Every year, on the last day of the Bengali calendar, the countryside of Munshiganj transforms into a scene that seems to come straight out of an ancient myth. The Lal Kach Festival, celebrated on Chaitra Sankranti, is rooted in a centuries-old Hindu folk tradition: it is believed that an army of divine warriors, led by Shiva, descends to earth to drive away evil and restore harmony. Just an hour from Dhaka, the eve of the Bangladeshi new year becomes a collective ritual of color, music, and movement.
Red is the absolute protagonist. In Hindu culture it represents courage, protection, and renewal, and is believed to ward off misfortune. Villagers dress almost entirely in this color and paint their faces, transforming for a day into mythical figures, guardians suspended between legend and reality. In the afternoon, processions move through the streets to the sound of rhythmic chants and traditional instruments passed down through generations, in an atmosphere that is at once theatrical and deeply spiritual.
In an era marked by rapid modernization, Lal Kach is also an act of cultural resistance, evidence of a community that continues to safeguard its roots. For those who observe it through a camera lens, it is a rare encounter between mythology, faith, and collective identity.
The one telling this story is Md. Arifuzzaman Zaman, a Bangladeshi photographer who came to photography relatively late, at 35, thanks to a small camera he received as a gift from his sister-in-law. From there began a journey spanning more than sixteen years, dedicated to documenting the life, traditions, and resilience of communities across his country. Zaman studied under GMB Akash and later refined his documentary practice at Counter Foto, where mentorship from Magnum photographer Saiful Huq Omi left a profound mark on the way he builds his long-term projects.
Moving across documentary, street, and travel photography, his work centers on identity, spirituality, social justice, and human dignity, moving away from stereotypes to bring back intimate narratives that question inequality and preserve traditions at risk of disappearing.
