Laboni Akter

Laboni Akter (alias Laboni Ashrafi) is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Bangla Language & Literature at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB), a filmmaker, visual ethnographer, and interdisciplinary researcher working at the intersection of literature, cinema, gender, indigenous studies, anthropology, and cultural studies. She holds a BA and MA in Bangla Language & Literature from the University of Dhaka and a Postgraduate Diploma in Filmmaking (Screenplay Writing & Direction) from the Bangladesh Cinema & Television Institute.

Her research and creative practice explore cultural identity, gender, Indigenous knowledge, ritual, religion, memory, ecology, embodiment, and lived experience, with a particular focus on Bangladesh and South Asia. Her current research examines the Mandi (Garo) community, focusing on matriliny, Sangsarek traditions, Indigenous epistemologies, ritual practices, and cultural transformation. She also works on folk Islam, sacred spaces, and vernacular religious practices through visual ethnography.

Her scholarly and creative practice is informed by practice-as-research and artistic research, with filmmaking and visual poetry serving as modes of inquiry, experimentation, and knowledge production. She is the author of two research monographs published through Bangladesh Film Archive fellowships: Adaptation & Pertinence of Literature in Bangladeshi Cinema and Reinterpretation of Feminist Existence in the Films of Titas Ekti Naadir Naam & Surja Dighal Bari. As a filmmaker, she has written, produced, and directed fiction and documentary films, including “My Mother Can Sing but She Doesn’t”. Her films and visual works explore the relationship between image, body, landscape, memory, and lived experience.

PGD, Filmmaking (Screenplay Writing & Direction), Bangladesh Cinema & Television Institute (BCTI) 
MA, Bangla, University of Dhaka
BA, Bangla, University of Dhaka 

Film & Media Studies, Gender Politics, Indigenous Studies, Cultural Studies, Ecofeminism.

Research

1. ‘বাংলাদেশের চলচ্চিত্রে সাহিত্যের রূপান্তর ও প্রাসঙ্গিকতা’
   Fellowship by Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA) on 2019-20.
2. ‘তিতাস একটি নদীর নাম ও সূর্য দীঘল বাড়ি চলচ্চিত্রে নারীবাদী অস্তিত্বের পুনর্পাঠ’
   Fellowship by Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA) on 2021-22.

Awards

1. Research & Development Grant for ‘My Mother Can Sing but She Doesn’t’, 
   Exposition of Young Film Talents, Liberation War Museum, 2022. 
2. Best Independent Short Award for ‘Chakrabyuha’,
   16th International Short & Independent Film Festival, Dhaka 2022.
3. Special Mention Award & Best Director Award for ‘Chakrabyuha’,
   Cinemaking International Film Festival 2022, Dhaka.
4. Jury Festival Mention Award for ‘Chakrabyuha’,
   Global Youth Film Festival 2021, Natore.
5. Best Film Award for ‘Chakrabyuha’
   BLAST Short Film Competition 2021, Dhaka.

Current Projects

Research Fellowships

1. Research Fellowship | Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

Project Title: The Role of Matrilineal Society in Preserving Language, Culture, and Indigenous Elements of the Garo Community in Madhupur, Bangladesh.

Books & Monographs

2. Visualizing Subaltern Voices: The Emergence of ‘Fourth Cinema’ in Indigenous Communities of Bangladesh (Monograph - In Progress).

Visual Ethnography & Journal Submissions  

3. Sacred Spaces and Syncretic Rituals: An Ethnographic Study of 'Ghora Pir' Dargahs and Folk Islam in Bangladesh

Format: Visual Ethnography for Dastavezi | The Audio-Visual South Asia, Heidelberg Asian Studies Publishing (Under Review).

Working Papers & Ongoing Research Projects

4. Integrating Indigenous Knowledge into Higher Education: An Assessment of Cultural Heritage Conservation and Social Inclusion in Bangladesh.
5. The Politics of ‘Greenwashing’ and Indigenous Displacement: A Comparative Study of Eco-Tourism in Alutila, Khagrachari (CHT) and Madhupur Sal Forest (Plains).
6. The Politics of Desire, Corporeal Voice, and Rebellion for Autonomy in Birangana Kabya: A Reading of Individualism in Madhusudan’s Female Characters.
7. The Serpent's Echo: Reading Lilith and Manasa as Repetitions of the Rebel Archetype from Medieval Myth to Modern Poetry.
8. Sonic Resistance and the Sangsarek Revival: Navigating Subaltern Transnationalism through Indigenous Music and Activism in Bangladesh.

