Bangladesh Liberation War – on film

The story of Bangladesh’s independence is one of stuttered pain, spanning several decades of foment and violence. ‘East Pakistan’ was granted a sort of liberty from colonial rule on August 14 1947, just like (West) Pakistan itself, which controlled the territory from afar and with a brutally sanctioned military presence on the ground.

But Bangladesh was not born as an independent nation until December 16 1971, after a devastating and bloody struggle (and even some help from India, especially towards the end of the war)
What happened between and since those turbulent years affected and continues to define the fate of a huge majority of families across the former Bengal Presidency (including what is now West Bengal and Bangladesh, as well as parts of Jharkhand, Bihar and Orissa).

A ten-minute newsreel film is available to view on YouTube by the Huntley Archive, which documents some of the reality of this under-discussed battle fought in the legacy of subcontinental ‘independence’.

If your own family or friends were affected by the partition of East Pakistan, Bangladeshi independence or the raw, lasting struggles on the borderlands of West Bengal and Bangladesh, do consider contributing a story, a photo or anything you’d like to the Open Call for Subcontinent Divided — see here for more information on privacy and how you might take part.