Sheikh Iraj and Hasanul Banna Joy
Nowadays, there is a craze among the young to work as directors in different fields, such as movies, TV dramas or advertisements. Many courses on filmmaking are offered by various universities. Big companies are coming forward with sponsorships. As a result, work opportunities are being created constantly for new hopefuls.
Directing films or dramas not only channels ones creativity, it has also become a good source of income for many. In recent times, several names have emerged who have gained considerable recognition among movie and TV buffs.
The veterans, meanwhile, are encouraging the young ones to come up with fresh ideas and new masterpieces. Taking such motivation to heart, young directors all around the country are set to make a difference. This week, Y&I spoke to some of upcoming young directors about their thoughts, hopes and future projects.
Redoan Rony
Redoan Rony is a well-known name in our media industry. He started out working under Mostofa Sarwar Farooki. He then went solo and made some very popular TV dramas. As a result, he has a good number of fan following. Then he tried his luck with films, which brought him both fame and success. Talking to Y&I, he said: “Right now, I am busy working on my next film, IceCream. I have written the script myself and I am also directing the film. I have also started an online TV channel: ‘www.popcornlive.tv’
Mostafa Kamal Raj
Among the young filmmakers who have already made their mark on both the small and big screens, Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Raj has earned kudos for his drama series, ‘Graduate’ and film ‘Projapoti.’ After the success of the latter, he released his second film, ‘Chaya Chobi’. He has also directed an action-romantic film, ‘Samrat’, which will be released soon. Apart from movies, he has made several TV dramas and serials. Raj has a good relationship with his close friend and potential rival, Redoan Rony. When asked about the possible competition between the friends regarding their films, a confident Raj replied, “I believe all of our movies will do well in the box office, because we have tried to give something new to the viewers in our films. We have fresh ideas to make better contribution to our movie industry. Besides, if you analyse the plots of our films, you will notice the differences.”
Wahid Anam
Wahid Anam is a Bangladeshi-American filmmaker, writer and producer. He is also the founder director of Shunno Entertainment Ltd. He made his directorial debut with a telefilm named ‘New York’ in 2011. Wahid has become one of the most successful young directors within a very short time. In 2013, he received the Meril-Prothom Alo best director award for his telefilm, “Pari”. Speaking with Y&I, he said: “There are 16 crore people living in this small country. I strongly believe there will be plenty of opportunity to do great films here. Currently, I have about five concepts in mind that I would like to make into films over the next three years. Now, I am writing my first movie script, ‘Launch Sinking’. We are planning to start shooting in 2016, if everything goes all right. And after that, I just want to keep on working on films. I am also focused on making TVCs (TV commercials), I will soon start working on a couple of those”.
Sayful Hafiz Khan
Sayful Hafiz Khan is relatively a new name in showbiz. He started with directing music videos. Since, he has directed three TV dramas and two telefilms. He told Y&I: “Right now, I have two TV dramas and two telefilms in the pipeline. The viewers will soon get to watch them on TV. It’s been hardly a couple of years since I started directing. I believe that with each work I do, my quality is going to get better. I still have a long way to go and a lot to learn. My goal is to entertain people through my work, whether it’s dramas or movies. But my ultimate dream is that one day I will make a full length feature film”.
Rashed Raha
Young director Rashed Raha has made several short films so far and earned great appreciation from audiences. He did research on Bangla drama for a few years and gathered experience as a director. Raha tends to work with the ups and downs of life and tries his best to reveal real life in today’s Bangladesh. His directorial ventures include ‘Bashbo Valo’ , ‘Break up’ , ‘Sunglass’ , ‘ Props’ and ‘Je pothey keyo nei’. He has also made some popular TV serials and telefilms. He has just finished a film titled ‘Commitment’, where Salauddin Lavlu plays the lead. The final editing has been done and it will soon be released. He next plans to work on a drama serial, titled ‘Parthib’, based on a story of Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay.
Arafath Shohan
Arafath Shohan is an assistant director. He started working just after completing his HSC exams. He has worked under Masud Sezan in hit TV dramas like ‘Longmarch’, ‘Red Signal’, ‘Shukhtan’. He told Y&I: “I have been working in this field for almost seven years now. I have worked under Masud Sezan, Raihan Khan and Aranya Anower. Besides directing, I also write stories and want to continue that. Insh’Allah, very soon I am going to make my own TV drama, called ‘Naisho Shunduri’. I have my own style and I want to stick to that”.
Touqir Islam
Filmmaker Touqir Islam has participated in several children’s film festivals. He had a fascination for filmmaking from childhood. In 2008, he joined the Children’s Film Society (CFS) and his dream of making films became stronger. In 2011, he made ‘The Unit’, which won first prize in the 5th International Children’s Film Festival. His filmmaking journey hasn’t had a pause since then. In 2013, he made the short film, “Goal O Jog”, for the 7th Children’s Film Festival. The film was a huge hit among child viewers in the festival. Though Touqir is hopeful about the present movie-making scenario, he shared some problems faced by young filmmakers. “It’s difficult to get funding. Modern equipment is not available here. There should be more scope to learn about filmmaking,” he said, adding “But there is also hope for us. This sector is progressing day by day.”