Rafi Hossain
Probably
one of the largest events of the year in the media, if not the largest,
is the Lux Channel i Superstar program. And I've written about this
before. The Superstar program in Bangladesh was first started by
Shahadat Chowdhury, Editor of Anondodhara, who was one of few truly
visionary people I have had the honour of knowing. At the program's
inception, people considered the program not fitting in with the culture
of Bangladesh and even remarked that the program will not be a
successful one. But Shahadat bhai proved these people wrong. And as I've
commented before, in recent times, the superstars coming out of the
program has not been able to hold a candle to the superstars of the 90s.
This year, I was fortunate enough to attend the gala ceremony of the
Superstar program of 2014, held last week, and I must admit, the quality
of the overall presentation and the sophistication of technically sound
event management was obviously very good. I have seen the event
improving over time in recent years. For those who do not know, the Lux
Channel i Superstar program is not merely a beauty pageant, that is only
one facet of it. There is also a world of training and grooming, and
support functions to realize the full potential of those participating
in the contest. After a long time, I have been impressed with this
year's program overall. In every sphere of the program, be it selection,
grooming, costumes, choreography the final event itself, you name it,
the Superstar program has truly reached a new height. These three
winners came out throw a tight funnel, starting with an initial list of
300 participants, grooming started with 20. As the season progressed,
the number whittled down to 10, and then to the 5 finalists and then 3
winners. So, the three faces that are now on the billboards across the
country have survived and excelled very tough selection and knockout
phases to become the superstars of 2014. Some of my colleagues in the
media who were at the gala night with me seconded my thoughts, that
Nadia, Nazifa and Neela really deserve the title of 'Superstars'. Prior
to the final selection, I had the opportunity of meeting the finalists
to share a few words about their experience and their future plans. I
was pleased to hear that they all plan to work in the media and develop a
career as performers. When I met them, I was trying to identify which
of them were the prettiest, brightest and most likely to win the
contest. But I really could not settle on any of them, because I really
see that all of them have the potential to excel in the Bangladesh media
if they focus their efforts and learn their craft well. Their
confidence really gave me hope, especially when I heard from one of them
that their eventual target is to not only become a star in Bangladesh,
but an international star. If they do succeed in this endeavor, and when
they do, it will be a mark of progress not only for them individually,
but also for the media in Bangladesh as a whole. I think it is important
to dream big, to have the confidence to think globally. Only then can
talents begin to chart a path to follow to achieve that dream.
