United News of Bangladesh

Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest, is a land of mystery, danger, and constant risk. Yet it is here that the region’s traditional honey collectors, known as Mawalis, venture deep into the wilderness, often risking their lives to harvest honey. Their courage and resilience are at the heart of a new documentary titled Sahosei Bikash (Courage to Prosperity), said a media release on Monday. Released on 14 December marking ‘Sundarbans Day’, the three‑minute‑forty‑seven‑second documentary portrays the harsh realities of the honey collectors’ lives. It captures how they brave tigers, crocodiles, venomous snakes, unpredictable tides and the lurking threat of quicksand, all while gathering honey inside one of the world’s most unforgiving ecosystems. Expatriates remit Tk 200bn via bKash in 2025 The documentary also shows how the honey collectors often stay away from their families for weeks at a time. After risking their lives to earn an income, they now rely on the safety and convenience of mobile wallets to store their hard‑earned money and send money back home without hassle. Documentary reveals that even while working in remote forest areas, honey collectors prefer not to carry cash due to security concerns. Instead, they use their bKash accounts to conduct transactions, both for selling honey and for safeguarding their earnings. This digital access allows them to remain emotionally and financially connected with their families despite the physical distance. The film presents a powerful reflection of how technology is delivering reliability and safety to people living in some of the country’s most inaccessible regions. As a result, bKash has emerged as a trusted companion in their lives. Driven by the desire to ensure the well-being and happiness of their loved ones, the honey collectors repeatedly venture deep into the Sundarbans, risking their lives time and again with unwavering courage. Customers win Nepal, Cox’s Bazar tour thru travel payment with bKash The documentary on honey collectors life is available on Amar bKash Facebook page, Instagram page, and YouTube channel-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qo0pxJHrvSk. For nearly fifteen years, bKash has been a trusted financial partner for millions of users across Bangladesh, serving people in cities, towns, villages, hills, coastal regions and remote areas. By offering simple, secure and time‑saving digital services, bKash continues to empower customers with freedom, capability and safety in their financial transactions.

Short films on Water - a film screening depicting adverse consequences of climate change will be showcased at the British Council premises on Saturday. The short films were produced under the project ‘Bangladesh Cymru Climate Stories’ by Dhaka DocLab and Wales One World Film Festival from the United Kingdom with support from the British Council. The films explore the experience of coastal communities and river dwellers against the backdrop of climate breakdown. The four films are- Doprujhiri by Asma Bethee and Latika by Samsul Islam Shopoon from Bangladesh; Our Home, the Sea by Mared Rees and She Sells Shellfish by Lily Tiger Tonkin from Wales, UK. Planning Minister M. A. Mannan will be joining the event as the chief guest that will begin at 5pm. Dr.Farhina Ahmed, Secretary to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and Tom Miscioscia, Country Director, British Council Bangladesh will be present as special guests. The screening is open for all and be followed by a conversation with the directors, producers , and characters of the four documentaries along with a question-and-answer session, said a media release on Wednesday. The film screening event is a part of the British Council's observation of the World Environment Day on 5 June, which encourages awareness and action for the protection of the environment. The Bangladesh-Cymru Climate Stories film project was created in collaboration between Dhaka DocLab and Wales One World Film Festival. Four filmmakers received financial and technical support from Dhaka DocLab and Wales One World Film Festival to complete their short films, which focus on climate change stories connected to women to create awareness among people. The project is funded by the British Council’s International Collaboration Programme, which was introduced to support cultural partnerships in the UK and overseas and inspire independent artists to continue creative pursuits. So far, 94 projects from 41 countries have been completed with grant support from the British Council.  

