Can’t remain silent anymore: Kabir Suman
As Bangladesh erupts over the quota reform movement, celebrities from the entertainment industry are voicing their support for the protesters. The movement has even crossed borders, with Indian artists and performers showing solidarity.
Popular vocalist Kabir Suman has called for peace, while artist Kaushik Sarkar has expressed support through his art. Kabir Suman appealed to all parties to cease violence in the ongoing movement. He wrote on Facebook, "I am begging all parties with my hands joined, please stop the violence. I request the Bangladesh government to continue efforts to maintain peace. Your students should not resort to violence."
Suman emphasised his respect for Bangladesh, despite being an Indian citizen. "I have no right to meddle in its internal affairs, and I don't want to do so. But how can I forget the love I received from the people in Bangladesh? Why should I forget?" he wrote.
Referencing a video of Dhaka University students marching to the background of Nazrul’s famous song ‘Karar Oi Louha Kapat,’ Suman noted, "It seems the song was later attached to the video and they did it rightly. On many occasions, I have seen Dhaka University students use my lyrics on their graffiti. Nothing alike I saw in West Bengal. Without any hesitation, I can say deep in my mind I, too, am a Bangladeshi."
Suman expressed his inability to stay silent any longer amid the ongoing violence. "I cannot sit silent anymore in the current situation of Bangladesh. I stayed silent for a few days but can't continue it anymore. But I don't know exactly what the situation is there, why it happened and is happening, or who are involved in it. This septuagenarian Bangla-speaking person is requesting all with his hands joined – Please, stop violence!”
He lamented not being able to be in Dhaka in person. “If I could do that, I would take to the street and call on all quarters to establish peace,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, artist Kaushik Sarkar has drawn several sketches depicting events of the students’ uprising. His sketch of Abu Sayeed, a slain student from Begum Rokeya University, has gone viral on social media, resonating with many and amplifying the call for justice and peace.
