Bangladesh woke up to festivities on Wednesday with celebrations of Valentine's Day in a colourful way.
The celebrations intensified further as the day coincided with at least two other major occasions: Pohela Falgun and Saraswati Puja.
The convergence of Pohela Falgun and Valentine's Day, which followed the changes made in the Bengali calendar, led to a harmonious coexistence of traditions, with couples taking part in the celebrations alongside others.
In the last few years, people in Bangladesh have celebrated two days of festivities in February, with the 13th being Pohela Falgun and the 14th marking Valentine’s Day.
The streets and major locations of Dhaka wore a colourful look since Wednesday morning. As the day progressed, so did the celebrations, with the magnitude of the festivities beginning to reach their peak in the afternoon.
A similar festive atmosphere was also reported in other parts of the country, especially in the divisional cities.
Wearing colourful traditional attire, people, especially the young, in large numbers thronged flower shops and outing spots.
Pohela Falgun is the first day of spring in the Bangla month of Falgun, the eleventh month in the Bangla calendar and the first month of the spring season.
Warm sunshine, blooming flowers and chirping birds make spring the king of all the six seasons in Bangladesh.
Keeping pace with the rest of the world, Bangladesh’s people also celebrate Valentine's Day with their beloved ones every year.
Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day, is an ancient Roman tradition which has been celebrated in European countries for ages.
These days it is widely celebrated in Asia, including Bangladesh, due to fast globalization.
After the dryness of winter, new leaves start coming out again on trees and nature adorns the branches with new colorful flowers, such as Red Silk Cotton, Palash and Marigold.
Falgun brings joys and colours both in nature and life. Everything in nature conveys an impression of youthfulness or freshness, as if nature has taken a new birth.
Bakultala of Charukola, the premises of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University, turned into a centre of celebrations in the capital with thousands gathering there in the morning.
Colourful decorations adorned the surroundings, setting the stage for a day filled with music, dance and joyous camaraderie.
The tradition of celebrating Pohela Falgun in Bangladesh started in the Bangla calendar year 1401. Since then, the National Spring Celebration Council has been celebrating Pohela Falgun regularly with jovial cultural festivities at Bakultala of Charukola in the morning.
Pohela Falgun festivities began there with the organization’s event at 7am. It hosted similar festivities in the afternoon on the open stage at Uttara Rabindra Sarani and Bahadur Shah Park in the capital.
Different organizations, including the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy (BSA), institutions and businesses also celebrated this year’s festive February 14 with multiple programs.
The Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy held a special dance recital titled “Bawshanto Nrittyo” in the capital’s Ramna Park at 3:30pm with 225 dance artists. A festive procession was brought out on its premises after that, and the cultural event on the open premises of the academy featured musical performances, recitations, dance recitals and choreography of spring-themed Bangladeshi fashion.
Marking the special day, various restaurants almost everywhere in the country arranged special offers for customers.
In addition, different gift shops registered extra sales with specially discounted prices, offers, and a variety of gift items to make buyers happy.
