Eminent folk singer Abdul Kuddus Bayati, who has won hearts of the millions presenting traditional pala genre music in different countries of the world, claims that he got the stardom acting in a TV commercial directed eminent dramatist-novelist Humayun Ahmed.
‘Thanks to Humayun Ahmed, I got chance to explore my musical talent to the wider range of audience’, said Abdul Kuddus Bayati. And the bayati claims his break into urban people as a ‘new birth’ to his life.
Abdul Kuddus Bayati thinks himself fortunate for being able to grab attention and care from a great person like Humayun Ahmed. 
‘We have few things in common. We both had genuine love for rural Bangla and its folk heritage. Such sharing made us close to each other,’ said Kuddus.                  
 Talking about Humayun Ahmed, an emotional Kuddus Bayati said, ‘We are from the same district- Netrokona.  Humayan Ahmed knew me very well as a potential pala singer. He offered me to present a song in his popular play Khadok in 1988 in which I presented Nao nasto gudara ghatey. Thus I was first introduced to the urban viewers.’
Bayati became a star appearing in TV commercial, directed by Humayun Ahmed. ‘Humayun chose me to compose and sing song Ei din din na aro din achhe, which he wrote for an awareness increase commercial in 1992. My appearance in the TVC made me a star,’ added Kuddus.
Subsequently, Humayn Ahmed engaged me in many of his projects like Shukla Pakkha and Ruper Ghonta. ‘I have also lent my voice in song Jamunar jol dekhte kalo in his upcoming film Ghetuputra Kamola,’ Kuddus said.
Besides, professional contract, according to Abdul Kuddus, he was very close to the great playwright. ‘Humayun sir often called me to his home and we used to talk about songs and nature till late night,’ an emotional Kuddus bayati said.
Abdul Kuddus considers Humayun Ahmed not only his mentor but also his teacher who used to teach him philosophy, formal language and many others things. ‘I can remember Humayun sir slapped me on two occasions for doing wrong pronunciation of words. He urbanised my Bangla which was very much influenced by the dialect of Netrokona,’ Kuddus Bayati said.  
Like many others Abdul Kuddus Bayatai believes that Humayun Ahmed has achieved eternity through his works. ‘A man like Humayun Ahmed never dies; he will live on in the hearts of millions of his fans, especially those who became stars for Humayun Ahmed,’ Kuddus Bayati said.
Humayun Ahmed, the most popular dominant figure in the field of literature and TV play, died on Thursday in New York after suffering from cancer.
His dead body arrived Dhaka on Monday. People showed respect to the writer at the Central Shaheed Minar on Monday.
In his artistic career of over four decades, Humayun Ahmed penned 322 literary pieces including novels, stories, plays, science fiction and essays in his four decades of artistic career.