

Milk - 50 ml

Ghee - 1 tsp

Cashew - 4 nos

Method

Cube papaya and make a puree of it.

Heat a pan and add 1 tsp of ghee. Roast the cashew and keep aside.

Then roast the papaya puree in the same pan, till its starts coming around. It has such a bright red colour. Add sugar and mix well.

Pour milk to the pan and cook on high, you will see the papaya turning to red again.

You need to constantly keep stirring. Once its really thick you can remove.

Transfer to a plate for the photo session and garnish cashew.

-Weekend Plus Desk

Men’s wear for Shab-e-Barat

Sheikh Arif Bulbon

Shab-e-Barat, a prelude to the month of Ramadan, on the 14th of the month of 'Shaban' according to the Hijri calendar, to be celebrated with much religious fervour by Muslims on the night of August 16 (Saturday).

The night of Shab-e-Barat is a precious moment for every Muslims. It has purity. This is a time of fasting and intense prayer in preparation for the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which begins 15 days after Laylat-al- Bara'ah. The Persian name of the holiday (Shab-e-Barat) means Night of Commissioning, while the Arabic (Laylat al Bara'ah) translates as the Night of Emancipation.

Muslims spend the entire night in fervent prayer for forgiveness of their sins. Muslims also believe that during the night, God reviews and weighs individual's past deeds, and consequently writes people's destinies for the coming year. Thus, during the night, Muslims also pray that God would grant them favourable destinies for the future.

The celebration continues throughout the night, with candles and fireworks lighting the darkness as Muslims pray. People also prepare sweetmeats and other delicacies to distribute to the poor.

To keep in mind the purity, panjabi is a vital wear for men during this night.

Most of the Muslims wear panjabi during the religious occasions. Because they believe that panjabi is a part of purity. It symbolises a holy affair. Muslims wear neat and clean clothes on this night and pray to Allah.

To ensure purity of colour in wear, Lubnan has introduced about 30 new-designed panjabi and short panjabi in the market.

These panjabis were made for all ages of clients. Panjabis including short typed of cotton, checks, voile and handcrafts are available in the showrooms of the nine branches of Lubnan.

Panjabis are available in various colours like white, ash, light blue, pink and soft green. These are very comfortable to wear and looking smart to all.

These are available in the following branches of Lubnan:

Bashundhara City, North Tower in Uttara, Rupayan Golden Age in Gulshan Avaenue, Metro Shopping Mall in Dhanmondi, Rifles Square, Rapa Plaza in Dhanmondi, Sanmar Ocean City in Chittagong and Sylhet City Centre in Sylhet.

Besides, other fashion houses and boutique outlets have also introduced various sizes and colours of panjabis on the eve of Shab-e-Barat.

Meanwhile, other men's accessories including 'tupi' are found elsewhere in all the markets. Therefore, these are also found in front of the Mosques during the night of Shab-e-Barat.

Model: Nobel

Photo: Lubnan

Remembering Mahanayak

Mohammad Shahidul Islam

Uttam Kumar, a legendary and the most celebrated Bengali actor of Bengali cinema industry, even 28 years after his death (24th July, 1980), still remains a full-screen projection. Millions of his fans and admirers still throng around theatres where Uttam-Suchitra films sprint, filled to capacity. Such is the timeless thump of the duo.

He is warmheartedly called the Mahanayak or the "Great Hero" of Bengali cinema. His original name was Arun Kumar Chatterjee. He was born on 3 September 1926 at Ahiritola, North Kolkata but was called 'Uttam' by his maternal grandmother. His huge joint family had its own theatre group Suhrid Samaj which staged many amateur shows within the community.

No wonder then, Uttam Kumar was bitten by the acting bug right from childhood itself. Besides acting, he was also into sports and physical fitness. He took up wrestling, swimming, lathi-khela (sparring with wooden sticks), horse riding and tennis. In fact he was the swimming champion at the Bhowanipur Swimming Association three years in a row.

After graduation, the financial condition of the family forced him to take up employment as a clerk at the Port Commissioner's office. To supplement his salary, he also gave singing lessons at a music school. He joined as a cashier in Port Commissioners' Office at Kidderpore in 1944 and as a music teacher in Chakraberia High School. During this period, he acted for amateur theater groups. Initially Uttam Kumar followed the Kolkata theatre scene avidly but soon became dissatisfied with the existing trend of theatrical acting and always aimed for a more natural performance in his films. But his heart, mind and soul was running at only on one place-Tollygunge Studio. At last he got chance as an extra but he first acted in the film "Mayador" which failed to release. Uttam's first released film was Drishtidan (The gift of sight) directed by Nitin Bose. However his breakthrough film was Sare Chuyattor (74 and a half) with a young actress called Suchitra Sen. This romantic comedy launched the career of the greatest romantic duo to grace the Bengali film industry. Uttam-Suchitra has ever since been a household name.

