Shahabuddin Nagari

He got married to Dr. Aftabun Nahar Maksuda, an assistant surgeon at Chittagong Medical College and Hospital, in 1983.

The couple has two sons – Rehan Uddin Nagari, born in 1987, and Farhan Uddin Nagari, born in 1991.

Shahabuddin Nagari was born on October 6, 1955, in Shibnagar, Chapai Nawabganj district, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

Due to his father’s transferable job, he attended several schools across Bangladesh and finally completed his schooling from Rajabazar Nazneen High School, Dhaka, in 1972.

In 1974, he passed higher secondary education from Chittagong College and enrolled in a zoology course at Chittagong University. He graduated with a BSc (Honors) degree in 1978 and headed for a Masters program in the Thesis Group.

After submitting his thesis on ‘Rice Field Spiders’, he obtained his Masters degree with a first class in 1980, becoming the first entomologist to research on spiders in Bangladesh.

His interest in literature evolved during childhood, when he used to write rhymes. He was further motivated by his uncle, Abdul Mannan, in his literary pursuits.

At the age of 13, he started contributing regularly to Bangladeshi newspapers – ‘Mukuler Mahfil’ (The Daily Azad) and ‘Kachi Kachar Ashor’ (The Daily Ittefaq), with his first rhyme ‘Ami Kobi’ (I am a Poet) being published in 1969.

Besides writing, he was passionate about music as well, and attended Pakistan Cultural Academy, Dhaka, to learn classical and modern music under M.A. Hamid, Mahmudunnabi, and Mohammad Abdul Jabbar.

He served in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War and resumed his writing career after returning to Chittagong, by submitting his works to the weekly ‘Rajanigandha’. He continued his music classes under Ustad Syed Anwar Mufti.

While at college, he sang at all cultural functions and was later selected as a listed singer on Bangladesh Television, in 1977.

He was highly acclaimed for his story, dialogues, script, and music direction for the 2004 movie ‘Ak Khondo Jomi’, based on his poem of the same name from his book ‘Aguner Ful Fote Thonte’.

He is also known for his two English translated books – an anthology of 86 poems reflecting the Bangla culture ‘Midnight Locomotive and Other Poems’ (2010) and collection of love poems ‘The Black Cat and Other Poems’ (2011).