A new splash of energy touched the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela yesterday, as many came to the fair in celebration of international mother language day. Huge crowds and long queues of customers created an entirely different aura at the fair.
Publishers who had so far been dissatisfied with the low turnout, which was largely due to the political violence carried out during the hartal and blockade programme by the BNP-led 20-party alliance, were very happy about the turnout this past weekend.
Yesterday, in celebration of our powerful history Ekushey February, many came out to the streets, with the atmosphere a little lighter since the blockade programmes began on January 6. This spirit spread to the fair grounds as well, where many came with their children. Many donned black-and-white coloured clothing, in respect to the martyrs from this day in history.
Although the fair opened at 8am, the crowd gathered from earlier in the morning. Many arrived after paying homage to the martyrs at the Shaheed Minar, which is close to the fair premises.
Despite this year’s book fair being split in two different locations – Bangla Academy premises and Suhrawardy Udyan, the overflow of people left little room in both the locations.
Many were seen in long queues, waiting to enter the venues following security check. The flow of visitors could be traced from Curzon Hall to Shahbagh intersection, from Jagannath Hall to the TSC junction. Furthermore, programmes held to mark the spirit of February 21 in and around Dhaka University added to the festive mode.
Although it has been common to see authors grace the fair grounds with their presence, and get busy signing autographs, a much more different scenario emerged yesterday. Many visitors were seen taking “selfies” with their friends, and many requested to take “selfies” with authors instead of requesting their autographs.
A total of 263 book covers were unveiled yesterday, with the total number of new books this year crossing 3,000.