Afsar says, 'We have been practising neo-ethnic theatre in the theatre lab in the department of Drama and Dramatics for 12 years. A few theatrical groups have also staged neo-ethnic theatre in mainstream theatre in Dhaka based on our concept.'

What is neo-ethnic theatre? Afsar says, 'In the early 1990s, I did some ethnographic research on the ethnic communities in our country such as Marma, Chakma, Hajong and others. At that time I found that the ethnic people have unique myths and fables, which are aesthetically very rich. Some of these performing art forms are in classical mode. However, sometimes even the ethnic people in the urban areas do not stage these art forms. We call these performing art forms as ethnic theatre. Likewise, neo-ethnic theatre is based on the shape of the ethnic theatre in our theatre laboratory.'

Afsar has so far written and directed 14 neo-ethnic plays based on the ethnic theatre of Marma, Chakma, Garo and Hajong communities. These have been staged by the students of the drama department of Jahangirnagar University.

'In my work, I have sometimes created parallel myths to the original ones. Keeping the structure of the art forms unchanged, I have blended modern concepts for better expression,' Afsar adds.

Afsar is now making a documentary serial for ATN Bangla on the decaying cultural heritage of the country. Talking about this latest effort Afsar says, 'The documentary shows vignettes of our decaying culture such as our rural sports, rural marriage, folk songs, performing arts, heritage and archeological monuments.'