2026-Continue     
Senior Lecturer in Bangla Language & Literature, Department of Bangla Language & Literature, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) 
Courses Taught:     

1. Film in Literature
2. Ethnic Language & Literature 
3. World Literature: Latin America, Europe and African
4. Cinema and New Media: Theory and Practice

2024-2025     
Lecturer in Bangla Language & Literature, Department of Bangla Language & Literature, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB)
Courses Taught:     

1. Film in Literature
2. Ethnic Language & Literature 
3. World Literature: Latin America, Europe and African
4. Bangla Poem: Colonial and Liberation Period
5. Short Stories: Comparative Study of World Literature
6. Cinema and New Media: Theory and Practice

2023-2024 
Lecturer in Bangla Language & Literature, Department of Bangla Language & Literature, Southeast University (SEU) 
Courses Taught:

1. Art of Writing & Screenplay
2. Poetry of Medieval Period II 
3. History of Bengali Literature: Ancient & Medieval 
4. The Culture & Heritage of Bengal 

2020-2023     
Lecturer in Bangla, Center for Language & Cultural Studies (CLCS), Green University of Bangladesh (GUB) 
Courses Taught:     

1. History of Bengali Literature: Ancient & Medieval 
2. Bangla Language & Literature 

Filmmaking Experience

Producer

1. ‘Ama’ni A’song’, Ongoing, Documentary.
2. ‘My Mother Can Sing But She Doesn’t’, 2025, Documentary, 57:10 min.

Director

1. ‘My Mother Can Sing But She Doesn’t’, 2025, Documentary, 57:10 min;
2. ‘Porobashee’, 2022, Short Fiction, 33:30 min;
3. ‘The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm’, 2022 | Short Documentary, 12:00 min;
4. ‘Choukath’, 2022 | Short Fiction, 12:00 min;
5. ‘Chakrabyuha’, 2021 | Short Fiction, 8:31;
6. ‘A Night’, 2020 | Short Fiction, 4:31 min;
7. ‘Droupodi Akhyan’, 2019 | Short Fiction, 5:37 min;
8. ‘Brihonnola’, 2018 | Short Documentary, 15:00 min.

1. Panel Discussion, Film Fiesta Take 3, 19 July 2025.
2. Panel Discussion, “The Road Ahead: Opportunities and Challenges for Women Filmmakers in Bangladesh”, 2nd Women's Lens International Short Film Festival 2024, 23 September 2024.
3. Panel Discussion, “Cultural Politics: Regarding Cinema”, July Ganoparishar, 6 September 2024.
4. Meet the Director, Contemporary Independent Film Session, Bangladesh Short Film Forum, 28 June 2024.
5. Panel Discussion, “Facing Gender Discrimination: Filmmakers’ Views and Generation”, Action Aid, 8 December 2022.

