Born in 1953 in Old Dhaka, Shahidul Zahir published only six works in his short life – but these are some of the most unique and powerful works of fiction to have come out of the subcontinent, blending surrealism, folklore, oral storytelling traditions, magic realism, a searing understanding of social and political reality, and rare clarity of vision. I See the Face is an alternative telling of the story, or history, of Bangladesh, beginning with the War of Liberation in 1971. Moving effortlessly from the past to the present, and back again, Zahir paints a picture of the crisis of post-independence Bangladesh and describes how society or the State drives a poor but brilliant boy to destruction. There is biting wit and humour, and above all, a kind of ethereal understatement which make the reading experience an incomparable one. With I See the Face, Shahidul Zahir surpasses himself.
Born in 1953 in Old Dhaka, Shahidul Zahir published only six works in his short life – but these are some of the most unique and powerful works of fiction to have come out of the subcontinent. With his own particular blend of surrealism, folklore, oral storytelling traditions, magic realism, a searing understanding of social and political reality, and rare clarity of vision, he created a truly extraordinary oeuvre.
A moholla caught in a time warp…
A down-on-their-luck husband and wife who are stalked by ravens…
A magician who sells addictive figs…
A pair of thieving monkeys…
In these pages is the world of the moholla, where rumours and gossip abound and where everyone knows everyone, where seemingly bizarre yet intriguing creations deliver profound commentary on post-independence Bangladesh. Superbly translated by V. Ramaswamy, each of these ten stories takes you beyond the rules of language and storytelling, into a place that is at once achingly familiar and terrifying.
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Born in 1953 in Old Dhaka, Shahidul Zahir published only six works in his short life – but these are some of the most unique and powerful works of fiction to have come out of the subcontinent. With his own particular blend of surrealism, folklore, oral storytelling traditions, magic realism, a searing understanding of social and political reality, and rare clarity of vision, he created a truly extraordinary oeuvre.
Life and Political Reality is the work that established his reputation and granted him cult status in Bangladesh. It examines the 1971 war and its aftermath; a treatise on liberation, and the destruction of the idealism and spirit of post-war Bangladesh, told in a single, corrosive, stream-of-consciousness paragraph.
Abu Ibrahim’s Death is a quieter companion novella, but one that is equally concerned with idealism and compromise, as it studies with deep empathy and nuance the fall of its titular protagonist.
Together, these two novellas make for a superb introduction to a truly brilliant shooting star in the literary firmament of Bangladesh and the world.