Shilpakala to host interactive discussion honouring S M Solaiman
Theatre troupe Theatre Art Unit is set to host its annual programme in memory of Ekushey Padak-winning playwright, director, organiser, actor, and musician S M Solaiman.
The event will take place today, at 5:15pm at the Experimental Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, featuring an interactive discussion and the presentation of the S M Solaiman Pranodona 2025 award.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The discussion will feature noted theatre personalities Naila Azad Nupur, Azad Abul Kalam, Bakar Bakul, and Shamima Shawkat Lovely, with Selim Mahbub, acting team leader of Theatre Art Unit, presiding over the session. Kamruzzaman Millat, the troupe's chief coordinator, is overseeing the arrangements.
Solaiman (1953–2001) is widely regarded as a central figure in Bangladesh's modern theatre movement. Over a career cut short at 48, he wrote, adapted and directed roughly thirty plays and helped institutionalise a blend of folk, musical and political theatre that questioned authoritarianism, social orthodoxy and communal intolerance. He was twice elected general secretary of the Bangladesh Group Theatre Federation and was awarded the Ekushey Padak posthumously in 2014.
His notable works—many still in repertory—include "Khyapa Paglar Pyanchal", "Ingit", "Gani Mia Ekdin", "Ah Comrade", "Election Caricature", "Ei Deshe Ei Beshe", "Court Martial", "Birth Fantasy", "Golapjan" and the folklore-based musical "Amina Sundari". Theatre Art Unit's productions, shaped by Solaiman's use of music and popular performance idioms, have been staged widely at home and abroad.
"Amina Sundari", adapted from a Chittagong folk tale and one of Solaiman's best-known plays, remains emblematic of his method—folk story serving as a vehicle for contemporary critique. The play has enjoyed long runs at home and tours overseas, including performances in New York, and continues to be revived by Theatre Art Unit and other companies.
The memorial will also present the SM Solaiman Pranodona, an award established by Theatre Art Unit in 2005 to recognise young theatre activists. Over the years, the prize and accompanying festival have become important moments for passing Solaiman's craft and ethos to a new generation of directors, actors and stage technicians.
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