DHAKA, June 15, 2025 (BSS) – The nation today welcomed the first day of rainy season, which consists of two months of the Bangla Calendar, Ashar and Sharaban, in a befitting manner.   

Different cultural groups staged various functions to mark the arrival of Ashar, the third month of Bangla year, in the country. 

One such leading group Bangladesh Udichi Shilpigosthi today welcomed the first day of Ashar by organizing “Borsha Utshob (Rainy Season Festival)” at Nazrul Mancha at the Bangla Academy. 

The festival began at 7:30 in the morning with a salutation of nature through music, said an Udichi press release.

Udichi Acting President Habibul Alam presided over the “Borsha Kothon Porba’ (discussion on rainy season).  Coordinator of Bangladesh Gachh Rokhya Andolon (Bangladesh Tree Protection Movement) Amirul Rajib was the key speaker of the part while Udichi central general secretary Jamshed Anwar Tapan took part in the discussion. 

The speakers in the discussion said the July revolution buried the misrule of the past with bearing the spirit of protecting the rights of mankind and nature alongside establishing honour.  
 
They also put forth five demands that include stop unplanned urbanization and cut trees in a scattered way in the name of beautification of the towns and ports.   

The Bengali calendar announced the advent of the rainy season in tropical Bangladesh from today with the start of the month of Ashar supposedly ending the spell of hot weather of summer.

Despite erratic weather behavior thanks to global climate change phenomenon, the rainy season and particularly the month of Ashar carry a significant weight in typical Bengali culture and lifestyle which is reflected in literature and the arena of performing arts.

The blossoming ‘Kadam’ with its cloying fragrance generally marks the advent of the month with newspapers featuring their front page with a picture of the flower.

The monsoon has been an integral part of the Bengali life and literature since its earliest days, with a treasure trove of poetry, songs, hymns, novels and short stories glorifying the season and the beauty it infuses in nature.