Global literary theorist and postcolonial scholar Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak will revisit the mystic philosophy of Lalon Shah this week as Bangladesh observes the bard’s 135th death anniversary with a three-day ‘Lalon Utshab’.
The festival, jointly organised by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy and the Kushtia district administration, will be held in Kushtia from October 17 to 19, with a parallel event scheduled in Dhaka.
This year’s celebration takes on a distinctly global tone, with Spivak, one of the world’s most influential voices in literary and cultural theory, set to deliver the festival’s keynote ‘Lalon Lecture’ in Kushtia on October 17.
The scholar, who arrived in Dhaka earlier this week, will reflect on Lalon’s enduring message of egalitarianism and spiritual freedom: themes that intersect profoundly with her own lifelong engagement with subaltern identity, ethics and humanism.
Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus announced the festival via his official Facebook page, describing it as a meeting ground for bauls, musicians and devotees to exchange ideas on Lalon’s vision of unity beyond caste, creed and class.
Filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, adviser to the Cultural Affairs Ministry, will serve as the guest of honour at the inauguration ceremony.
The Kushtia events, to be held at Lalon’s shrine in Cheuria, will feature a series of bhaav-geeti sessions, philosophical discussions and performances by noted baul and fakir artists, including TunTun Baul, Sunil Karmakar, Rowshan Fakir and Latif Shah.
Meanwhile, the Dhaka leg of the celebration, taking place at Suhrawardy Udyan on October 18, will showcase performances by Emon Chowdhury and the Bengal Symphony, Lalon Band, Nirab & Bauls, Pothik Nabi, Suchona Shely, Baula Band, Arup Rahi and Samogeet, among others.
Spivak’s participation adds an intellectual dimension to the festival, bridging Lalon’s 19th-century mysticism with contemporary global discourse on inclusion, decoloniality and social justice.
Having recently been honoured with the 2025 Holberg Prize, Spivak continues to merge academia with activism, particularly through her educational initiatives for underprivileged children in rural West Bengal.
