Ekushey Boi Mela
Youths prefer books as gift for beloved ones
Anisur Rahman
The month long Amar Ekushey Boi Mela yesterday, the Valentines Day, become more significant and coulurful as the fair witnessed a large number of youth roaming at the fair with their beloved one as well as thumbing through books as a gift for the Valentines Day.
Beautiful couples in colourful dresses-- mostly girls are in different colour sarees and boys are in panjabis were seen entering the fair gate in the afternoon.
Huge crowd of young boys and girls, who came from different area, of the city entered the fair venue carrying bunch of flowers and turned the fair venue into a place for happy and colorful celebration.
They were also seen roaming from stall to stall with their favourite one and buying books for their beloved persons.
Besides, volumes of poems and novels, especially those having message of love written by their favourite writers were the yesterdays hot item.
Collections of love poems by Shamsur Rahman, Al Mahmud, Nirmalendu Goon, Syed Shamsul Huq and Shaheed Kadri were among the top sellers, said salesmen of Anwesha, Agamee Prakashani, Samay Prakashan, Oitijjhya and others.
Shimul Khan, a salesman of Anyapraskh, said Romantic novels and love poems were on high demand.
Humayun Ahmeds titles also sold well he added.
Ahad Mahmud, who came at the fair with her girl friend, said I gifted her poetry books Premer Kabita of Rafiq Azad and She (girl friend) gifted me (Ahad) a novel of Humayun Ahmed.
We are enjoying the day through browsing at the fair venues as well as our favourite DU campus and actually wait for this special day as it is a day of love he added.
It is a good sign that youth like us are attractive to books as a symbol of gift of the Valentines Day he said.
Though yesterday was a working day, stalls of most of the publishing houses witnessed bumper sale as the place was teeming with book loving youth.
Publisher of Pearl Prokashoni, Ashraf Hossain, said that publication houses of the fair usually witness a good sale in these special days.
We have a good expectation of sale this year he added.
Besides the Dhaka University campus also witnessed a huge number of youths. They were seen gossiping or roaming at the different places of campus area.
Meanwhile, in the afternoon, Bangla Academy held a discussion on Diamond Jubilee of Bangla Academy: Robindra study in Bangladesh, past to present at the main stage on the academy.
With Prof Golam Murshid in the chair, Prof Biswajeet Ghose presented a keynote paper at the discussion while among others, Ramendu Majumder, Prof Korunamoy Goshami and governor of Bangladesh Bank Dr Atiur Rahaman addressed on the occasion.
Meanwhile, cover of 93 books were unveiled on the 14th day of the fair.
