08/05/2026
Department of English and Humanities and Brac Institute of Languages arranged a day-long seminar on 4 May 2026 on “Women’s Lives and Literary Representation: The Case of Middle-
class Single Women in Contemporary Dhaka” on BRAC University new campus. The seminar was part of a research project under Research Seed Grant Initiative 2024-25, spearheaded by Firdous Azim, Shaila Sultana and Sabiha Huq who explored the lives of Bangladeshi middle class and middle aged single women represented in literature and life. Are Bangladeshi young women opting for singledom quite often? What happens when these single women meet their middle age? How do women see their state of
singledom? Do they feel threatened and why? Do they feel liberated and when? Such intriguing questions were brought to the table during the seminar. With two young scholars Joutha
Monisha and Nusrat Tasnim Arna as research associates, the key researchers adopted a mixed method of looking into five novels representing the lives of single women as part of their project
funded by the research seed grant initiatives of the university, and they also collected field data through interviews. In their research they explored the kind of social security and economic
stability needed for the choice of singlehood, as well as the intensity of situations that forced these women to opt for lone living.
Nasreen Jahan, Akimun Rahman and Shahnaz Munni were
present among the invited authors and academics and activists Dr. Seuty Sabur, Tanya Qamrun Nahar, Dil Afroz, Atiqua Roma, Sadia Arman also spoke on the occasion. Professor Malay Kanti
Mridha, newly appointed Director of Centre of Research and Innovation office and Mehedi Hasan Rana, research coordinator of the university, were also present on the occasion.
