Shimul Yousuf (born 24 March 1957) is a Bangladeshi actress, director, and singer. In 2023, she was awarded the

Ekushey Padak Ekushey Padak () is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of martyrs of the Bengali language movement of 1952. The award is given to recognize contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education, and e ...

, the second highest award for civilians in Bangladesh.

Early life

Yousuf was born in

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 ...

on 24 March 1957 and is the youngest of seven siblings.

Odissi ''Odissi'' (''ଓଡ଼ିଶୀ'') also referred to as ''Orissi'' in old literature, oldest surviving classical dance of India, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temple, temples of Odisha – an eastern ...

dancer Minu Haque is her sister. Her father Mehter Billah from Bikrampur was a singer in Kamlapur. Shimul started singing at the age of five. She performed on radio and television and went on to sing in a children's show named "Kochi Kanchar Mela". She trained in classical and traditional songs from Ustad Helaluddin, P C Gomez,

Altaf Mahmud Altaf Mahmud (23 December 1933 – September 1971) was a musician, cultural activist, and martyred freedom fighter of the Bangladesh Liberation War. He was also a language activist of the Language Movement and composer of " Amar Bhaier Rokte Ra ...

, and Abdul Latif . Shimul completed her Honours in

Social Science Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among members within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the ...

. She was admitted to the Institute of Fine Arts and also went to Baroda School of Fine Arts for schooling.

Career

Yousuf first appeared in theater in one of the Abdullah Al Mamun's plays to raise funds for the freedom fighters in 1972. In 1974 she incorporated her in Dhaka Theatre after her siblings asked to be a proxy for another actress. Shimul began to take acting seriously after her 1975 drama "Muntasir Fantasy". She worked on Kasai (1976), Char Khakra (1977), Shakuntala (1978), Phani Monosa (1980), Kitton Khola (1981), Keramot Mongol (1985), Hat Hadai (1989), and Chaka (1990). During the 1990s she performed in Joiboti Kannyar Mon (1995) and Bono Pangshul (1998).

''Binodini''

One of her works in theater is the drama ''Binodini'', based on a 19th-century actress Binodini Dasi. It is a

one-person show A solo performance, sometimes referred to as a one-man show, one-woman show, or one-person show, features a single person telling a story for an audience, typically for the purpose of entertainment. This type of performance comes in many varieti ...

where Yousuf portrayed the character of Binodini and also delivered the speeches of the remaining characters. The play was written by script writer Saymon Zakaria and directed by Shimul's husband,

Nasiruddin Yousuff Nasiruddin Yousuff is a Bangladeshi stage and film director. He won Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Director for the film ''Guerrilla (2011 film), Guerrilla'' (2011). He was awarded Ekushey Padak by the Government of Bangladesh in 2010 fo ...

. The play mainly perpetuated the life of Binodini Dasi as she struggled to prolong her career in theater. Shimul said that "

he drama He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...

shows the reality, the conflicts and contradiction an actress faces today, has not changed much since Binodini's time. Obviously I am affected by such realities."

Awards

* Munier Choudhury Award (2024) *

(2023) *

Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Costume Design The Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Costume Design () is one of the highest film awards in Bangladesh. Since 2008, the awards have been given in the category of best choreography. The first award winner was Mohammad Shasmsul Islam. No awar ...

(2009) * Bachsas Award for Best Music Director (2009) * Bachsas Award for Best Female Playback Singer (2009) * Anannya Top Ten Awards (2003) * Zakaria Memorial Award (1999) * Diboshri Padak * Lokonatto Padak * Aronno Dipu Padak * Rishi Padak * Rudra Padak * Md. Shahidullah Award * Jahangir Award * Prothom Alo Jorip Award * Women's Day Special Award

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yousuf, Shimul 1957 births Living people Actresses from Dhaka Bangladeshi stage actresses 20th-century Bangladeshi women singers 20th-century Bangladeshi singers Bangladeshi television actresses Bangladeshi film score composers Bangladeshi women songwriters Bangladeshi female dancers Bangladeshi choreographers Bangladeshi costume designers Best Costume Design National Film Award (Bangladesh) winners Best Female Singer Bachsas Award winners Recipients of the Ekushey Padak