''Chitrali'' (

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

:''চিত্রালী'') was a

-language

film magazine Film periodicals combine discussion of individual films, genres and directors with in-depth considerations of the medium and the conditions of its production and reception. Their articles contrast with film reviewing in newspapers and magazines whi ...

. Its publisher was the Observer House. It was a weekly magazine that was published every Friday. The magazine was very popular. Syed Mohammad Parvez was editor and

Syed Shamsul Haque Syed Shamsul Haq (27 December 1935 – 27 September 2016) was a Bangladeshi writer. He was awarded Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1966 (the youngest among all to receive it), Ekushey Padak in 1984 and Independence Day Award in 2000 by the Gov ...

was the co-editor of the magazine at the time of establishment. Currently this is a defunct weekly.

History

''Chitrali'' was established in 1953 in

East Bengal East Bengal (; ''Purbô Bangla/Purbôbongo'') was the eastern province of the Dominion of Pakistan, which covered the territory of modern-day Bangladesh. It consisted of the eastern portion of the Bengal region, and existed from 1947 until 195 ...

, Pakistan by journalist Syed Mohammad Parvez. Later Co-editor

Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury (28 December 1947 – 6 March 2013) was a Bangladeshi film journalist, screenwriter and lyricist. He won the Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Screenplay for the film ''Jadur Banshi'' (1977). Besides, he won Bachsas A ...

institutionalized the magazine. Its office was in the Co-operative Book Society Building next to

Bahadur Shah Park Bahadur Shah Park (), formerly known as Victoria Park, is a historically significant urban park located in Old Dhaka, Bangladesh. Developed in the 19th century, it commemorates the soldiers who died during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against Bri ...

in Dhaka. It was printed in the form of 'Broadsheet'. Chitrali's publishing rights were sold to the Observer House in 1959 due to losses incurred in producing the film '' Matir Pahar'' by the editor. After the independence of Bangladesh in 1971, Chitrali was taken over by the government of the country. It was a literature, culture and film based magazine. It had popularity in the region from 1960s to 1970s. It published film performers related news, their rumors, film related news, articles from columnists etc. In 2004, according to Ramen Bhowmik, then senior editor of the weekly Chitrali, the magazine had a circulation of 115,000 to 120,000 copies in the years following 1971, which was then rare. Chitrali's readers' organization was formed. It was called "Chipachas". The magazine was at the top in the seventies. In the late 1980's, the magazine was defunct after a long period of hard work under pressure from other magazines and the dispute between owner and workers at the Observer House.

Asaduzzaman Noor Asaduzzaman Noor (born 31 October 1946) is a Bangladeshi actor, politician and activist. He was a Jatiya Sangsad member representing the Nilphamari-2 constituency during 2001–2024 and served as the Ministry of Cultural Affairs (Bangladesh), c ...

and

Mahfuz Ahmed Mahfuz Ahmed (born 23 October 1967) is a Bangladeshi television and film actor. He is also a television presenter, model and television producer. He won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Actor twice for his roles in ''Laal Sobuj'' (2005) an ...

have worked in this magazine.

History

References

Further reading