Netflix is a streaming giant known for its vast collection of TV shows and movies. Like every month, Netflix will be releasing several highly anticipated English language originals, including dramas, comedies, and documentaries in June 2023.  English Language Originals Releasing on Netflix in June Black Mirror (Season 6) The popular dystopian anthology series "Black Mirror" is making a comeback, and fans won't have to wait long for it. The show's sixth season is set to premiere on Netflix in June of 2023. The season 6, helmed by director Charlie Brooker, features an impressive cast of actors, including Aaron Paul, Anjana Vasan, Annie Murphy, Auden Thornton, Ben Barnes, Clara Rugaard, Daniel Portman, and others. In typical "Black Mirror" fashion, the newest season is expected to deliver more dark and disturbing storylines. The show is produced by Brooker and Jones' new production company, Broke & Bones.  Read More: Web series Hotel Relax hits a new record: Bongo Manifest (Season 4 – Part 2) Manifest, a popular supernatural drama series, is set to release its final 10 episodes on June 2. The storyline centers around a group of 191 passengers who went missing for five years and returned with supernatural abilities, including "callings" that guide them toward certain outcomes. The predicted Death Date of June 2, 2024, for these passengers, is significant in the show's lore, as it could also lead to the demise of humanity. Jeff Rake, the creator of this web series, has teased that the first calling in the final batch of episodes will change everything and that an unexpected character, Eagan, may hold the key to the passengers' salvation. Manifest stars Melissa Roxburgh and Josh Dallas, have also made their directorial debuts in the final season. Tour de France: Unchained (Season 1) The upcoming documentary series, Tour de France Unchained, is set to premiere on June 8, as announced in the first official trailer released on Le Tour de France’s YouTube channel. The series, which is based on the 2022 race, was first announced in March 2022 as a collaboration between Netflix and A.S.O., the organizer of the Tour de France.  Read More: May 2023 New Releases: Top 10 Upcoming South Indian Films Produced by Quadbox, a joint venture between Quad and Box to Box Films, the sports film producer behind the popular Formula 1 series Drive to Survive on Netflix, Tour de France Unchained will focus on the trials and tribulations of eight teams participating in the race, including Jumbo-Visma, and the eventual victory of Jonas Vingegaard. Never Have I Ever (Season 4) Never Have I Ever has been created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, and its fourth and final season is set to debut on June 8, 2023 on Netflix and will consist of ten episodes. The series is a coming-of-age comedy about a modern-day first-generation Indian American teenage girl named Devi Vishwakumar, played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. The fourth season will revolve around Devi and her gang's senior year at Sherman Oaks High School, including prom, college, and more romance.  The series will have a returning cast, including Darren Barnet and Jaren Lewison, along with the new cast Michael Cimino. The drama series is known for its comedic and touching portrayal of Devi's life, including her family, friends, and love life, while also addressing issues such as grief and identity. Read More: May 2023 New Releases: Netflix Original English Movies, Series Human Resources (Season 2) The second season of this web series will be released on Netflix on June 9, 2023. The show is a spinoff of the popular adult animation "Big Mouth" and features the daily lives of creatures such as Hormone Monsters, Depression Kitties, Shame Wizards, and more, as they help humans navigate various stages of life.  This Netflix original series is created and executive produced by Kelly Galuska, Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Jennifer Flackett, and Mark Levin. The main stars include Nick Kroll, Maya Rudolph, Aidy Bryant, David Thewlis, Randall Park, Keke Palmer, and Brandon Kyle Goodman, among others.  The second season is said to be the final season of the series, and any remaining storylines will be wrapped up in "Big Mouth's" new episodes. The drama also features guest stars such as Florence Pugh, Miley Cyrus, Eugene Levy, Sam Richardson, Niecy Nash-Betts, Jason Mantzoukas, and Isabella Rossellini. Read More: 10 Netflix Originals Coming in April 2023

Police on Sunday (April 09, 2023) night arrested Nafiz Mohammad Alam, who was interviewed in a recent Deutsche Welle (DW) documentary on RAB, from his home in Bashundhara residential area of Dhaka. Officer-in-charge of Bhatara Police Station Asaduzzaman told UNB that police arrested Nafiz in a case filed under the pornography act. Tipped off, a team of Bhatara police carried out a raid at Nafiz's residence in G block of Bashundhara Housing on Sunday evening. Read More: DW documentary: US hopes Bangladesh will examine allegations against RAB Foreign alcohol, one laptop, one motorcycle and a mobile phone were seized during the raid. Sub-inspector Riyad Ahmed of Bhatara Police Station filed a case against Nafiz with the police station under the Narcotics Control Act, said the OC. He also said Nafiz was accused in three cases and there was an arrest warrant against him filed with the police station under the pornography act. Read More: Death in Custody: RAB quizzes Jasmine's son and brother-in-law Replying to a question, the OC said that Nafiz has been produced before a Dhaka court.

