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From time immemorial, Bengali seasons and the life of people have blended in a mosaic of thrilling colours and––Barsha the season of monsoon and life create a multi-coloured melange which is integral to the Bengali psyche and that’s why poets and lyricists join the people to sing spellbinding songs related to the magic of the rain.
   Some of the most eloquent and touching poems and songs adoring the monsoon of Bengal are found in the timeless creations of the rebel poet Kazi Nazrul Islam; relevant to note that, apart from his mutinous image, Nazrul also wrote poems and songs extolling the season of rains.
   Chhayanaut, a renowned cultural organisation, organised a fund raiser programme for its new complex delineating the subtle beauty of Nazrul’s monsoon, on September 4 at the National Museum auditorium; the evocation of the monsoon was captured in the compositions of Kazi Nazrul Islam.
   The programme began with a dance recital in praise of monsoon and choreographed by Sharmila Bandyapadhyaya, the first dance piece was accompanied with a Nazrul’s song Rum jhum jhum badal nupur.
   This was followed with Esho hey sajal shyama Ghana deya,Chanchal shyamolo elo gogoney, Megh medur boroshai, Aji badolo jhorey, Pardeshi megh, Kajori gahiya cholo, Tarun Ashanto ki birohi and Keno karun shurey.
   The programme included other solo, choral renditions and dance pieces by Khairul Anam Shakil, Suman Chowdhury, Anindita, Kalpana, Moyna and other artistes from the organisation. The recitation by Bhashwar and Dalia during the intervals of a number was nice and the whole programme was scripted by Dr Sanjida Khatun.

The phenomenal Jal, a famous Pakistani rock band, will soon be performing in Dhaka. Mishal Karim, Managing Director of Jetset PR announced at a press conference at the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel that the group will be performing two shows at the Winter Garden on September 6. As a gesture of good will, the Pakistani ambassador has invited eleven hundred students and members of the press to view Jal’s first performance at 5:00pm, after which another show will be held at 8:00pm for ticket holders; it will also feature a fashion show with top local models. The tickets will be available at Etcetera, both Dhanmondi and Gulshan branches, and will cost Tk.1500 for VVIP seats (Tk.1000 for Gulshan, Uttara or Dhaka Club members) and Tk.750 for regular seats.
   Shazi, Goher and Ferhan, (the members of Jal) said that they were looking forward to performing in Bangladesh. They had heard that both musicians and audiences of the country were fantastic. They also mentioned that people like Ayub Bacchu are extremely talented guitarists, and that they were highly impressed with the quality of band music here. ‘The Bangladeshi media has to play a greater role to make these bands more popular in the subcontinent,’ said Ferhan.
   Some of the proceeds from the shows will be donated to victims of arsenic poisoning. Jal will visit some development projects in rural areas, and in the process raise awareness about the threats of arsenic poisoning. Jal’s appearance in Bangladesh is part of an upcoming joint venture between Bangladesh and Pakistan, involving cultural exchange in music. The organisers said that they have plans to send Bangladeshi bands to Pakistan in the near future to participate in similar programmes.

Gallery Chayamahi 2 in Osaka, Japan held a group painting exhibition titled Young Artist Water Colour Exhibition Bangladesh by twenty Bangladeshi artists.
   Beginning on September 5 the show will continue till September 10 and will remain open for all from 11:00am to 7:00pm.
   The artists are Asmita Alam Shammy, Bishwajit Goswami, Chandan Kumar Barman, Kamruzzaman, Kazi Nargis Afroza, Ahkamul Haque, Al Akhir Sarker, Imdadul Khan, Kamal Uddin, Mazharul Haque, Rakibul Ahsan, Rashed Kamal, Zakir Us Salam, M M Maizuddin, Adnan Sufian, Nazmul Alam, Sazzad Hoshen Khan, Sadek Ahmed, Sahid Kazi, Soul Hacha.

Terry Gilliam’s ‘The Brothers Grimm’ brought fairy tale magic to the Venice Film Festival on Sunday, with the director hoping for a happy ending in Europe after the movie failed to impress in the United States.
   Packed with high-speed action and gruesome special effects, the extravaganza estimated to have cost $90 million is one of 20 films vying for the coveted Golden Lion at the world’s oldest cinema competition.
   Gilliam re-tells the story of the real-life Grimm Brothers, turning them into a pair of 19th century conmen who rove the French-occupied German countryside preying on the superstitions of hapless villagers who fall for their tricks and charms.
   But they meet their match in the 500-year-old Mirror Queen, played by Monica Bellucci, who stops at nothing to attain the eternal beauty that eludes her.
   Heath Ledger plays Jacob Grimm alongside Matt Damon’s Will, making this the Australian actor’s third film in Venice this year along with the out-of-competition ‘Casanova’ and in-competition ‘Brokeback Mountain.’
   Grimm is Gilliam’s first film for seven years, but for the director who won a cult following for films like ‘Brazil’ and ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,’ it has been a difficult comeback after many U.S. critics panned the movie.
   Gilliam said he was not put out.
   ‘All of my films evoke wonderful and bad reviews. They’ve always been like that. I like that. I don’t like this bland ‘OK’ kind of film review and Grimm is no exception.
   ‘There are probably too many critics out there with really pathetic opinions,’ he told Reuters in an interview.

Shanto-Marium University of Creative Technology recently celebrated its 2nd founding anniversary with a two day programme.
   The music department of the university arranged a cultural function, presenting classical, Rabindra and Nazrul Sangeet in the performances.
   An exhibition of creative works by the students was also arranged on this occasion.

ATN Bangla will host a special programme based on cooking titled Vim Chatpat Ranna Jhatpat Parishkar at 8:30pm tonight. The event will be moderated and directed by Nima Rahman.
   The speciality of the event is that the Vim team travel across the country collecting recipes of delicacies from different districts and present them to the viewers through ATN Bangla. Viewers are invited to participate in the programme and asked to prepare special dishes, which makes the programme much more interesting. The event is aired every Tuesday.

What is worth fighting for? This HBO Original Movie, written, directed, and starred in by John Leguizamo attempts to offer an answer. Lex Vargas (Emmy® Award winner Leguizamo. Assault On Precinct 13) is a poor Hispanic kid from the wrong side of town. His talent for boxing makes him rise through the ranks until he finds himself a champion title holder. Having tasted the fame and fortune that follow his success he shuns his old neighborhood and his longtime trainer. He parties with the rich and famous of Manhattan, gets himself a beautiful girlfriend, a big house, and a new boxing manager Everything seems to be going well until one day his manager asks him to throw a fight, He begins to question if everything he sweat blood and tears for are the fruit of his hard work and talent. He looks back to his roots and realizes that he is nothing without the loyalty and respect of his old neighborhood.
   UNDEFEATED
   HBO
   9:30pm
   Starring
   John Leguizamo, Clifton Collins, Jr.
   Genre: HBO Original Movie