Poets and Speakers

Sajjad Sharif

Sajjad Sharif  - Foto: Goethe-Institut © Munim Wasif
Photo: Goethe-Institut / Munem Wasif
Sajjad Sharif was born in old Dhaka and grew up in its colourful labyrinthine alleys. He has been writing poetry since the early 1980s. He attempted to radicalize the expression of contemporary Bangla poetry with some other fellow poets. He was deeply involved with the avant-garde literary journal Gandiva that reshaped the recent scenario of Bangla poetry. With his first collection of poems, Chhurichikitsa (Knife-Therapy), Sajjad broke some usual norms of Bangla poetry. He loves experimenting with the language and transforming old lyrical style into contemporary idiom.

Sajjad Sharif's poems have been published in different national and international journals. Sajjad Sharif translates poems and writes essays on literary-cultural issues. He has authored, translated and edited several books. Rokto o Oshrur Gatha: Federico Garcia Lorcar Nirbarchito Kobita (Ballad of Blood and Tears: Selected Poems of Federico Garcia Lorca), the collection of his translation of Lorca's poem, including its long insightful preface, was of great acclaim. His jointly edited anthology on contemporary Bangladeshi poems, Bangladesher Nirbachito Kobita (Selected poems of Bangladesh), was published in India. Jekhane Liberty Mane Statue (Where Liberty is Statue) is his collection of essays.

Sajjad Sharif has been engaged in the profession of journalism for almost 26 years. Now he is the Managing Editor of Prothom Alo, the most circulated daily newspaper of Bangladesh.

Poems

কথার ওপারে /
jenseits der rede


উপাখ্যান /
M??r


ছুরিচিকিত্সা /
Messereingriff