Al Mahmud, one of the major poets of modern Bengali literature who died on Friday night, will be laid to rest at his hometown, Brahmanbaria, on Sunday afternoon.
“We’re taking my father’s body to Brahmanbaria. He’ll be buried at a graveyard at Dakkhin Morail there after Zohr prayers on Sunday,” Mahmud’s son Mir Sharif Mahmud told UNB around 5pm on Saturday.
Before the burial, he said the poet’s third and final namaz-e-janaza will be held in Brahmanbaria’s Niaz Mohammad High School field.
Sharif said they had a desire to bury his father either near National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam’s grave or at Martyred Intellectuals Graveyard, Mirpur here. “As we didn’t get permission to fulfill our desire, we’ve decided to bury him at our family graveyard.”
Mir Abdus Shukur Al Mahmud, popularly known as Al Mahmud, one of the seminal writers of Bangla literature, passed away at 11:05 pm on Friday at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of Ibn Sina Hospital in the city’s Dhanmondi area at the age of 82.
His body was taken to Bangla Academy premises on Saturday morning and kept it at Nazrul Mancha for a while enabling people of all walks of life to pay their last tributes to him.
The poet’s first janaza was held on the Jatiya Press Club premises and second one at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque after Zohr prayers.
After the second janaza, his body was taken to his residence at Moghbazar in the city before taking it to Brahmanbaria.
Al Mahmud was hospitalised on February 9 and was being treated under the supervision of Dr Abdul Hye. He had been suffering from multiple old-age complications for a long time.
He was born at Morail village in Brahmanbaria in 1936. He spent his childhood and secondary education days at this village which is located adjacent to Brahmanbaria town.
He is considered as one of the finest Bengali poets to have emerged in the 20th century as his work in Bengali poetry was dominated by his frequent use of regional dialects.
Mahmud is also considered as one of the finest novelists, short story writers and essayists in the country who authored over 50 books in over six decades.
He was shot to fame with his masterpiece poetries ‘Lok Lokantor’ and ‘Sonali Kabin’.
In the 1950s, he was among those Bengali poets who were outspoken in their writing on such subjects as the events of the Bengali Language Movement, nationalism, political and economic repression, and the struggle against the West Pakistani government.
Mahmud started his career as a journalist and obtained widespread recognition after Lok Lokantor was published in 1963.
In 1975, he joined Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy as an assistant director and retired from the academy as its director in 1993.
Al Mahmud was honoured with Ekushey Padak, Bangla Academy Award, and Kabi Jasim Uddin Award in recognition of his contributions to Bengali literature.
