"I had to return from Delhi in 1943 without visiting the Taj Mahal. Thinking that I cannot make the same mistake again, I made a decision to hire a tanga (horse cart) at the end of the convention to head towards the Taj Mahal."
The extract above is from the draft of the seventh volume of the graphic novel "Mujib". When the draft reached Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, she altered its mood and language.
"I had to return from Delhi in 1943 without visiting the Taj Mahal. Thinking that I cannot make the same mistake again, I went to Agra from my hotel," rewrote Hasina with red ink.
"The moon appeared out of darkness and we started for Kolkata." That was the last line of the page. Hasina struck off the entire sentence and drafted a new line: "We came back to Kolkata."The prime minister has been editing the publication and suggesting changes, if necessary.
After publishing an unfinished autobiography of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, his grandson Radwan Mujib Siddiq took an initiative to transform it into a graphic novel in an attempt to present the eventful life of the independence leader to the younger generation in an attractive manner.
Although graphic novels based on the lives of famous people, including politicians, are published in various countries, this is the first time such an initiative has been taken in Bangladesh. The first volume of Mujib was published on Mar 17, 2015. The Awami League's
Centre for Research and Information, or CRI, has been publishing the novel based on the autobiography of Bangabandhu."It was Radwan Mujib Siddiq who generated the idea for such a publication. We held a discussion with the prime minister over it. She decided the title of the book," CRI Executive Director Sabbir Bin Shams told bdnews24.com.
The seventh volume of the novel is about to be published, CRI trustee Radwan wrote on Facebook. Every minute mistake and distortion was picked up by Hasina because of her "strong sense of history", Siddiq wrote as he highlighted her role in publishing the novel.So far, six volumes of Mujib have been published in Bangla, three in English and two in Japanese. Mujib will be published in a total of 10 parts.
Sabbir said: "Sheikh Hasina looks into how Bangabandhu will be illustrated in the novel. She scrutinizes every step -- from the choice of words, dialogues and spelling to pictures and style of narrative."The drawing, placement of dialogues and editing of the novel are being carried out in three layers, said Sabbir.
"The stories were sent out long ago. We provide a draft for each volume. Then Hasina's suggestions are taken into account and a new draft is made and resent. We arrange for the publication after her final approval."
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