This attack is a sad opening to a new chapter in BD: Farooki

Dhaka-based critically acclaimed Bangladeshi director Mostafa Sarwar Farooki has described the terrorist attack as a ‘sad opening to a new chapter!’

Speaking from Dhaka, Farooki, who recently shot with Irrfan for ‘No Bed of Roses’ that was co-produced by the actor and Himanshu Dhanuka, said, ‘We are fine here but Bangladesh isn’t.

The place where the attacks happened is very popular. This is not far from where I live. In fact, I have been on the road outside the safe just a couple of hours before the incident.’

Farooki himself isn’t fond of the food that Holey Artisan Bakery serves. ‘A couple of months back, I had gone to pick up my Italian friend who was having lunch there with the Swiss ambassador. On Friday evening, my assistant director and I were roaming around Road 74, 79 and Avenue Road in search of a restaurant. We had shortlisted a few restaurants. Holey Artisan Bakery was one of them. Since I am not fond of the food there, we didn’t do. We actually couldn’t make up our mind on any of the restaurants. So, we dropped the idea, went on a drive and finally returned to our office. After a couple of hours, this incident happened,’ he said.

On being asked if he felt the regular killings in Bangladesh is making the nation as vulnerable as Afghanistan, he said, ‘The situation is much more complex here. It is not a black and white situation like Afghanistan.Bangladeshi people, in general, are very moderate. We have traditionally been an inclusive society. So it’s not easy for the militants to find popular sympathy here. But the direction is definitely towards a bad end. What has made the recruitment process so easy for terrorists? It’s time to think what we have done to change this otherwise tolerant society into a hotbed for hatred towards the ‘others’!’

The situation is very grave, he said. ‘Whatever be the cause, the point is that the situation has actually gone out of control. Time has come for India to think whether or not their strategy in Bangladesh is giving the right result!’

Farooki, however, refrained from commenting on the recent controversy surrounding Irrfan’s comment on Qurbani.