Amar Ekushey Book Fair 2020
Sheikh Arif Bulbon :
The Amar Ekushey Book Fair, the annual event close to the hearts of book lovers, publishers and authors of the country, drew to an end on February 29 in the presence of a huge crowd.
A total of 4,919 books hit the fair this year, including 184 brought in on Saturday, surpassing previous records of 4,134 and 3,646 books of the last two years. Total sales amounted to Tk 82 crore, while Bangla Academy sold books worth Tk 2.33 crore. This announcement was given by Member secretary of the fair organizing committee Jalal Ahmed at a press briefing organised last evening to call the book fair to an end.
Specialty of this year’s book fair was Bangla Academy set the theme of the fair as ‘Birth Centenary of Bangabandhu.’
To mark the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, over one hundred new books were released on his life and politics at the fair.
The fair drew regular crowds every day, but pulled in massive crowds on the weekends when Shishu Prohor, a children’s programme, was organised.
In the last two days of the fair, booksellers worked under pressure to manage the large crowds. Publishers, workers, and visitors expressed satisfaction over the sales and participation of people from all walks of life.
Hundreds of thousands of bibliophiles on last day of the fair gathered at the fair Bangla Academy as it was the last chance for them to collect books by their favorite writers.
According to sources at Bangla Academy Information Centre, over 1500 poetry books were published during the fair while the number was 700 for novels. Bangla Academy presented awards to the winners of its Gunijon Sahitya Puroskar chosen from the among the publishing houses participating at the Amar Ekushey Book Fair.
Kothaprokash received the Chittoronjon Saha Smriti Puroskar 2020, while Munier Chowdhury Smriti Puroskar 2020 was awarded for publishing aesthetically rich and standard content in books published in 2020. Prothoma Publication was awarded for Johnerberg-er Journal by Moinul Hossain, Journeymen Books publication for Prottoye Smriti O Onanno by Abul Hasnat and Bengal Publication for Smritir Pathorekha by Rafiqunnabi.
Rokonuzzaman Khan Dadabhai Smriti Puroskar was awarded to Panjeree Publication for publishing excellent books for children while Qayyum Chowdhury Smriti Puroskar was given to three publications – Ovijan (Single Unit), Kuregar Prakashani Ltd (Multi-Unit), and Bangla Prakash (Pavilion) for best interior design. Syed Waliullah Literature Award-2018 went to writers Salma Bani and Shagufta Sharmin Tania.
It is mentioned that this year, the land earmarked for the fair was expanded to 800,000 square ft. A total of 873 units were allocated to 560 organisations.
The authorities allotted 179 units at the Bangla Academy ground to 126 organisations and 694 at the Suhrawardy Udyan to 434 organisations. A total of 34 pavilions were allocated this year.
The Amar Ekushey Book Fair, the annual event close to the hearts of book lovers, publishers and authors of the country, drew to an end on February 29 in the presence of a huge crowd.
A total of 4,919 books hit the fair this year, including 184 brought in on Saturday, surpassing previous records of 4,134 and 3,646 books of the last two years. Total sales amounted to Tk 82 crore, while Bangla Academy sold books worth Tk 2.33 crore. This announcement was given by Member secretary of the fair organizing committee Jalal Ahmed at a press briefing organised last evening to call the book fair to an end.
Specialty of this year’s book fair was Bangla Academy set the theme of the fair as ‘Birth Centenary of Bangabandhu.’
To mark the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, over one hundred new books were released on his life and politics at the fair.
The fair drew regular crowds every day, but pulled in massive crowds on the weekends when Shishu Prohor, a children’s programme, was organised.
In the last two days of the fair, booksellers worked under pressure to manage the large crowds. Publishers, workers, and visitors expressed satisfaction over the sales and participation of people from all walks of life.
Hundreds of thousands of bibliophiles on last day of the fair gathered at the fair Bangla Academy as it was the last chance for them to collect books by their favorite writers.
According to sources at Bangla Academy Information Centre, over 1500 poetry books were published during the fair while the number was 700 for novels. Bangla Academy presented awards to the winners of its Gunijon Sahitya Puroskar chosen from the among the publishing houses participating at the Amar Ekushey Book Fair.
Kothaprokash received the Chittoronjon Saha Smriti Puroskar 2020, while Munier Chowdhury Smriti Puroskar 2020 was awarded for publishing aesthetically rich and standard content in books published in 2020. Prothoma Publication was awarded for Johnerberg-er Journal by Moinul Hossain, Journeymen Books publication for Prottoye Smriti O Onanno by Abul Hasnat and Bengal Publication for Smritir Pathorekha by Rafiqunnabi.
Rokonuzzaman Khan Dadabhai Smriti Puroskar was awarded to Panjeree Publication for publishing excellent books for children while Qayyum Chowdhury Smriti Puroskar was given to three publications – Ovijan (Single Unit), Kuregar Prakashani Ltd (Multi-Unit), and Bangla Prakash (Pavilion) for best interior design. Syed Waliullah Literature Award-2018 went to writers Salma Bani and Shagufta Sharmin Tania.
It is mentioned that this year, the land earmarked for the fair was expanded to 800,000 square ft. A total of 873 units were allocated to 560 organisations.
The authorities allotted 179 units at the Bangla Academy ground to 126 organisations and 694 at the Suhrawardy Udyan to 434 organisations. A total of 34 pavilions were allocated this year.