2-day Hason Raja folk festival to begin in Sylhet on Sunday

The two-day Hason Raja Folk Festival–2025 will kick off in Sylhet on Sunday, commemorating the birth anniversary of renowned Sufi poet Hason Raja.

Organised by Hason Raja Folk Literature and Culture Council, the festival will take place at the Central Shaheed Minar premises at Chowhatta area of the city, with programmes running daily from 3:30 PM to 10:00 PM.

The festival will highlight various aspects of Hason Raja’s life, philosophy and folk heritage through discussions, cultural performances, recitations and renditions of his songs.

Dr Jahirul Islam Achinpuri, president of the central committee of the council, said Hason Raja’s birthday falls on December 21 and that the council has been working to revive Bengal’s traditional Sufi culture, aiming to promote a non-violent, intellectual, creator-centred and afterlife-focused society.

He added that researchers, artists, litterateurs and cultural activists from across the country are expected to participate and that the event has already generated considerable excitement in Sylhet’s cultural arena.

Dr Achinpuri also noted that the festival was originally scheduled to start on Saturday, December 20, but was postponed by a day in observance of National Mourning Day declared for the death of Shaheed Sharif Osman Bin Hadi.

The organisers urged people from all walks of life to attend the festival with their families.