Bangladeshi short film “Mariyam” has brought international glory, winning the Community & Culture Award at the Fest5 International Film Festival 2025 (F5IFF’25), held in Kolkata from September 5 to 8.
The film, made with a national grant from the Bangladesh government, is directed and produced by Chaitali Somadder, a rising voice in South Asian cinema. Featuring performances by Baishakhi Somadder, Jannatul Priti, and Saiful Islam Panna, “Mariyam” stood out among more than 550 submissions from 69 countries, of which only 30 were selected for screening.
The festival, hosted at the Anthropology Survey of India, was inaugurated by four eminent women—Padma Shri awardee and dancer Mamata Shankar, Prof. Manoshi Roychowdhury of Techno India, Gouri Basu, consultant to the Ministry of Culture, and educationist Prof. Shaini Lihitkar—alongside AnSI Deputy Director Amit Ghosh.
For director Somadder, the honour is the latest milestone in a journey that began in the hilly district of Rangamati, Bangladesh, where her father instilled in her a love for cinema and the works of Satyajit Ray. She first trained in theatre with Prangonemore in 2004, later completing her master’s at the University of Dhaka before earning a postgraduate diploma at Kolkata’s prestigious Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute. She also trained at the Asian Film Academy in South Korea, linked with the Busan International Film Festival.
Somadder’s debut directorial, “Patience” (2014), a five-minute one-take experiment, drew attention on international platforms. Her subsequent films include “See You”, “Like A Movie”, and “Mariyam”. She also directed “Magphirat”, “Mukti” (Special Mention, Dhaka International Film Festival 2024), and “Ekdin Viral Namita Paul” under USAID’s Projonmo Wave project.
Beyond filmmaking, she has actively contributed as an editor, mentor, and lecturer at Pathshala South Asian Media Institute, shaping the next generation of Bangladeshi filmmakers.
