What has happened to the Eid Shongkha tradition?

Illustration: TBS

Eminent author Ekram Kabir fondly recalls his first encounter with an Eid Shongkha back in the first half of 1970s when he was just eight or nine years old. It was an issue of Begum magazine. He would read the poems himself, but when it came to longer stories, he would ask his mother to read them out loud.

"That's how I got hooked on Eid Shongkha — and literature in general," Kabir shares. Later, when he reached the matriculation level, he discovered Bichitra Eid Shongkha, which offered even bigger and more diverse content.

Pias Majid, poet and an assistant editor at Bangla Academy, had a similar experience. Born in the first half of 1980s, his first Eid Shongkha was also Begum. "The memoirs in it fascinated me," he recalls. 

Then, in the late 1990s, when Prothom Alo Eid Shongkha hit the stands, it caused a huge buzz in Majid's hometown of Cumilla. "Maybe one boro bhai would buy a copy, and the rest of us would line up to read it," he laughs.

Prothom Alo Eid Shongkha was where Majid first came across many novels that later gained fame when published as books. He also enjoyed travelogues as well as unpublished works by literary giants like Abul Hossain and Syed Waliullah.

This is how for generations, Eid Shongkha — rich in varied and unique reading materials — helped shape literary minds.

This tradition of Eid Shongkha dates back to the first half of the 19th century, though it gained real popularity in the 1960s and saw its golden era between the 1970s and 1990s. Even 15 to 20 years ago, these special Eid editions were a household staple in Bangladesh.

But those days appear to be over.

Although many Eid Shongkha are still published before Eid-ul-Fitr, the excitement surrounding them has faded. Their publication has also become increasingly irregular.

On 19 March, the 18th day of Ramadan, we visited newspaper stalls across Dhaka, hoping to find this year's Eid Shongkha magazines. To our surprise, while a few editions from lesser-known literary magazines were available, there were none from the major newspapers.

"We haven't heard of any popular Eid Shongkha yet. Maybe they will arrive after the 25th," said Sabuj Ali, a newspaper vendor at Moghbazar Wireless Gate. "In previous years, we would have at least a couple of them by mid-Ramadan. This year, it's different."

When we again visited his stall on 25 March, he informed us that finally a couple of Eid Shongkha like Prothom Alo, Samakal, Amar Desh and Silk Route (Bonik Barta) arrived, but the sale was not very encouraging. "It has come down to almost one-third of what we sold a decade ago," Ali said. 

Role of the economy

Sajjad Sharif, executive editor of Prothom Alo, does not believe that Eid Shongkhas are arriving particularly late this year. "Traditionally, they are released in the last 10 days of Ramadan. But it's true that this year, many publishers have decided not to bring them out at all."

The economic downturn is a major reason, compounded by the discouraging outcome of the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela earlier this year.

"We don't have exact figures, but book sales at this year's fair dropped significantly, suggesting that people right now are less inclined to buy books, let alone Eid Shongkha," he noted.

For a long time, the Prothom Alo Eid Shongkha was priced at Tk200. This year, it has increased to Tk250 due to rising printing and paper costs. "We had been contemplating this price hike for some time, but refrained. However, this year, we had no choice, as brands have been less willing to place ads," Sharif explained.

Even in the best of times, Eid Shongkha are not highly profitable. Sales and advertisements rarely cover the costs, but ads at least offset some of the losses. Yet, brands do not advertise in Eid Shongkha for direct sales benefits. 

"By the time Eid Shongkhas come out, most people have already spent their Eid budget. Advertisers support them more for branding and goodwill. This year, with the economic crisis, that goodwill was in short supply," Sharif said.

A drop in quality

Beyond financial constraints, the overall interest in reading books — not just Eid Shongkha — has also declined over the past few decades, regretted celebrated author and editor Imdadul Haq Milon.

Interestingly, while buying — if not reading — Eid Shongkha before Eid was a tradition in Bangladesh, a similar cultural phenomenon existed in West Bengal as well, where Puja Barshiki was an integral part of Durga Puja celebrations. 

Although the market for Puja Barshiki has also shrunk in recent years, editions from major publications like Anandabazar, Anandamela, and Desh still generate significant enthusiasm. Also, these are generally published around a month prior to the Puja celebrations.

Milon is one of the few writers who contributes regularly to both Eid Shongkha in Bangladesh and Puja Barshiki in West Bengal. But while his writings in Puja Barshiki are widely discussed, his contributions to Eid Shongkha receive little attention.

One reason, he suggests, is quality. In West Bengal, writers are given six months to a year to prepare their work for Puja Barshiki, while in Bangladesh, they are often given just a month — or less. This inevitably affects the standard of writing.

Additionally, Eid Shongkhas nowadays rarely publish full-length novels if they are too long. "The word limit is usually around 15,000 words. So, we often have to submit just a portion of the novel — sometimes as little as one-fourth — for the Eid Shongkha. The complete novel is later published during the book fair," Milon said.

This also shows why Bangladeshi readers are more likely to buy books from the book fair at a higher price, instead of buying Eid Shongkha, which may seem comparatively cheaper. 

Pias Majid highlights another issue: lack of variety. Today's Eid Shongkhas often follow a predictable formula: all in one, ranging from novels, short stories, essays, travelogues to recipes, entertainment features, science, comics, satire, and sports, without allowing any section to develop fully.

"In trying to include a little bit of everything, they fail to make anything truly stand out," he said. "A more effective approach would be to focus on a specific theme each year, which would enhance both quality and appeal."

For example, one such Eid Shongkha in recent years which earned widespread acclaim was the 2012 Kalerkantho Eid Shongkha which featured 75 short stories from Bangla literature's most important authors. 

Meanwhile, Ekram Kabir believes Eid Shongkha editors must acknowledge changing reading habits. 

"We are no longer in the 1970s. So the 1970s method of literature does not work. People today have shorter attention spans. They are less likely to sit down with a bulky Eid Shongkha either. Publishers need to rethink the format—perhaps reducing the overall size and focusing on truly compelling content."

Kabir also suggests embracing digital formats. "Releasing audio versions of Eid Shongkha could be an option worth exploring."

The future of Eid Shongkha

This brings us to the question: does Eid Shongkha, as we have known it all along, have a future at all?

Dr Mohammad Sajjadul Islam, professor of Bangla at Jahangirnagar University, offers a pessimistic outlook. According to him, while Eid Shongkha once played a crucial role in shaping literary culture, their decline does not significantly impact literature today.

"In the past, there was not so much competition in the Eid Shongkha market. So, everyone could focus on quality over quantity. But now with every media house willing to publish one, it can't help our literature with quality content anyway," he said. 

Dr Islam further explained that in the past, Eid Shongkha played a crucial role in keeping readers updated on their favourite authors' latest works. It also provided a platform for emerging writers to make their mark alongside literary heavyweights, allowing readers to discover fresh talent in the process.

"But in today's age of technology, readers can easily keep track of what their literary idols are doing through their social media handles. On the other hand, young writers also have so many platforms, both online and offline, to showcase their work," he said. 

So, getting published in Eid Shongkha no longer is considered a big milestone for them. Rather, there are many young, talented authors who are doing excellent work, even though their writings never got featured in an Eid Shongkha from a leading media house.

"It is pure nostalgia that still sells Eid Shongkha. And for newspapers, it remains more of a prestige project than a necessity," Dr Islam concluded.