1. Akter, Laboni. “Dopdi Mejhen's Resistance: Subaltern Identity and the Politics of Nudity in Mahasweta Devi's 'Draupadi” Atmadeep International Peer-Reviewed Bi-monthly Bengali Research Journal, ISSN :: 2454–1508, DOI: 10.69655/atmadeep.vol.2.issue.06W.488, Volume-II, Issue-VI, July, 2026, pp- 2253-2263.
   https://www.atmadeep.in/dopdi-mejhener-protirodh--mahashweta-debir--draupadi--golpe-subaltern-sotta-o-nognotar-rajniti.html
2. Akter, Laboni. “Body-Politics and Clinical Detachment: A Comparative Study of Naturalism and Freudian Perspective in Bonophul’s ”. Trisangam International Refereed Journal, [eISSN: 2583-0848]  vol. 6, no. 2 (PART - 1), Apr. 2026
3. “Exploring Epic Form in Cinema: A Linguistic Analysis of ‘Chandrabati Katha’” [Bengali]. Bangladesh Cinema & Television Institute Journal, No. 14. (December 2025).
4. “Subaltern Narratives in Bhanubil: A Critical Analysis of Colonial Exploitation, Resistance, and Identity” [Bengali]. Trisangam International Refereed Journal, Volume: V, Issue: V. ISSN: 2583-0848. (October 2025).
5. “Women's life and world in the films of Bangladeshi women filmmakers” [Bengali]. Bangladesh Cinema & Television Institute Journal, No. 12. (June 2023). 
6. “Did Satyajit fall in love with Kanchenjunga?” [Bengali]. Prothom Alo. (May 2023). https://www.prothomalo.com/onnoalo/fawik4nw0n
7. “The grey world of Kiarostami and Jibanananda” [Bengali]. Irabotee, Festival Edition: Cinema. (October 2021). https://irabotee.com/puja-2021-film-article-laboni-ashrafi/
8. “‘Human civilization moves forward by drinking mother's blood’ — Mother archetype and mythological rebel women in Ritwik's films” [Bengali]. Irabotee. (June 2020).
9. “Robert Bresson and his films” [Bengali]. Teerandaz, Festival Edition (2020).
10. ‘This is the way the light shines, this is the way the world will be free’ – Cinema and some words” [Bengali]. Akaalbodhon, Cinema Edition, Sub Editorial. (21 June 2020).
11. “Memoir: Mohiuddin Faroque” [Bengali]. Akaalbodhon, Cinema Edition. (21 June 2020).

1. ‘Reinterpretation of feminist existence in the films of Titas Ekti Naadir Naam & Surja Dighal Bari’, Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA), 2023; (ISBN: 978-984-97778-0-9).
2. ‘Adaptation & pertinence of literature in Bangladeshi Cinema’, Bangladesh Film Archive (BFA), 2020; (ISBN: 978-984-94910-2-6).

1. Akter, Laboni. “A Theoretical Reading of Indigenous Literary Voices: Deconstructing Marginality, Resistance, and Self-Narratives.” In Twentieth-Century Western Literature and Critical Theory, edited by Begum Aktar Kamal, Abasar Prokashana: Bangladesh.  
2. Akter, Laboni. “Body-Politics and Clinical Detachment: A Comparative Study of Naturalism and Freudian Perspective in Bonophul’s ”. In Twentieth-Century Western Literature and Critical Theory, edited by Begum Aktar Kamal, Abasar Prokashana: Bangladesh.
3. Akter, Laboni. “Exploring Epic Form in Cinema: A Linguistic Analysis of Chandrabati Katha.” In Twentieth-Century Western Literature and Critical Theory, edited by Begum Aktar Kamal, Abasar Prokashana: Bangladesh.
4. “A Subaltern Study of ‘Dhanua Toto's Discourses: The Life and Culture of the Toto Indigenous Community”. Ed. Naskar, Dr. Prasenjit, Pramanik, Dr. Mrityunjay.

1. ‘সত্যজিৎ কি কাঞ্চনজঙ্ঘার প্রেমে পড়েছিলেন?’ Published on Prothom Alo, on 2 May 2023. 
2. ‘কিয়ারোস্তামি ও জীবনানন্দের ধূসর জগত’ Published on Irabotee, Festival Edition: Cinema, 22 October 2021. 
3. ‘রবের ব্রেসঁ ও তার চলচ্চিত্র’ Published on Teerandaz, Festival Edition 2020. 
4. ‘এ পথেই আলো জ্বেলে এ পথেই পৃথিবীর ক্রমমুক্তি হবে – সিনেমা এবং কিছু কথা’ Published on Akaalbodhon, Sub Editorial, Cinema Edition, 21 June 2020. 
5. ‘বোধনঃ মহিউদ্দিন ফারুক’ Published on Akaalbodhon, Cinema Edition, 21 June 2020.

