Humayun lovers pay tributes to author on fifth death anniversary

The sky was grey with a hint of rain, and underneath people gathered to pay tributes to Humayun Ahmed, the sublime storyteller of Bangla literature.

Netrokona CorrespondentGazipur andbdnews24.com
Published : 19 July 2017, 02:20 PM
Updated : 19 July 2017, 02:24 PM

They gathered in Nuhash Palli, the bestselling author’s estate in Gazipur, and also in Netrokona, where in 1948 he was born to policeman Faizur Rahman and Ayesha Foyez.

It was Humayun’s fifth death anniversary on Wednesday. He had succumbed in a New York Hospital after a long battle with colon cancer on Jul 19, 2012.

Humayun was loved for many things -- the unusual yet relatable characters of his stories and their hugely popular TV or film adaptations. His writing is credited for an appeal that even reached out to ‘non-readers’.

One of such characters, Himu, an urban wanderer, has an organisation dedicated to him.

More than 50 fans of Himu Paribahan, who distributed flyers for cancer awareness and gathered fan signatures on the way from Dhaka, placed flowers on the writer’s grave at Nuhash Palli.

The students of nearby madrasas or religious schools joined in the morning by reciting prayers from the Quran, said Saiful Islam Bulbul, manager of Nuhash Palli.

They were among the 600 visitors -- writers, publishers and fans -- who ate lunch at Humayun’s estate on Wednesday, he said.

In the school he set up at Netrokona's Kendua, ‘Shahidsmriti Bidyapith’, students lined up to place flowers before his portrait. They took out a rally out in the Upazila town, wearing black badges. A black flag was hoisted, and an eye camp was organised.

Humayun’s paternal uncle Altabur Rahman was among those who spoke at a discussion in the school playground.

Another rally was organised by Kendua’s Humayun Ahmed Smrity Sangsad and Charcha Sahitya Adda, which also arranged book readings and prayers.

The writer is survived by two sons—Ninit and Nishad— with second wife Meher Afroz Shaon, and three daughters— Nova, Shila, Bipasha—and son Nuhash with his previous wife Gultekin.

A museum dedicated to Humayun will be partly inaugurated before his birth anniversary on Nov 13, his wife Shaon told reporters at Nuhash Palli.

The author during his nine-month battle with cancer had hoped to set up a proper cancer hospital in Bangladesh.

“I’ll try to do everything possible to fulfil that wish. But I’m by myself, I can’t do this by myself," Shaon said.

“But one call from Humayun was enough to get everyone united, it won’t be the same if I do it. I’ll always be here.  The entire community has to make a decision about the cancer hospital.”