Tahmima Anam

Tahmima Anam (Bengali: তাহমিমা আনাম; born 8 October 1975) is a British Bangladeshi writer, novelist and columnist. Her first novel, A Golden Age, was published by John Murray in 2007 and was the Best First Book winner of the 2008 Commonwealth Writers' Prize. In 2013 she was included in the Granta list of one of the best young writers. Her follow-up novel The Good Muslim was nominated for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize.

Anam's father Mahfuz Anam was a freedom fighter in Bangladesh Liberation War. Her mother Shaheen and grandfather Abul Mansur Ahmed, a writer and activist, too had been deeply involved in the war.

Anam was born in 8 October 1975 in Dhaka, Bangladesh, four year after the country's independence. She remain there until her age was two. Then the family moved to Paris, New York and Thailand due to her father’s job with UNESCO. During her childhood her parent had made her introduce to Bengali culture. They used to speak Bangla at home and spoke often about the war and what it mean to theaily Star, largest circulating English-language newspaper in Bangladesh.

At the age of 17, she won a scholarship for Mount Holyoke College. She graduated from there in 1997.

She earned a PhD in Anthropology from Harvard University in 2005, for her thesis "Fixing the Past: War, Violence, and Habitations of Memory in Post-Independence Bangladesh." In 2005.

Later, she completed her MA in Creative Writing at Royal Holloway, University of London.

In March 2007, Anam's first novel was published by John Murray. She picked the Bangladesh Liberation War as her first subject to write the novel A Golden Age. Anam was inspired by her parents who were freedom fighters during the war.^[11] Tahmima also researched the war which covered the ceMatir Moina (The Clay Bird) which reflects the happenings during that war.

ntral part of her post graduation. For the benefit of her research, she stayed in Bangladesh for two years and interviewed hundreds of war fighters. She also worked on the set of Tareque and Catherine Masud's critically acclaimed film

In 2011, her second novel The Good Muslim a sequel to A Golden Age was published. It was nominated for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize longlist.

In 2015, Her stort-story Garments was published. The story has been inspired from Rana plaza building collapse. It won O. Henry Award and also been shortlisted for BBC National Short Story Award. At the same year, she became a judge for The Man Booker International Prize 2016.

In 2016, her novel The Bones of Grace published under Harper Collins.

In 2017, she was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Anam's op-ed column has published in New York Times, The Guardian and in New Statesman. In her column, Anam has written about Bangladesh and its growing problem.

Anam's first husband was a Bangladeshi marketing executive. In 2010, Anam married an American inventor, Roland O. Lamb, whom she met at Harvard University.The couple have a son, named Rumi.She has resided in Kilburn, London for the last decade.

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Muhammed Zafar Iqbal

Muhammed Zafar Iqbal (Bengali: মুহম্মদ জাফর ইকবাল; born 23 December 1952) is a Bangladeshi author of science fiction and Children's literature He is a professor of computer science and engineering at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology. He is also head of the department of electrical and electronic engineering at that university.

Zafar Iqbal was born on 23 December 1952 in Sylhet. His father, Faizur Rahman Ahmed, was a police officer.His mother is Ayesha Akhter Khatun. In his childhood, he traveled various parts of Bangladesh. This was because of his father's transferring jobs. Iqbal was encouraged to write by his father in early life. Iqbal passed Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exam from Bogra Zilla School in 1968 and Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSC) exam from Dhaka College in 1970. He earned his BSc in physics from the University of Dhaka in 1976. In the same year Iqbal went to University of Washington to obtain his PhD which he earned in 1982.

He married Yasmeen Haque in 1978. She is currently the Dean of the Life Science Department and Head of the department of Physics at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST). They have a son, Nabil, and a daughter, Yeshim. Iqbal's elder brother, Humayun Ahmed, was a writer and filmmaker. His younger brother, Ahsan Habib, is the editor of the satirical magazine, Unmad (Mad) and a cartoonist.

After obtaining his PhD degree, Iqbal worked as a post-doctoral researcher at California Institute of Technology (Caltech). This was from 1983 to 1988. He then joined Bell Communications Research (Bellcore) as a research scientist. He left the institute in 1994. Upon returning to Bangladesh he joined the faculty of the Computer Science and Engineering department at SUST. Later he became the head of the Electrical and Electronic Engineering department (EEE).He also serves as the Director of BTCL and Vice President of Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad committee.Iqbal played a leading role in founding Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad. He popularized mathematics among Bangladeshi youths at local and international level. In 2011 he won Rotary SEED Award (Science, Education and Economic Development) for his contribution in the field of education.

