Ekushey Boi Mela: A Sanctuary with Guardrails

Topic: Literature, free expression, and self-censorship at the national book fair.

The Ekushey Boi Mela at Bangla Academy is the cultural highlight of the year. For a month, thousands gather among stacks of new publications, poetry books, and essays. It feels like a celebration of the intellect.

Yet, for freethinking writers and publishers, a shadow hangs over the stalls. Publishers carefully scan manuscripts, removing paragraphs that might provoke extremist backlashes or police raids. When books are routinely banned or stalls shut down to appease fundamentalist demands, the spirit of February 21st a day born out of resisting intellectual suppression is compromised. We need a Boi Mela where ideas are met with better ideas, not with locks and security threats.