Today, the nation pauses to remember Shahidullah Kaiser, the celebrated journalist, writer and martyred intellectual whose words continue to resonate decades after his disappearance.
Born Abu Nayeem Mohammad Shahidullah in 1927 in Majupur village, Nawabpur Union, Sonagazi Upazila of Feni district, he was the son of Maulana Mohammad Habibullah, a distinguished professor, and Syeda Sufia Khatun. From this modest home emerged a voice that challenged injustice, illuminated truth and etched stories of courage into the nation’s conscience.
Kaiser’s education was marked by brilliance and ambition. He studied at Amirabad BC Laha High School in Sonagazi before enrolling at Presidency College, Calcutta, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Economics with honours. He later began a Master of Arts degree at the University of Calcutta but did not complete it.
It was during this period that he adopted the name Shahidullah Kaiser.
From his student days, Kaiser was deeply involved in political and cultural movements. After 1947, he joined the provincial Communist Party of East Pakistan. In 1949, he began his journalistic career at The Daily Ittefaq in Dhaka.
He took part in the Language Movement in 1952 and was imprisoned for three and a half years. Throughout his life, he faced repeated arrests during political crackdowns, yet he continued his work in journalism, later serving as associate editor of The Sangbad. He dedicated himself to fearless reporting and principled writing.
A prolific author, Kaiser wrote several landmark novels in Bangla literature, including ‘Sareng Bou’, ‘Rajbandir Rojnamacha’, ‘Sangshaptak’ and ‘Peshawar Theke Tashkhand’. His works captured the resilience of the human spirit, the struggle for justice and the quiet courage of ordinary people. Sangshaptak was later adapted for television, bringing his storytelling to a wider audience.
During the Liberation War in 1971, Kaiser supported the freedom fighters by delivering medicine and food to training camps. On 14 December, he was abducted by the Pakistan Army and local collaborators in a systematic campaign targeting Bengali intellectuals. He never returned. His body was never recovered. His brother, the eminent filmmaker Zahir Raihan, also disappeared while searching for him.
During his lifetime, Kaiser received the Adamjee Literary Award and the Bangla Academy Award, among other honours. He was posthumously awarded the Ekushey Padak and the Independence Day Award in recognition of his contribution to literature and journalism.
Shahidullah Kaiser is remembered for his courage, moral clarity and enduring literary legacy. His life stands as a testament to the power of words, truth and human resilience. Today, literary and cultural organisations across the country mark his birth anniversary with readings, discussions and tributes.
