Chobi Mela
Encyclopedia
'Chobi Mela' is a biennial international festival of photography
held in Dhaka
, Bangladesh
. It is the largest festival of photography held in Asia
. Chobi Mela VI will be held from the 21st January to 3rd February 2011. The theme is "Dreams
." http://www.chobimela.org The key organisers are Drik Picture Library Ltd. and Pathshala
(The South Asian Institute of Photography). Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam
is the director of Chobi Mela.
Chobi Mela is considered to have the most diverse participation of any such exhibition in the world. While most major festivals are situated in the West
or are organised by Europe
an organisations, Chobi Mela is unique in having been developed and launched in South Asia and has now gained respectability through the variety and quality of the work exhibited. Chobi Mela V featured 63 exhibitions from 33 participating countries, spanning all continents of the globe.
The outreach programme consisted of mobile exhibitions which went to schools, playgrounds, market places. The exhibitions were accompanied by community liaison staff who explained the context of the show to viewers. Visits to the exhibition by school children and guided tours by curators were also arranged. An exhibition on the plight of Bangladeshi Jute
workers was shown on the walls of the courtyard of "Kalpana Boarding" a low cost motel in Old Dhaka. These programmes have been extremely successful and the model has been replicated in far flung countries, such as Bolivia
, Mongolia
, Sri Lanka
and Tanzania
.
The opening of Chobi Mela V was on 30 January 2009 at the Bangladesh National Museum
where the opening was through a show on Nelson Mandela
and a remarkable video conference between Mahasweta Devi
and Noam Chomsky
talking about the festival theme "Freedom". The video conference was moderated by Shahidul Alam.
Chobi Mela IV International festival of photography http://universes-in-universe.org/eng/nafas/articles/2006/chobi_mela_iv http://www.thedailystar.net/magazine/2006/11/03/cover.htm was held in Bangladesh from 9 November to 30 November 2006. The theme was "Boundaries". With more than a thousand images, it was one of the largest photographic festivals in Asia
. There were 49 exhibitions containing works by photographers from 23 countries. The show opened with a spectacular exhibition by Contact Press Images showing iconic images taken over the last thirty years. http://contactpressimages.com/news/?p=30. Held at a time when the country was at the brink of a civil war, this remarkable festival took place when most events in Bangladesh were being called off. http://www.newagebd.com/slate/2006/dec/05.html. Two major photographers Rashid Talukder of Bangladesh and Peter Magubane of South Africa were recognised with lifetime achievement awards. The awards are given as recognition to photographers who have made outstanding contribution to the field of photography.]
Chobi Mela III was held in Dhaka in 2004. http://www.bangladeshgateway.org/event.php?eventID=34 The theme was "Resistance". http://universes-in-universe.org/eng/nafas/articles/2004/chobi_mela_iii
A selection of twelve exhibitions from Chobi Mela V was shown in Kathmandu as a 'mini Chobi Mela V' from the 22nd May 2009. 'Mini Chobi Mela V' is being organised by 'Photo Circle' in Kathmandu http://photocircle.com.np/.
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
held in Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. It is the largest festival of photography held in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. Chobi Mela VI will be held from the 21st January to 3rd February 2011. The theme is "Dreams
Dream
Dreams are successions of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. The content and purpose of dreams are not definitively understood, though they have been a topic of scientific speculation, philosophical intrigue and religious...
." http://www.chobimela.org The key organisers are Drik Picture Library Ltd. and Pathshala
Pathshala
Pathshala, the South Asian Institute Media Academy was originally set up in 1998 by the Bangladesh photographer, writer and activist Shahidul Alam , as "Pathshala South Asian Institute of Photography". The school was phenomenally successful despite its limited infrastructure...
(The South Asian Institute of Photography). Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam
Shahidul Alam
' was born in 1955 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He studied and taught chemistry in London where he obtained a PhD from the University of London.He started photography in 1980 and was awarded the by the London Arts Council in 1983...
is the director of Chobi Mela.
Chobi Mela is considered to have the most diverse participation of any such exhibition in the world. While most major festivals are situated in the West
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
or are organised by Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an organisations, Chobi Mela is unique in having been developed and launched in South Asia and has now gained respectability through the variety and quality of the work exhibited. Chobi Mela V featured 63 exhibitions from 33 participating countries, spanning all continents of the globe.
The outreach programme consisted of mobile exhibitions which went to schools, playgrounds, market places. The exhibitions were accompanied by community liaison staff who explained the context of the show to viewers. Visits to the exhibition by school children and guided tours by curators were also arranged. An exhibition on the plight of Bangladeshi Jute
Jute
Jute is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fibre that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from plants in the genus Corchorus, which has been classified in the family Tiliaceae, or more recently in Malvaceae....
workers was shown on the walls of the courtyard of "Kalpana Boarding" a low cost motel in Old Dhaka. These programmes have been extremely successful and the model has been replicated in far flung countries, such as Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
and Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
.
The opening of Chobi Mela V was on 30 January 2009 at the Bangladesh National Museum
Bangladesh National Museum
The Bangladesh National Museum , originally established on 20 March 1913, albeit under another name, and formally inaugurated on 7 August 1913, was accorded the status of the national museum of Bangladesh on 17 November 1983. It is located Shahbag, Dhaka...
where the opening was through a show on Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
and a remarkable video conference between Mahasweta Devi
Mahasweta Devi
Mahasweta Devi is an Indian social activist and writer.- Biography :Mahasweta Devi was born in 1926 in Dhaka, to literary parents in a Hindu Brahmin family. Her father Manish Ghatak was a well known poet and novelist of the Kallol era, who used the pseudonym Jubanashwa...
and Noam Chomsky
Noam Chomsky
Avram Noam Chomsky is an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and activist. He is an Institute Professor and Professor in the Department of Linguistics & Philosophy at MIT, where he has worked for over 50 years. Chomsky has been described as the "father of modern linguistics" and...
talking about the festival theme "Freedom". The video conference was moderated by Shahidul Alam.
Chobi Mela IV International festival of photography http://universes-in-universe.org/eng/nafas/articles/2006/chobi_mela_iv http://www.thedailystar.net/magazine/2006/11/03/cover.htm was held in Bangladesh from 9 November to 30 November 2006. The theme was "Boundaries". With more than a thousand images, it was one of the largest photographic festivals in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
. There were 49 exhibitions containing works by photographers from 23 countries. The show opened with a spectacular exhibition by Contact Press Images showing iconic images taken over the last thirty years. http://contactpressimages.com/news/?p=30. Held at a time when the country was at the brink of a civil war, this remarkable festival took place when most events in Bangladesh were being called off. http://www.newagebd.com/slate/2006/dec/05.html. Two major photographers Rashid Talukder of Bangladesh and Peter Magubane of South Africa were recognised with lifetime achievement awards. The awards are given as recognition to photographers who have made outstanding contribution to the field of photography.]
Chobi Mela III was held in Dhaka in 2004. http://www.bangladeshgateway.org/event.php?eventID=34 The theme was "Resistance". http://universes-in-universe.org/eng/nafas/articles/2004/chobi_mela_iii
A selection of twelve exhibitions from Chobi Mela V was shown in Kathmandu as a 'mini Chobi Mela V' from the 22nd May 2009. 'Mini Chobi Mela V' is being organised by 'Photo Circle' in Kathmandu http://photocircle.com.np/.
External links
- Official website
- http://www.bangladeshshowbiz.com/press/chobi_mela.htm
- http://thechobimelafiles.blogspot.com/
- http://www.ventsdest.net/french/inprint.htm
- http://www.bangladesh.embassy.gov.au/daca/magnumph.html