AT THE AGE OF 25 …

As The Daily Star completes its 25th anniversary, renowned practitioners of various spheres of the arts and entertainment industry share their views on what the age 25 signifies in their lives, and their view of the newspaper's journey.

Nasiruddin Yousuff, film and theatre director

I congratulate The Daily Star on its 25th anniversary. For an organisation the achievement should not the judged by age, rather it should be judged by the efforts of its all employees of that particular age. Many people worked hard to bring the newspaper to this stage, and it has a glorious journey. The Daily Star is a youth-centric organisation. It has achieved the glory of being the leading English newspaper. I hope it will continue the trend and publish more objective news.

Monirul Islam, visual artist

When I was 25, I came to the capital from a local city. With a big dream in heart, I entered Government Institute of Arts and Crafts (now Faculty of Fine Art, DU) where I was blessed by Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin. To augment the beauty of an art piece, we artists eliminate things from the canvases that we call minimization. The same way, The Daily Star in its 25 years of excellent journalism and courageous journey, served the nation with providing solid news and contributing overall progress of the country. I hope the international-standard newspaper will grow strong and go a long way in days to come.   

Zahid Hasan, actor

The Daily Star is one of the leading newspapers in the country, and it has international acclamation as well. Most importantly, the reader of the newspaper trusts it and relies on it. I also heavily rely on The Daily Star. I am happy that it is celebrating its 25th anniversary as it is a big achievement for a newspaper. I wish it success a happy journey. I hope The Daily Star will celebrate its 50th anniversary with more pride. Twenty-five is a critical age for any individual or organisation as it is the right time to decide what a person or individual will do in the future. This is a turning point. 

Krishnokoli, singer-songwriter

The age of 25 is of bountiful youth, especially from an individual's perspective; it is the time for courage, strength and challenges. But that courage has a sense of maturity and reality; there's little space for fantasy there. But it is the age when a person is not bogged down by crises or regrets, rather they are always looking ahead. When I was 25, I think because I had the opportunity to grow up in a relatively privileged society, my thoughts didn't just revolve around me. Also, I was a mother by that age, but because I was involved with activities, my thoughts and ideas were on a bigger scale.

For a newspaper to be 25 is an achievement at a different level. If The Daily Star was not carrying so much content from Day 1, they could not have thrived for 25 years, so I think it is an immense achievement.

Badhon, actress

The Daily Star has been playing a big role since the beginning of my career. Whenever the newspaper publishes news on me, many people phone me to wish or congratulate. The Daily Star is different from other newspapers and that's why it has a special place in the readers' hearts. Twenty five is the age to decorate life and make it more beautiful. It's the time to start a new journey.

Sudeshna Swayamprabha, dancer

I was born and brought up in a cultural ambience and worked hard to attain a drop of cultural essence through display of my art –dance -- during the last 25 years. Now I think of contributing my part for the country's excellence of cultural and artistic heritage. I hope to learn till the end and want to hold the aesthetic bubbles of the artistic sea in my heart and aspire to move forward with Bangladeshi culture.

Apart from unparallel contributions towards objective journalism and nation building, The Daily Star in its last 25 years, immensely inspired deserving artists through impartial reviews, features, interviews and cultural events. What charms me the most the journalists of the newspaper highlight both strong and weak side of any event's performance. I expect this excellence to continue in the days ahead.

Titas Zia, actor

Twenty-five is not an age to measure success; rather it's time to dream big and take action to make it a reality. At 25, I saw many dreams and wanted to do a lot of things. I wanted to contribute to the theatre scenario through my acting. Now I teach at a university and do acting in theatre and film. A newspaper should cover lesser-known stories instead of just publishing what is popular. The Daily Star should publish stories on emerging talents rather than only featuring popular stars. The Daily Star is doing well and I wish it grows as a more insightful newspaper.

Rahul Talukder, photographer

To have completed 25 years in publication, The Daily Star has come a long way. It has always had its bias towards the people's interests, and have brought out remarkable news over the decades, and I'm sure they will continue to do so.

Since I am 25 right now, it is a turning point in my life in the sense that although I have been doing photography for some time, I must now think of how to go ahead in this profession. It's not an easy profession in Bangladesh, and I must figure out my professionalism and my responsibilities. In that sense, it is a crucial passage of my life.