Shamsad Mortuza

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND

Dr Shamsad Mortuza is a professor of English at Dhaka University, and former pro-vice-chancellor of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).

Time to rethink media transformation

Media today has transformed into a spectacular performance focused on visibility.

1d ago

We cannot let violence silence our daughters

What is perhaps more insidious than the acts themselves is the language that now surrounds them. The lexicon of liberation has deliberately opted for expletives.

1w ago

Understanding the university ranking mismatch

We need to change our mindset and up our game to improve our universities’ standing.

3w ago

When leisure turns lethal

The alarming number of deaths gives Cox’s Bazar bad press.

4w ago

Rising crime, institutional failure, and the bystander effect

The collective numbness contradicts the spirit with which the masses stormed the streets in July last year.

1m ago

In search of a vice-chancellor

Central to the formation of the panel is the objective of minimising political interference in the selection of top university managers.

1m ago

JnU crisis exposes the rot in our higher education system

Central to the JnU crisis is a list of broken promises.

1m ago

We need more than air purifiers to clean up Dhaka’s air

It’s easy to dismiss Dhaka as an unliveable city. The challenge is to replace that tantrum with the determination to make the city better.

2m ago
June 19, 2021
June 19, 2021

A Canary in the Mine

Normally, you and I would not see fairies or hear them singing. They exist in a world where we fear (or do not care) to tread (anymore). Even if we do, we will not admit it in public.

June 12, 2021
June 12, 2021

‘Please forgive me…’

It reads like a Netflix blurb of a horror movie. A young man took a machete from a street coconut seller, uttered his last words: “please forgive me”, and then slit his own throat in front of Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

June 5, 2021
June 5, 2021

Students getting a slim slice of the budget pie

At a preparatory meeting for ULAB’s planned virtual convocation, I suggested that we use the iconic image of Keanu Reeves dodging many bullets in the Matrix trilogy as our promotional campaign.

May 29, 2021
May 29, 2021

Desperate Times, Desperate Journeys

During the latest rerun of the biblical David and Goliath narrative in a changed context, the age-old conflict between the Israelites and the Philistines has come alive.

May 22, 2021
May 22, 2021

How do I hate myself? Let me count the ways

The holiday lethargy has caused me self-loathing. Let me count some of the factors as to why I am beginning to hate myself.

May 8, 2021
May 8, 2021

The Tortoise, the Hare and the UGC

A breath of fresh air: the University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to allow public universities to hold online examinations.

May 1, 2021
May 1, 2021

Whose May Day?

Ah! May Day. It’s here. Our newspapers will carry a close-up shot of hardworking men or women in action (e.g., breaking bricks, carrying loads, or manning the machine) to draw our attention to the tears and sweat of a largely overlooked mass whose discomfort ensures the comfort of the rest.

April 29, 2021
April 29, 2021

Creating an appetite for Bangladeshi fiction

A good story is hard to find. Niaz Zaman, the editor of The Demoness: The Best Bangladeshi Short Stories, 1971-2021 (Aleph Book Company, 2021), has found 27 “best” short stories to create an appetite for Bangladeshi fiction.

April 24, 2021
April 24, 2021

The Covid-induced stress factors impacting our students

There have been changes in the way we live and the way we die. We have learned to live carefully during this time of the pandemic, yet we have been dying carelessly.

April 17, 2021
April 17, 2021

Education in a post-Covid-19 world

The onslaught of Covid-19 shows no signs of relenting. While the infection-death curve has been arrested by some countries, our one is still climbing, as if it wants to put a flag of our collective irresponsibility at a greater summit.