Iqbal started writing stories from a very early age. He wrote his first short story at the age of seven.^[While studying in Dhaka University Iqbal's story Copotronik Bhalobasa was published in a local magazine. Later he rewrote the story and published it as collection of stories titled Copotronik Sukh Dukho.Iqbal is one of the first writers of science fiction in the Bengali language. He mainly writes for younger readers. He is best known for his novels for youngsters. He also wrote several articles on physics and mathematics. He is regularly a Columnist for mainstream newspapers.

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Maqsudul Alam

Maqsudul Alam is a Bangladeshi American Scientist and Professor. Dr. Maqsudul Alam achieved Three milestones in genomics - sequencing the genomes of Papaya, Rubber plants and Jute. Dr. Maqsudul Alam is a professor of the University of Hawaii at Manoa and a member of advisory board at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology.
Education
?    M.S. Microbiology in 1979 from Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.
?    Ph.D. Microbiology in 1982 from Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia.
?    Ph.D. Biochemistry in 1987 from Max-Planck-Institute of Biochemistry, Germany
Professional Positions
?    10/03-present Director, Advanced Studies in Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics, College of Natural Sciences, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai?i
?    07/01-present Professor, Department of Microbiology, University of Hawai?i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai?i
?    08/97-06/01 Associate Professor, Department of Microbiology, University of Hawai?i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai?i
?    08/92-07/97 Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology, University of Hawai?i at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawai?i
?    03/90-07/92 Visiting Scientist, Department of Bioch

emistry and Biophysics, Washington State University, Pullman, WA
?    03/88-02/90 Senior Research Scientist, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
?    1988-1989 Visiting Scientist, German Research Foundation, Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
?    1987-1988 Assistant Scientist, Max-Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Munich, Germany
?    1986-1987 Alexander von-Humboldts Fellow, Max-Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Munich, Germany
?    12/84-03/86 Research Associate, Biochemistry/Biophysics Program, Washington State University, Pullman, WA
Awards
? University of Hawai?i, Board of Regents' Excellence of Research Award, 2001
? NIH Shannon Award, 1997
? Humboldt Research Fellow, German Science Foundation, 1987

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Abdul Gaffar Choudhury

Abdul Gaffar Choudhury (Bengali: আবদুল গাফফার চৌধুরী; born 12 December 1934) is a Bangladeshi-born British writer, journalist, columnist, political analyst and poet. He is perhaps best known for writing the lyrics to "Amar Bhaier Rôkte Rangano" which is the most widely celebrated song commemorating the Bengali Language Movement.

Choudhury was born Ulania, Mehendiganj, Barisal Division, Bengal Presidency (now Bangladesh), British India.^[1] He graduated from Dhaka University in 1959 and came to England on 5 October 1974.^[2][3]

Choudhury's father, Hazi Wahed Reza Choudhury, was a landlord and freedom fighter of British India. He was the president of Barisal District Congress and a member of the All India Congress Working Committee. His father was imprisoned in 1942 August Movement. He served as secretary to Motilal Nehru. Zohra Khatun was Choudhury's mother.^[2][3]

They are three brothers and five sisters, Ali Reza Choudhury (Mehdi) his younger brother, Hossain reja Choudhury his elder brother. His sisters name is; Manik bibi choudhury, Laili Khatun choudhury, Saleha Khatun choudhury, Masuma Begum choudhury and his younger sister name Fazilatun Nesa Choudhury.

Before moving to the United Kingdom, Choudhury worked as a journalist in different national newspapers in Dhaka. During the 1971 Bangladeshi Liberation War, he worked for Joy Bangla, Jugantar and Anandabazar Patrika.

He is perhaps best known for writing the lyrics to Amar Bhaier Rokte Rangano which is recognised as the most influential song of Bengali Language Movement and was initially set to music by him. Later, however, Altaf Mahmud's composed music and adapted the song. It has been regarded by listeners of BBC Bengali Service as the third best song in Bengali.

In the UK, Choudhury founded the newspaper Notun Din. He has written 35 five books. He lives in London from where he regularly writes columns in national Bangladeshi dailies, in Bengali newspapers of Bangladeshi community and in a daily paper in Kolkata.

Some of his notable works are "Dan Pithe Shawkat", "Chandrodwiper Upakhyan", "Nam Na Jana Bhore", "Nil Jamuna", "Shesh Rajanir Chand", "Polashi Thekey Dhanmondi", "Bastobotar Nirikhey" and others.

Choudhury has produced a film on the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called Polashi theke Dhanmond. It was reported in 2008, that he was due to produce the film The Poet of Politics about the life of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Choudhury came to the United Kingdom for the treatment of his wife and could not return to Bangladesh for 22 years after the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. On 18 December 2012, Choudhury's wife Selima Choudhury died in London. They had one son and four daughters. Their son, Anupam, works for Reuters, and their four daughters are Tanima, Chinmoyee, Binita and Indira.

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