SM Sultan’s death anniv today

World-renowned painter SM Sultan’s 32nd death anniversary is being observed today with prayers in Narail, the birthplace of the artist who rose from poverty to see his works displayed beside those of Picasso and Dali.

Today, Saturday (October 10), marks the 32nd death anniversary of SM Sultan.

To mark the day, a Quran recitation and doa mahfil were arranged in the morning at the premises of the artist’s museum. Wreaths will be laid at his grave later.

Sultan died on October 10, 1994, while undergoing treatment at the Combined Military Hospital in Jessore. He was laid to rest in his beloved birthplace, Machhimdia in Narail.

He was born on August 10, 1924, in Machhimdia village of Narail, to father Mecher Ali and mother Maju Bibi. His childhood name was Lal Mia. He grew up fighting poverty. His journey to becoming an artist was also unusual.

In 1928, he enrolled at Narail Victoria Collegiate School. Outside school hours, he helped his father, a mason, with his work. He also drew pictures as a child.

In 1933, while in class five, he drew a portrait of zamindar Shyama Prasad Mukhopadhyay. It amazed everyone. Shyama Prasad and the other zamindars of Narail at the time were impressed.

Sultan left his studies unfinished and went to Kolkata, India, in 1938. There he met art critic Shahid Suhrawardy. Sultan had no academic qualifications. But on Suhrawardy’s recommendation, he enrolled at the Calcutta Art School in 1941. He left the school in 1943, or 1944 according to some accounts. He then travelled from place to place.

He lived among tribal communities in the hills of Kashmir. He painted their way of life and nature.

His first solo exhibition was held in Shimla, India, in 1945, or 1946 according to some accounts. Another was held in Lahore, Pakistan, in 1948. Fatima Jinnah, sister of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, inaugurated it.

In 1950, Sultan went to the United States as a representative of the Pakistan government at an international conference of painters. He then took part in several solo and joint exhibitions in Europe. His works were displayed alongside those of renowned painters such as Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Paul Klee.

Sultan returned to Narail in 1953. He arranged art lessons for children and teenagers alongside general education. On July 10, 1969, he founded The Institute of Fine Art. Then Jessore deputy commissioner Inam Ahmed Chowdhury inaugurated it.

Shishuswarga was set up in 1987. However, Sultan had taken the initiative to establish his dream project much earlier.

Besides painting, he played the flute and other musical instruments. He kept many animals and birds as pets, including venomous snakes, bears, monkeys, rabbits, adjutant storks, mynas, guinea pigs, munias and bulls. Sultan disliked envy, hatred and violence.

In recognition of his work, he received the Ekushey Padak in 1982, the Resident Artist title in 1984, the Bangladesh Charushilpi Sangsad honour in 1986 and the Independence Award in 1993. He also received the Man of the Year award from Cambridge University, the Man of Achievement award from the Biographical Center in New York and the Man of Asia award from Asiaweek.

EM/MT