Aliza Rahman

Post-July remembrance

With the departure of an autocrat and the period of semi-expected-still-frightening chaos after, comes the period when we have to sit down to think of what comes ahead, know what we must not do, and get some direction on how we are supposed to go on. In light of this, the following articles and/or chapters have been curated for perspectives that might be needed in this unprecedented situation we’ve found ourselves in.

1m ago

Apathy, Han Kang and the Nobel Prize for literature

At this point, controversies should not be a surprise when it comes to the Nobel prizes, especially not for literature.

1m ago

The psychological costs of an uprising

The systemic issues make even the admission of one’s struggles a minefield

1m ago

‘Workers must be allowed to speak up’

In light of the recent development in the RMG sector, where factories have started to open, Taslima Akhter, president of Bangladesh Garment Sramik Samhati (BGWS), talks about the workers’ protest and their demands and plights in an interview with Aliza Rahman of The Daily Star.

2m ago

Protests, deaths and a collective breakdown

It is a special kind of horror to see the semi-abstract theories you studied for your semi-abstract major come to life, and begin to apply to events 20 minutes away from you.

4m ago

Sudan crisis explained: Why wars are not a matter of the past

To look away from Sudan, at this time, is tantamount to complicity.

5m ago

Is it enough to just have female heads of state?

We have seen that women who are able to helm a country are often able to do so through their associations with powerful men.

6m ago

What could the recent ICC warrants mean?

The recent arrest warrants may create an impression that there is an equivalence between Hamas leaders and Netanyahu and Gallant.

6m ago
May 17, 2024
May 17, 2024

Will we finally take student suicides seriously?

This tragic phenomenon, though shocking each time, is unfortunately not new.

May 14, 2024
May 14, 2024

Beyond the page: Podcasts discussing POC authors

The following are podcasts that focus on POC writers, a list made because of the heavy Eurocentrism still present in the lists and bookstores known around Bangladesh.

May 12, 2024
May 12, 2024

The devaluation of the sacrificial mother

Even as she is glorified, her work is devalued.

March 28, 2024
March 28, 2024

‘Shubeik Lubeik’, wishes, and the vulnerability of human beings

In Deena Mohamed’s Shubeik Lubeik (originally published in 2015 and translated in 2023 by Mohamed herself), wishes have not only drastically altered the fabric of daily life in Egypt, but the world at large.

March 17, 2024
March 17, 2024

Technology for when writing feels tough

A bunch of free places on the internet that allow me to complete assignments or personal projects when the going gets rough.

February 17, 2024
February 17, 2024

Romance and unfulfillment in the past and the present

Much like most media geared toward women, romance novels have frequently received flack for its supposed shallowness, absurdity, and flamboyancy.

January 18, 2024
January 18, 2024

Sad girl lit and trivialising women’s writing

When I read the title of Charlotte Stroud’s article “The curse of the cool girl novelist” and the accompanying description of said type of novelist, I had a solid image of what she was referring to. Stroud describes “cool girl novelists” as “depressed and alienated”, “incurably downcast”, and “terminally sad”. It had similarities with “sad girl” literature, a supposedly new genre captivating readers and publishers alike.

December 29, 2023
December 29, 2023

The Continuing Relevance of Munnu

A review of 'Munnu: A Boy from Kashmir' (Fourth Estate, 2015), a stark portrayal of Kashmir, not through the eyes of a foreign individual looking in from the outside, but a Kashmiri living through the Indian occupation

November 18, 2023
November 18, 2023

The progressive depiction of women in ‘Devdas’

In some ways, Sharatchandra places the blame for Devdas's ensuing sorrow on his lack of courage, made all the more noticeable in comparison to Parbati's courage in breaking social norms despite the dire consequences it could have for her.

December 9, 2021
December 9, 2021

A Wedding Movie Playlist

Movies showing truer pictures of what weddings are really like.