‘I want to write precisely
200 books’
Golam Ishfaque talks to rhymer Lutfar Rahman Riton, who received the Bangla Academy Award for his work in children’s literature just last week
New Age: What is your method of working?
Lutfar Rahman Riton: Throughout my life I have tried to abide by the simple ideology of working with outmost dedication and sincerity. I believe that if one is shows earnestness towards his or her work then at the end of the day the eventual outcome is bound to be good. When I work I just devote my entire attention and soul towards it, I don’t think about anything else going on around me as I feel that my work is the single most important thing on my priority list.
NA: Why did you choose to write children’s literature?
LRR: I believe from the bottom of my heart that the youngsters and the children make up the backbone of a country. They are the ones who lead the country in the future. Books most importantly, cultivate affection and create a bond between a child and writings. The words and illustrations of rhymes and stories not only enhances vocabulary and language ability, but it also helps them to understand the complexities of every day life, the country’s history and numerous other things that gives the delicate heart and minds of a child the first spark of vivid imagination, something much needed for a child’s proper upbringing. Books affected me immensely as a child and I want to make a contribution towards the society by educating the young people, which is why I have taken up this genre of writing.
NA: What is the position of Bengali literature on the world stage?
LRR: We are certainly not falling behind on the world stage. A lot of quality work is being done in our country. The writers of our country have more subjects to write about then most from other countries. The hardship endured in everyday life is far greater than any developed country. For instance any individual from any developed country will find it hard to believe that a lot of children in our country spend their lives besides the roads with empty stomachs. These sufferings urge our writers to write more about the social facts of our daily lives, and this makes up the ingredients for some extraordinary literati work. However the lack of quality translation of our work into other languages is restricting us from achieving greater world wide acknowledgment.
NA: How do you feel after receiving
the Bangla Academy Awards?
LRR: I just don’t have the write words to express my feelings. It’s the most prestigious awards of our country. The honour of this award cannot be measured by anything and I consider myself very fortunate as my name will now be taken amongst an elite group of writers. I have worked with honesty throughout my life and this award will surely inspire me further.
NA: How many books of yours have come out in this year’s Ekushey Boi Mela? What are your future writing plans?
LRR: Six of my books have published for this fair. Out of the six, three are on child literature and the rest are books of political rhymes. I have plans of going on and on with children’s literature. To be numerically precise I want write 200 books for children and I hope that I will be able to produce some quality work.
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