Entertainment

Film star Razzak passes away

Bangladesh legendary actor Abdur Razzak passed away at a hospital in Dhaka on Monday evening (Inna…Rejeun).He was taken to United Hospital in critical condition this afternoon and he breathed his last there around 6pm, said Bangladesh Film Directors Association’s Seretary General Badiul Alam Khokan.Abdur Razzak was born on January 23 in 1942 at Nagtola in Taliganj of Kolkata in West Bengal. During his adolescence, he participated in theatre productions in Kolkata. While studying at a college in Kolkata, he made his first film appearance in “Ratan Lal Bangali”.Aiming to become a film star, Razzak went to study film in Filmalaya in Mumbai, India in 1961. Returning from Mumbai, he performed in two movies in Kolkata, “Pankotilak” and “Shilalipi”. However, the Hindu-Muslim riot which broke out in 1964 forced Razzak and his family to migrate to Dhaka.After migrating to East Pakistan, Razzak found the path to stardom was not easy. Initially, he acted in TV plays. He became a favourite of the viewers of Pakistani television, acting in the series Ghoroa.However, he remained focused on his dream of becoming a ‘film star’. A pioneering filmmaker in Bangladesh, Abdul Jabbar Khan, helped Razzak to join Iqbal Films Limited. Razzak was the assistant to the director Kamal Ahmed in the movie Ujala.Razzak’s first big break in cinema came with his role in Zahir Raihan’s Behula (1966). He acted in other movies like Neel Akasher Nichey, Maynamati, Moner Moto Bou, Swaralipi, Osru Diye Likha, Jibon Theke Neya, and Obujh Mon.He acted in leading roles with many prominent actors, including Anwar Hossain, Bulbul Ahmed, Sohel Rana, Ilias Kanchan, Shuchanda, Shabana, Bobita, Kabori, Sujata, Shabnam and others. He appeared in a number of films opposite actress Shabana.He went on to make more than 300 appearances in Bengali and Urdu movies. He also directed around sixteen movies.He is referred to as Nayak Raj Razzak, a title given by Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury, editor of Chitrali.  He was given the Independence Day Award in 2015 by the Government of Bangladesh and was a UNFPA goodwill ambassador.