Bashundhara public school art competition awards 143 students
The prize-giving ceremony of the Bashundhara Public School and College Art Competition 2025, the country's largest school-level art contest, was held on Saturday at International Convention City Bashundhara.
The mega competition was held on 12 December last year, drawing unprecedented participation from students across the country.
Organised under the theme "The Liberation War of 1971 and the July Mass Uprising", the competition saw 5,871 students take part. A jury board comprising renowned artists selected 143 winners from among the participants.
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According to the authorities of Bashundhara Public School and College, more than 9,000 students from educational institutions in Dhaka and other parts of the country registered for the competition. For the first time, the event recorded overwhelming participation both in registration and physical presence.
The competition was held in three categories: students from classes III to VI, classes VII to X, and students with special needs.
By bringing together artistic depictions of two pivotal chapters of national history—the Liberation War of 1971 and the July Mass Uprising—young artists expressed their creativity on a single canvas.
The event marked a historic milestone as the largest drawing competition ever organised at the school level in Bangladesh.
Eminent artist Monirul Islam, recipient of Spain's state honour and head of the jury board, attended the programme as the chief guest. Yeasha Sobhan, vice-chairman of Safwan Bashundhara Global (SBG), was present as the special guest, while Ekushey Padak-winning artist Professor Dr Farida Zaman also served as a jury member.
Speaking at the event, Yeasha Sobhan said children can achieve remarkable things if given opportunities, adding that similar programmes highlighting key chapters of national history will be organised every December.
Monirul Islam described the competition as a memorable chapter in the country's cultural history, praising its organisation and the innocence reflected in the children's artwork.
Brig Gen (retd) Md Anisur Rahman, principal of Bashundhara Public School and College, said the initiative was not merely a competition but an effort to awaken national history in the artistic consciousness of present and future generations.
