Driftwood is her medium

Ferdousi Priyobhashini in the documentary

Filmmaker Manzar-e-Haseen Murad, commenting on the film said, "The film is informative. However if the film were technically better it would have been more enjoyable. It is definitely a useful piece of work. This adds to already existing knowledge about Priyobhashini. Nevertheless, I firmly believe that more research work should have gone into it."

Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed said about the subject, "Priyobhashini has chosen driftwood to work on and this medium is like nature itself. Her work is spontaneous and she does not let life's cruelties overwhelm her. This film helps to record the history of one of our freedom fighters and makes us more aware of our past."

Ferdousi Priyobhashini said, "Quite a few elements in the film are accurate. It has stressed on one aspect that in middle age too one has the right to dress up. There's no social barrier against looking after oneself in the late years. This is not the first time that my life has been dealt with in public. I think the film could have gone into more detail to make it more interesting. When I write my memoirs, it will definitely go into more details."

Asked why he had made this particular documentary, Mahbubul Alam Taru said, "As a reporter for Tara TV I've seen many works by women artists. I was particularly moved by Priyobhashini's works. She has no academic qualification but creates fascinating images from driftwood and roots. I've shown her childhood, when she is singing and learning dance from SM Sultan. Most of us were not aware that Priyobhashini sings well too. I've also stressed on how she suffered at the hands of Pak soldiers in 1971. I've shown how she has married for love for the first time but the marriage went astray despite children.

"When she had her first exhibition in Jessore in 1991, SM Sultan encouraged her greatly and made her take her driftwood art seriously. I have also shown how young women flock to her for inspiration and how she instills in them the necessity to work hard.

She recently had an open heart surgery but she refused to take financial help from people. She said that she would sell her work somehow and gather the necessary funds."

Taru has not had academic training in film making except a course in video that he did under Mujibur Rahman at the Alliance Francaise 20 years ago. After that he went into writing and wrote four books, Boronno Bektitto, Thandu Mamar Bura Angul, Footballer Raja Salauddin and Mrittu. Adds Taru "I used to see a lot of films at the cultural centres. I've worked with Tareque Masud on his research documentary on Matir Moina. The script, camera work and direction of the film Priyobhashini are all mine. I used a 3CCD DV camera. I got some help from British Council and the magazine Anannya. I wanted to depict Priyobhashini's struggles. I hope to give the film to different channels. The film has English subtitles and is 37minutes long."