“Navalny,” a look at a Russian opposition leader following an attempt on his life, has won the Oscar for best documentary feature. Director Daniel Roher’s portrait of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has shadowy operatives, truth-seeking journalists, conspiracy theories and Soviet-era poisons. It is a film with obvious political poignance following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Roher accepted his statuette by saying he dedicated it to Navalny and to all political prisoners around the world. "Alexei, the world has not forgotten your vital message to us all: We must not be afraid to oppose dictators and authoritarianism wherever it rears its head. Navalny's wife, Yulia, said: “Alexei, I am dreaming of the day you will be free and our country will be free. Stay strong, my love.” Also Read: Antiwar ‘All Quiet’ wins the Oscar for international film Navalny is a media savvy, anti-corruption campaigner in his mid-40s who has for many years been a headache for Russian President Vladimir Putin. He’s released numerous reports about corruption in Russia and the Putin administration and become a popular and rallying figure among like-minded Russians. Roher was able to sit down with Navalny during his brief stay in Berlin in 2020 and early 2021 as he was recovering from being poisoned and seeking the truth behind the unsuccessful murder attempt. The media has called Navalny the Kremlin’s fiercest critic. And he is seemingly undaunted by the intimidation and the arrests he’s endured. The film was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won both the documentary audience award and the festival favorite award. “'Navalny,' first and foremost, is about the passion, drive and inspiring heroism of Alexey Navalny, who even as we celebrate this award continues to languish in a penal colony,” said Amy Entelis, an executive vice president at CNN Worldwide. The film, presented by CNN Films and HBO Max, represents CNN's first Oscar. “Navalny” beat the other documentary nominees “All That Breathes’; “All the Beauty and the Bloodshed”; “Fire of Love”; and “A House Made of Splinters.”

Officials from India’s Income Tax department began conducting searches Tuesday (February 14, 2023) at the BBC’s offices in the capital, New Delhi, three of the broadcaster’s staff members told the Associated Press. The search comes weeks after the British broadcaster released a controversial documentary that examined Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s role during the 2002 anti-Muslim riots. Teams from the tax department surveyed the BBC's Delhi and Mumbai offices, the Press Trust of India news agency reported, quoting officials who were not identified. Also Read: BBC film on India's PM Modi, 2002 riots draws government ire India banned the two-part documentary “India: The Modi Question” last month and authorities scrambled to halt screenings of the program and restrict clips of it on social media in a move that critics and political opponents decried as an assault on press freedom. India’s Foreign Ministry called the documentary a “propaganda piece designed to push a particularly discredited narrative” that lacked objectivity.” The BBC in a statement had said the documentary was “rigorously researched” and involved a wide range of voices and opinions. Read More: Sexual harassment, misconduct went on unchecked at Al Jazeera, staff allege: BBC investigation “We offered the Indian Government a right to reply to the matters raised in the series — it declined to respond,” the statement said.

Bangladeshi short documentary film ‘Dream Run’ has been nominated for the Joel Sotolongo Micro Film Award at The 2022 Treasure Coast International Film, Music, & Art Festival in Florida. The film has been directed by Mohammed Tawhidul Ahsan, who worked with many foreign filmmakers before making his directorial debut. Team 'Dream Run' also includes Ashraf Uddin Ahmed Joy as director of photography, Joao Ramos as the editor and Meghna Agnihotri as the producer. Read: Roni Bhowmik’s New Short Film ‘Chakrakar’ released by Vivo The film is based on the lost rickshaw art of Bangladesh. The film portrays the history and struggles of the artists who paint and decorate rickshaws. Prior to 'Dream Run', Ahsan worked in the short film ‘Human’ directed by Yann Arthus-Bertrand. The film premiered at the United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York in 2014. In 2018, Ahsan worked in a television movie, titled ‘Uncivil Servant’, directed by Dawn Natalia, which won the Florida Film Gem Award at the Treasure Coast Film Festival in 2020. Read “Moviegoers and media friends helped save Star Cineplex’s original branch” Ahsan has also worked as an artistic director and 360-degree filming director for the Virtual Reality Implementation project of the prestigious Bangabandhu Military Museum. Bangladeshi documentary movie 'Dream Run' is scheduled to be screened at Regal Cinema 14, Jensen Beach, Florida, US, on Friday.

