Mostofa Sarwar Farooki () is a

Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( ) are the citizens and nationals of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centred on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the Bay of Bengal, eponymous bay. Bangladeshi nationality law, Bangladeshi citizenship was fo ...

film director, producer and screenwriter who works in Bengali films. His films '' Third Person Singular Number'', ''Television'', ''No Bed Of Roses'' were critically acclaimed across the world and received numerous international and national awards. On November 10, 2024, he was appointed as the

Adviser An adviser or advisor is normally a person with more and deeper knowledge in a specific area and usually also includes persons with cross-functional and multidisciplinary expertise. An adviser's role is that of a mentor or guide and differs catego ...

to the Ministry of Cultural Affairs in the Interim government of Bangladesh.

Early life

Farooki was born 2 May 1973 in the Nakhalpara neighborhood of

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

, Bangladesh. He attended Tejgaon Government Boys' High School.

Career

Farooki has set a new trend in terms of presentation and direction in the early 2000. His debut film was '' Bachelor'' (2003) starring

Humayun Faridi Humayun Kamrul Islam, better known as Humayun Faridi (; 29 May 1952 – 13 February 2012) was a Bangladeshi actor. He worked in television dramas, movies and theatre plays. He won the Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Actor for his lead ...

, Aupee Karim, Ferdous Ahmed,

Shabnur Kazi Sharmin Nahid Nupur (born 17 December), known by her stage name Shabnur, is a Bangladeshi film actress. She won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Actress for her role in the film '' Dui Noyoner Alo'' (2005). Background Kazi Sharmin ...

and many others. Then his second film, a political satire ''Made In Bangladesh'' (2007) starring Zahid Hasan, Tariq Anam Khan, Shahiduzzaman Selim and others. His third film '' Third Person Singular Number'' starring Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Topu, Mosharraf Karim was premiered in Busan International Film Festival (2009). It had its European premier in

International Film Festival Rotterdam International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, focused on independent and experimental films. The inaugural festival took place in June 1972, ...

, It was also in the official competition 2009 Middle East International Film Festival. After that he made a short film named ''Ok Cut.'' His fourth feature ''

Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

'' (2012) starring Chanchal Chowdhury, Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Mosharraf Karim and Kazi Shahir Huda Rumi was the closing film of Busan International Film Festival and won the APSA Grand Jury Prize in 2013, as well as a further five international awards from Dubai, Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival, Rome's Asiatica Film Mediale, and

Kolkata International Film Festival The Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) is an annual film festival held in Kolkata, India. Founded in 1995, it is the third oldest international film festival in India. The festival is organized by the West Bengal Film Centre under the W ...

. His fifth feature film '' Ant Story'' starring Sheena Chohan and Noor Imran Mithu was nominated for the Golden Goblet Awards and the Dubai International Film Festival's Muhr AsiaAfrica Awards. In 2014 it was also in competition for APSA and both the Singapore and Kerala International Film Festivals. He finished his sixth feature film '' Doob: No Bed of Roses'' starring international star Irrfan Khan, Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Parno Mittra, Rokeya Prachy and others. It was an official project of Film Bazar India 2013. It won Dubai Film Market Award and Kommersant Jury Prize at

Moscow International Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (, Transliteration, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is a film festival first held in Moscow in 1935 and became regular since 1959. From its inception to ...

2017. He is all set to release his upcoming ambitious project, a one-shot film, ''Saturday Afternoon'' starring Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Parambrata Chatterjee, Zahid Hasan, Eyad Hourani, Mamunur Rashid, a Bangladesh-Germany-Russia co-production inspired by the Dhaka terror attack incident of 1 July 2016 at the Holey Artisan Bakery, Gulshan. The film had its world premiere at the main competition section of 41st

2019 and won the Russian Federation of Film Critics Jury Prize and Komersant Prize. It is the first of three films of his identity trilogy, the second one being ''No Land's Man'' starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and the third, ''Memoria'' will be based on the Rohingya refugees''.'' Farooki was appointed as an international jury of

Asia Pacific Screen Awards The Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) is an international cultural initiative overseen by the Asia Pacific Screen Academy and headquartered in Australia, sometimes called "Asia-Pacific Oscars". In order to realise UNESCO's goals of promoting a ...

2015, Busan International Film Festival 2017 and

2017 and Dhaka International Film Festival 2020. He was also an invited guest and speaker at many other prestigious film festivals. In 2019, he received the Fazlul Haq Memorial Award 2018 and was also honoured by '' Kaler Kantho'' newspaper on their anniversary. Farooki also makes commercials for local and international brands like Djuice, Citycell, Banglalink, Ekhanei.com, Crown Cement, Grameenphone,

Close-Up A close-up or closeup in filmmaking, television production A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, s ...

, Robi etc. His most popular commercial was for Meril Soap bar starring Tisha.

In ministerial role

Farooki was appointed an

adviser An adviser or advisor is normally a person with more and deeper knowledge in a specific area and usually also includes persons with cross-functional and multidisciplinary expertise. An adviser's role is that of a mentor or guide and differs catego ...

to the interim government of Bangladesh on 10 November 2024. He is responsible for the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. Protests took place in various parts of the country, including Dhaka University and Jahangirnagar University, following his appointment as an Adviser, due to perceptions of his close ties to the Sheikh Hasina administration.

Cinematic style

Farooki's body of work address such themes as middle class angst, urban youth romance, deception-hypocrisy and frailty of individual, frustration about the confines of one's culture and conservative Muslim concepts of guilt and redemption. Brisbane's

says of his work, "His films often deal with the way individuals free themselves from the limitations placed on them by their identity, economic circumstances and belief systems. To counter the deprivation they face in real life, his characters often seem to create a fantasy world around them, lending elements of magical realism to Farooki's signature style." "Mostofa Sarwar Farooki could be the next South-east Asian filmmaker to break out",

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

wrote in the review of his film ''Television''. '' Variety''s Jay Weissberg wrote. "Mostofa Sarwar Farooki is a key exemplar of Bangladeshi new wave cinema movement".

Personal life

Farooki is married to the actress Nusrat Imrose Tisha since 16 July 2010. Together they have a daughter.

Filmography

Television

Web content

Chabial

Farooki is the founder of ''Chabial'', a film makers club. This group of young film makers used to be Farooki's assistant directors. They then used local cable television networks as a platform to master their hands in story telling and created an audience for the stories they tell. Their works have managed to connect primarily with the youth in urban and suburban parts of the Bangladeshi society for the realism in story topics and realism in execution.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farooki, Mostofa Sarwar Living people 1973 births People from Dhaka Bangladeshi film directors Bangladeshi television directors Bangladeshi male writers Best Film Directing Meril-Prothom Alo Critics Choice Award winners Yunus interim government advisors