Best Bangladeshi documentary movies
A curated collection of popular documentary movies from Bangladesh.
A State Is Born (1971)
A State Is Born (1971)
A short documentary, charting Bangladesh's quest for freedom from Pakistan.
Song of Freedom (1995)
Song of Freedom (1995)
This historic film, completed in 1995 by filmmaking duo Tareque Masud and Catherine Masud tells the true story of a troupe of singers traveling through the refugee camps and zones of war during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. The film blends documentary and fictional genres in a musical structure to tell the story of the birth of a nation and the ideals of secularism and tolerance on which it was founded. The filmmakers combined footage of the cultural troupe and their activities, shot by American filmmaker Lear Levin in 1971, with historic footage collected from archives around the world, to create “Muktir Gaan” (Song of Freedom).
Adhkhana Bhalo Chele Adha Mostaan (2021)
Adhkhana Bhalo Chele Adha Mostaan (2021)
Adhkhana Bhalo Chele Adha Mostaan is a film that explores the duality of an artist told through chats between the Director and Arnob about life, battling our demons and overcoming them. Essentially we're all Adhkhana Bhalo, Adha Mostaan and it's learning to embrace both that sets us free. This film is a self- realisation trip and I hope we can all connect to it through stories of love, loss and human connection.
Stop Genocide (1971)
Stop Genocide (1971)
A documentary film about to resist the brutal action taken by Pakistan occupy army against general people of Bangladesh (previously East Pakistan) in between 26 March, 1971 and 16 Dec, 1971.
Ironman (2021)
Ironman (2021)
'Ironman Arafat', ran 1004 kilometers from Teknaf to Tetulia in 20 days, swam the Bengali Channel 6 times, completed the world's toughest one-day Ironman Triathlon Challenge three times, and became the first Bangladeshi to win the 'Ironman 70.3 World Championship'.
Are You Listening! (2012)
Are You Listening! (2012)
By the coastal belts of Bangladesh, in a small village named ‘Sutarkhali,’ RAKHI lives with her man SOUMEN (32) and their son RAHUL (6). Fighting against all the odds of the woods, along with around 100 families, they cultivated the land for generations until a tidal surge hit the coastal belts of Bangladesh. For RAKHI, SOUMEN, and RAHUL, life is not the same anymore. Seasons change the topography, even relations… Yet after the rain… They go out with spades and shovels to reclaim life again… Are You Listening!
Ironeaters (2007)
Ironeaters (2007)
Chittagong in southern Bangladesh is a graveyard for the West’s run-down or obsolete ships, massive vessels driven onto the beaches and left to be taken apart by hand using only the most basic tools. Poor farmers escaping the regular famine in the north of the country travel south to get work. Barefoot and with no masks or safety equipment, they work in the yards under incredibly dangerous conditions—razor-sharp metal hidden in the mud and sand, surrounded by poisonous chemicals.
Bangla Surf Girls (2021)
Bangla Surf Girls (2021)
Three working-class teenage girls in a port city in Bangladesh escape daily hardships and stifling family lives by riding waves on their surfboards and grabbing hold of the fleeting and thrilling sense of freedom that brings.
Once You Know (2021)
Once You Know (2021)
Today, like a ship entering the storm, the world faces climate change induced collapse. Once You Know, by director Emmanuel Cappellin, is a poetic and poignant exploration of how four of the world’s leading climate scientists and energy experts find truth, chaos, and hope in their work.
Bamboo Stories (2019)
Bamboo Stories (2019)
A group of men in North-Eastern Bangladesh are facing a dangerous mission. They are to conquer the river, with a 70 meter long raft. The ride is 300 kilometre long, always downstream. The freight: 25 000 bamboo trees. The men's path begins in the dense forests of the Sylhet region in North-Eastern Bangladesh. Millions of bamboo trunks are hacked down there and being slid down by the workers along the dangerous mountain-stream into the valley. The bamboos reach the river Kushiara through hundreds of these channels. Here, the trunks are bundled - a giant raft arises. Then the long journey begins.
Things I Could Never Tell My Mother (2022)
Things I Could Never Tell My Mother (2022)
Humaira Bilkis has a problem: after a pilgrimage to Mecca, her mother, who was previously an emancipated poet, has now become devout. The filmmaker has to fight to get her to accept the camera, since her religion forbids images, while hiding her relationship with a Hindu man from Calcutta. Her film plays out like a closed-door documentary, spot-on and moving.
The Inner Strength (1991)
The Inner Strength (1991)
Adam Surat is the first film directed by Tareque Masud. It is a documentary about Bangladeshi painter Sheikh Mohammed Sultan (aks SM Sultan). Masud started the film in 1982 and completed seven years later.
I Am Yet to See Delhi (2015)
I Am Yet to See Delhi (2015)
In Delhi to study film, "I" listens for the breath of its residents on the streets, in the markets, outside the mosques, and at the tourist sites. Dissolving into these her own thoughts and feelings in the process, she makes the city resonate for us.
A Tale of the Jamuna River (2002)
A Tale of the Jamuna River (2002)
A documentary film on the Jamuna river.
A Kind of Childhood (2002)
A Kind of Childhood (2002)
This is a film which challenges our notions of child labor. It peeks into a world where the concept of childhood as we know it has no meaning, where children support their parents, and where work is just another part of growing up. This is Dhaka, Bangladesh. Following several children over a period of six years, A KIND OF CHILDHOOD is an attempt to focus on the realities of child labor, with real children, their struggles and dreams.
Eleven Miles (1991)
Eleven Miles (1991)
Tradition and contemporary practice of Bauls, Bengali mystic minstrels, are explored in Calcutta filmmaker and author Ruchir Joshi’s essay film.
Beyond the Borders (1995)
Beyond the Borders (1995)
Beyond The Borders, which portrays the universality of human relationships centering on Japanese-Bangladeshi couples living in Japan.