Unfolding the stories behind the cemeteries of tea planters in Bangladesh, a travel documentary titled “Tombs: Tea-Planters Cemeteries in Sylhet” was premiered on Monday at Bangladesh Tourism Board Conference Hall, Agargaon in the capital. Conceptualized and produced by heritage traveller Eliza Binte Elahi and directed by ARM Nasir, the 30-minute documentary premiere, hosted by the Bangladesh Bureau Chief of the Associated Press and United News of Bangladesh-UNB’s Chief of Correspondents Julhas Alam, was joined by Rahnuma Salam Khan, Deputy Director of Bangladesh Tourism Corporation as the chief guest. The premiere was also joined by several other prominent personalities including former additional secretary and Bangladesh Birds Club President Jalal Ahmed, Joint Secretary at Ministry of Finance Sheikh Momena Moni, Bangladesh Police DIG Ruhul Amin, Deepto TV CEO Fuad Chowdhury, botanist and tea planter Ashraf Ahmed, former additional secretary Akhtaruzzaman Khan Kabir, and travel magazine Bhromongoddya editor Mahmud Hafiz, among others. Read UNESCO Mondiacult 2022: Bangladesh lauded for creating Bangabandhu International Award Foreigners and many ethnic groups have settled for long periods of rule in Bangladesh and established trade connections, and needless to say that many of them are buried in the country. Different burial grounds are built in almost all the 64 districts of Bangladesh, and there are also tombs of tea planters in different tea gardens of the entire Sylhet division.

 Visiting Indian national award winning filmmaker Goutam Ghosh and noted Indian film director Satyam Roy Chowdhury paid a curtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her official residence Ganobhaban on Monday.After the meeting, Prime Minister’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed the reporters.He said that they discussed about the documentary film titled "Kolkatae Bangabandhu (Bangabandhu in Kolkata)" being made by Goutam Ghosh on life of Bangabandhu during his stay in Kolkata as well as his struggles in political carrier. Also read: New documentary to depict Bangabandhu's life in KolkataFather of the Nation’s Youngest daughter Sheikh Rehana and his grand son Radwan Mujib Siddiq were present during the meeting.The press secretary said that Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana highlighted the outline of the documentary before Goutam and Satyam.They also described Bangabandhu’s struggles and passing of his days in hardship during his student life in Kolkata.Besides, the two daughters of Bangabandhu, who had escaped the 15th August massacre, also projected political life and philosophy of the great leader during the discussion.At the meeting, Goutam and Satyam said, they visited the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at historic 32 No House of Dhanmondi in the capital and saw the ghoulish signs of the August 15 killing in every corner of the museum.They also apprised the prime minister of their feeling as if the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu is still alive. Also read: Documentary on Bangabandhu premiered at Star CineplexReferring to the “Bangabandhu’s Unfinished Memoirs” and “Karagarer Rojnamcha”, they described the two books as the great pieces of history.Goutam Ghosh and Satyam Chowdhury also said they feel proud of making the documentary on the life and works of the Bangalees’ greatest leader.Later, Hasina and Rehana were interviewed on Bangabandhu’s struggle in his political life as well as during his days in Kolkata.Goutam is making the 30-minute documentary film.On April 4, Goutam began the work of the film by shooting in a classroom at the Maulana Azad College in Kolkata, which was called Islamia College when Bangabandhu studied there during his 1945-46 academic year.

The new documentary on Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman titled “Kolkatai Bangabandhu (Bangabandhu in Kolkata)” will depict his life in Kolkata and describe how his each step was driven by big dream and enormous courage, says its director and renowned filmmaker Goutam Ghose on Friday. In a media briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said Kolkata played a very important role in Bangabandhu’s political life and he will try his best while making the documentary as there are some emotions attached to it. Also read:Star Cineplex to open new branch at Bangabandhu Military Museum Thursday “There had been many writings but less work on audiovisual. I think The Unfinished Memoirs and books compiled by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina are authentic and I made my script for the documentary based on their remarks,” said the Indian filmmaker, adding that “there must be a cinematic element and I tried on that front.” Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam also spoke at the media briefing. Sharing personal experience, Momen hoped that it will be a very good documentary and unique one and all required support will be extended for a good production. Shahriar said film director Goutam Ghose will visit different places in Dhaka and Tungipara in the next one week and will do the necessary shooting work for the production of this documentary. He also has an interview with the Prime Minister. “We hope that by the end of the shooting period in Bangladesh and the rest of the work in Kolkata, we will be able to release the documentary by next June,” he said. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on 19 March 2022 at the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata to make the documentary.