The great Ray was much impressed by Uttan's inherent quality of acting and innovative skill, he started writing his screenplay Nayak (The Hero) after the image of Uttam Kumar, the infallible 'matinee idol' of Bengal cinema.

Andrew Robinson, the author of Satyajit Ray, The Inner Eye, writes: "Although Uttam Kumar was in Ray's mind when he set off for Darjeeling off-season in May to write Nayak (The Hero), he was thinking of him more as a phenomenon than an individual. Uttam had no hand in formation of the character he was to play, and Ray to this day is surprisingly ignorant of Uttam's life". It should be mentioned Ray's Nayak (1965) is nearly the biographical film of Uttam Kumar's own life and fame, his rise and stasis, success and failures.

Said Tapan Sinha, the noted director, in his memoir: "You don't have to guide him much to absorb the given character. He was a true follower of the script and stuck to the disciplined margin, whether to cross it or remain within it. He was a genius though to survive he had to make may films which did not appeal to him as an actor/person".

It is interesting to note what Satyajit Ray said about Uttam's intellect: "I never bothered to explain the character to him (Uttam Kumar). So I never discovered whether he really understood the implication of the part. And it doe's not really matter whether he did or did not. There were a lot of things he did understand because they probably corresponded to his own life and his own experience. He was not very articulate as a person, actually. Perhaps he was conscious of the fact that he would not be able to talk at the same level as us, so he kept quiet. Some people who are stupid would come out with all sorts of stupid things. So I did not discuss the psychology of the part at all. I merely told him that this is what you have to do. Trust me and it should be all right".

A strict workaholic, he was rumored to have said that his preferred demise would be on the floor of a studio, doing what he loved best, acting. Indeed, that is exactly how he died. While filming the Bengali film Ogo Bodhu Shundori 24th July, 1980, he died of a massive heart attack at the age of 54.

Satyajeet Ray articulated the following as a tribute to this Mahanayak;"It is the demise of a leading light of the Bengali film industry…There isn't - there won't be another hero like him."

Sultan festival ends

Malay Nandi, from Narail

Sultan Festival arranged jointly by Sultan Janmo Joynti Udjapan Parsad and Bangla Link. marking 84th birth anniversary of world famous painter S.M. Sultan concluded Wednesday. The festival began on the 9th August and continued for five days. The festival includes placing floral wreaths on the majar of Sultan, art camp, art exhibition and discussion meeting on his life and work. A colorful rally also paraded Narail town on the birthday of the artist. The program of the concluding day started with an art competition participated by over one hundred school going children and an art exhibition participated by different artists of the locality held afterwards. Both these programs were inaugurated by famous littérateur Hasnat Abdul Hye.

Later, in the concluding session a discussion meeting on Sultan's life and works and prize giving ceremony were held. Hasnat Abdul Hye addressed the meeting and distributed prizes among the winners of the art competition as the chief guest and Professor Munshi Hafizur Rahman presided over the session. Dr. Tarafder Rabiul Islam, former advisor of ILO And FAO, Babul Haque, Regional Commercial Head of Bangla Link and Subir Chowdhury, director of Bengal Foundation were present in the occasion as special guests.

The great artist S.M Sultan was born on 10 August, 1923 at Masimdia village adjacent to Narail town. His father Meser Ali was a poor mason. He studied at the Government Institute of Art in Kolkata. In the early forties, he made the world of fine arts struck through his paintings. His paintings were extraordinary because of the gigantic figures of men and women who belong to working class and it symbolizes the potential energy of our peasants who are really lean and thin and poverty stricken now.

He is the first Asian whose paintings were exhibited along with the greatest artists of all time like Pablo Picaso, Dalee, Klee and many other world famous Artists of his time. There was no influence of any contemporary artist on him; he had his own style. He was honored by different state awards like Ekushey Padak in 1982 and Swadhinata Padak in 1993. He established Kurigram fine arts school in 1969, Charupeeth, an art school in Jessore and Shishu Swargo at Narail. Different socio- cultural organizations Of Narail and Jessore observed the day with great enthusiasm and festivity.

Besides, a one day program arranged by Sultan Foundation on the birthday of S.M Sultan concluded. This program featured boat race on the river Citra, art competition and discussion meeting on life and works of the artist. Both the programs were attended by Divisional Commissioner M Yunusur Rahman, Deputy Commissioner of Narail Adul Kayum Sarder and many other famous artists and art critics of the country.