The 69th birth anniversary of popular novelist and filmmaker Humayun Ahmed was celebrated at Nuhash Polli of Pirojali village in Sadar upazila with great love and affection.

In the morning, writers, reporters, readers and fans of Humayun placed floral wreaths on the grave of the writer with humble respect, reports the UNB.

The demised author’s wife Meher Afroz Shaon along with her sons Ninith and Nishad placed floral wreaths on his grave around 11:00pm and later cut a cake there to celebrate the birthday.

Meher Afroz Shaon said ‘Soon a museum will be established in Nuhash Polli to accumulate and save all the memories of the great playwright.’  

Humayun was born on November 13, 1948 in Mohanganj of Netrokona district and died on July 19, 2012 at Bellevue Hospital in New York, USA after a long battle with cancer.

His breakthrough was his debut novel Nondito Noroke published in 1972.

He wrote over 200 fiction and non-fiction books, all of which were bestsellers in Bangladesh. Humayun’s writing style is characterised as magic realism.

He won the Bangla Academy Award and the Ekushey Padak award for his contribution to Bengali literature.

In the early 1990s, Ahmed emerged as a filmmaker. He went on to make a total of eight films - each based on his own novels. He received six Bangladesh National Film Awards in different categories for the films Daruchini Dwip, Aguner Poroshmoni and Ghetuputra Komola.

Humayun is often credited with revitalising Bengali literature. His unique storytelling style captures the oral tradition and rhythm at the root of Bangla, bringing to life the stories and aspirations of traditional middle class and rural families.