The first issue marking the literary journal Natun Diganta's stepping into its 15th year (October-December, 2016) of publication is undoubtedly a remarkable event in our world of journals. Like its previous issues, this one also includes assorted contributions. They range from scholarly essays on literary and socio-economic issues, history of the Liberation War to poetry and other creative pieces such as a short story and a serialised fictionÂ
The quarterly literary magazine, edited by Sirajul Islam Choudhury, noted author, academic and also an emeritus professor, has attracted the country's progressive literary enthusiasts and authors since its launch.Â
The latest issue's essays cover subjects such as October Revolution; Rabindranath's position on the British colonial rulers and the Indians, Judaism and Holocaust in historical perspective; Rabindranath on the question of farmers and  Hindus-Muslim relations; Gandhi, Ambedkar and Indian caste system in the view of Arundhati Roy;  Problems and prospects of Bangladesh Railway; 1971 Liberation War and nationalism; and social history of the Liberation War. There is also a write-up on dialectics.
Besides poems, a story and serialised fiction, this issue has published literary reviews of three new books and two literature-based articles --- one on poems written on the Bangladesh Liberation War and another on the centenary of TS Eliot's poem 'The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock'.
The authors of this issue are Haidar Akbar Khan Rono, Syed Abul Kalam, Mohd Abdus Sobhan, Rahman Chowdhury, Fahmid Al Jayid, MA Alim, Sirajul Islam Choudhury, Ramkrishna Bhattacharya, Gauher Nayim Wara, Daud Haider, Zahid Haider, Nuruddin Jahangir, Mashuk Chowdhury, Sarkar Masud, Haripada Dutta, Supa Sadia and Raihan M Chowdhury.
The three new books which have been reviewed in the current Natun Diganta are 'Smriti-Bismritir Aami' (an autobiography) by Zakiuddin Ahmed, Translated Poems of Rabindranath, edited by Badiur Rahman, and poetry collection 'Dukhho Nei, Door Hoke Bishonnota', by Pranab Chakrabarty.
Readers, especially those belonging to the younger generation, will get a lot of new ideas and become acquainted with thought-provoking discourses from the articles and the long editorial that have appeared in the 260-page new issue of the journal. It is being published by Samaj-Rupantor Adhyyan Kendra, Dhaka. The current issue is priced at Taka 50.
One would like to recognise the Natun Diganta as a journal that has distinguished itself in its 14 years of publication in a country where literary magazines are mostly short-lived these days. Its unique character has long been established in the country's literary and intellectual circles.
raihanmchowdhury@gmail.com
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Journal with a unique character
Raihan M Chowdhury | Published: October 27, 2016 21:13:53 | Updated: October 21, 2017 06:29:48
Journal with a unique character
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