Cover Story

WHY STUDY LIBERAL ARTS

University degrees are seen as a means to a well-paying job, and courses offered are often designed to cater to the goal of beginning a lucrative career. But is it enough to learn only the specifics of a specialised subject? The need for a more well-rounded education that helps individuals acquire extra skills is satisfied through a liberal arts education. Not only does it provide an edge in the job market, it is crucial to developing a mind that is creative, open and constantly seeking knowledge.

Fayeka Zabeen Siddiqua

A teacher takes a class under a huge banyan tree. Instead of taking down notes, students engage in various activities like excavation and collecting ancient artifacts. This is a typical scene of a liberal arts university, which doesn’t confine students…

Current Affairs

The Flag of Rescue

Shakhawat Liton

HM Ershad has once again proved that he is the most unpredictable person in Bangladesh politics. Last Tuesday, the former military dictator, a day after submitting nomination papers, announced that his party, Jatiya Party would not participate in the upcoming…

Musings

Taking Solace in the Arts

Despite the political violence that has gripped the country, people find a way to escape -attending festivals that celebrate the arts and literature

Upashana Salam

On the third day of the four- day Bengal-ITC SRA Classical Musical Festival, the organisers counted over 31,000 people attending. Photos: Prabir Das Nadia Aslam is not a music connoisseur. When she’s not busy working eight-hours at a bank, the…

Photo Feature

Heavenly Notes and Beats

Bengal Classical Music Festival 2013, organised by Bengal Foundation in collaboration with ITC-Sangeet Research Academy of Kolkata set off on November 28 at Dhaka’s Army Stadium bringing together maestros of Indian classical music and dance at the biggest-ever festival of…

Interview

The Latest Feminist Debate

As a champion of feminist writing and an avid activist of women rights Rosie Boycott continues to challenge the status quo. From basic rights of women to own a car or property, to decriminalisation of cannabis, Boycott has fearlessly fought…

Food for Thought

The Road(s) to Publication

Part I

Farah Ghuznavi

This is the seventh in a series of articles written by Farah Ghuznavi as Writer in Residence at the Commonwealth Writers website, based in the UK. Commonwealth Writers is the cultural initiative from the Commonwealth Foundation, and Farah is their…

Science

‘Sexual Regret’ in Human Survival, Reproduction

In the largest, most in-depth study to date on regret surrounding sexual activity, a team of psychology researchers found a stark contrast in remorse between men and women, potentially shedding light on the evolutionary history of human nature. Researchers for…

Periscope

Bangladesh In Crisis

Ahmede Hussain

A Country’s Charred Hopes It is indeed difficult to tell how many people have been murdered so far in the last few days in incidents where passenger buses, both public and private, are set to fire. What is quite unfathomable…

Star Diary

A Surprising Encounter A couple of days ago, I was going to college by a local bus. After a while, I saw a hermaphrodite get on the bus and sit beside me. At first, I was quite scared as I…

Endeavour

In the World of Animation

Fayza Haq

As one of the creators of the popular animated series ‘Meena’, Mohammed Imam Hussain has little time to ponder on his decision to be an animation artist. He now works at Toonbangla, an animation firm, which began in 2007. He…

Art

The Lure of Fairyland

Ananta Yusuf

Once upon a time it used to be thought that by painting someone’s image a painter stole his or her soul. And in the post modern world, painters do not steal souls but paint it in different forms instead of…

Health

GOT DANDRUFF?

Dandruff is a common chronic scalp condition marked by itching and flaking of the skin on your scalp. Although dandruff isn’t contagious and is rarely serious, it can be embarrassing and sometimes difficult to treat. The good news is that…

Village Flute

In the Brahmaputra’s Realm

Andrew Eagle

In the promise of new land the perennial kans grass, the kashphul, congregates. It’s beauty. See the thin, hearty reed stems in dusty green? Along the banks of the shifting sand shoals including Char Parbhotipur in Kurigram, the kashphul makes…

HOME AND ABROAD

Tempted and Cheated  Dinajpur. All he wanted was to earn some extra money for his family. 25-year old Mehedi Hasan is suffering from physical complications after being duped into selling a lobe of his liver over two years ago. He…

Film

A Movement and Our Future

Md Shahnawaz Khan Chandan

There is a wise saying, “You educate a man, you educate man. You educate a woman, you educate a generation.” “Girl Rising” a feature film by Richard E. Robbins known for Operation Homecoming: Writing a Wartime Experience conveys this very…

BOOK REVIEW

India: A Journey

India: Beyond the Taj and the Raj published by UPL is an account of author Raana Haider's travel across India during a period spanning more than fifty years.

Amitava Kar

A blend of travelogue, history and reportage, India: Beyond the Taj and the Raj by Raana Haider is an attempt to discover India in her rich history and spirituality. A work of such magnitude is bound to be brief about…

1 MINUTE PLEASE!

The popular music band ‘Renaissance’ is incomplete without vocalist and composer Naquib Khan. Born in 1952 in Chittagong, Naquib Khan along with his band brought about a whiff of freshness in the music scene of the country. After moving from…

Picture of the Week

Before Sunset

  People from all walks of life appreciate the beauty of a glorious winter sunset at Hazaribagh.

MAD GENIUS

LANA DEL REY

Lana Del Rey is an American songwriter and singer. Del Rey started writing at the age of 18 and signed her first recording contract when she was 22 years old. Her music journey draws influence from the masters of each…

Chintito

Where Have All those Good Days Gone?

Chintito

Once upon a time a banker did not connive to rob his own bank. Once upon a time a bus was a safe mode of transportation for bringing children to and from school, to ferry family and friends from one…

Our Lady with the Lamp

Roquia Sakhawat Hosen, commonly known as Begum Rokeya, is the vanguard of women’s rights movement in the sub continent. Her guidance and leadership showed the path of freedom and enlightenment for millions of women of this part of the world.…

MAILBOX

Reliving History with Tariq Ali Putting Tariq Ali on the cover the Star has once again proved that it is not just your typical weekend magazine—it deeply cares about presenting the readers with an accurate version of history even if…

Voicebox

“Earlier I promised that I will not take part in the national polls without the participation of all political parties…..I kept my promise. All parties did not come in election. So, I am not taking part in the polls.” HM…

THE WALL

Postscript

Why do they kill us, we never did anything to anyone…

Aasha Mehreen Amin

The words of Geeta Sarkar will keep echoing in our heads every time we step out on the streets. They sum up the helplessness and bewilderment of the ordinary citizen. What did we ever do to deserve this? It is…

THE PHILOSOPHY OF LEARNING