1. “Sacred Spaces and Syncretic Rituals: A Visual Ethnography of Votive Traditions at the ‘Ghora Pir’ Dargah and Folk Islam in Bangladesh”, (Presenter) 11th SSEASR Conference on Reflections of Religion in the Culture and Societies of South and Southeast Asia, Souphanouvong University, Luang Prabang, Lao PDR, 10-15 August 2026.
2. “The Serpent’s Echo: Reading Lilith and Manasa as Repetitions of the Rebel Archetype from Medieval Myth to Modern Poetry”, (Presenter), International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, London, 6-9 July 2026.
3. “Epistemologies of Resilience: Interrogating Indigenous Identity, Linguistic Precarity, and Comparative Perspectives” (Panel Chair), Asian Studies on the Pacific Coast (ASPAC) 2026 Annual Conference, California State University, Northridge, 24-26 June 2026.
4. “Decolonizing the Gaze: Visual Epistemology and ‘Fourth Cinema’ as a Site of Indigenous Resilience”, (Presenter), Asian Studies on the Pacific Coast (ASPAC) 2026 Annual Conference, California State University, Northridge, 24-26 June 2026.
5. “Session: Indigenous Environment” (Session Chair), Annual Conference on Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Peoples Center, Asian University for Women, Chittagong, 10 April 2026.
6. “Valedictory Session” (Valedictory Speaker), Annual Conference on Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Peoples Center, Asian University for Women, Chittagong, 10 April 2026.
7. “Visualizing Subaltern Voices: The Emergence of ‘Fourth Cinema’ in Indigenous Communities of Bangladesh”, (Presenter)  Annual Conference on Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Peoples Center, Asian University for Women, Chittagong, 10 April 2026.
8. “Sonic Resistance and the Sangsarek Revival: Navigating Subaltern Transnationalism through Indigenous Music and Activism in Bangladesh” (Presenter)  Subaltern Transnationalism Experimental Workshop, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA, 23 February – 6 March
9. “The Serpent's Echo: Reading Lilith and Manasa as Repetitions of the Rebel Archetype from Medieval Myth to Modern Poetry”, International Medieval Congress, University of Leeds, London, 6-9 July 2026.
10. “The Sangsarek Religion and Ecological Knowledge: The Environmental Renewal of the Mande Society”, Planet LangLit 2026: International Conference on Language, Literature and Cultural Studies, Green University of Bangladesh, Dhaka. 15-16 January 2026.
11. “Foucault and Subaltern Studies in ‘Rarang’ and ‘Bhanubil’: The Discourse of Resistance in the Colonial Power Structure and Oriental Theatrical Tradition”, International Conference 2025, Comilla University, Comilla. 26-27 November 2025.
12. “The Role of Women in Preserving Folk Knowledge and Biodiversity: Reflections from Literature and Society”, 4th BSSCR Conference, Comilla University, Comilla. 15-17 October 2025
13. “Language, Religion, and Beliefs of the Mandi People: The Conflict of Tradition and Modernity”, XXIII Quinquennial World Congress of the International Association for the History of Religions (IAHR), Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland. 22-31 August 2025.
14. Panel Chair: Tribal and gender identities in South Asia II, XXIII Quinquennial World Congress of the International Association for the History of Religions (IAHR), Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland. 22-31 August 2025.
15. “Film reading through women's eyes”, Conference on Women Filmmakers’ Journey, 36 Years Celebration of Bangladesh Short Film Forum Program. 2021.

1. The Politics of ‘Greenwashing’ and Indigenous Displacement: A Comparative Study of Eco-Tourism in Alutila, Khagrachari (CHT) and Madhupur Sal Forest (Plains). (April 2026)
2. Akter, Laboni. “Exploring Epic Form in Cinema: A Linguistic Analysis of Chandrabati Katha.” (September 2025).

1. Workshop Conductor | “Public Speaking Enhancement Workshop” for The Voices of Tomorrow 2026 Public Speaking Competition, organized by ULAB Debating Club (UDC), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). (Theme: Roots & Resonance: Celebrating the Spirit of Bangladesh). [July 12, 2026]
2. Jury Member / Script Judge | “The Stage Currency” Short Drama Writing Competition, organized by ULAB Literary Society, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). (Theme: Money Talks: Capitalism and Consumerism in Literature; winning script selected for the 12th DEH Inter-University Conference and Cultural Competition). [June – July 2026]

1. Film in Literature
2. Ethnic Language & Literature
3. World Literature: Latin America, Europe and African
4. Bangla Poem: Colonial and Liberation Period
5. Short Stories: Comparative Study of World Literature
6. Cinema and New Media: Theory and Practice

2026      

• Five-Day Faculty Development Programme on “Language, Identity, and AI in the Digital Age”, Department of Basic Science and Humanities, IEM Kolkata, New Town & Centre of Excellence in Literature Language and Communication Skills (CELLCS), University of Engineering and Management, Kolkata (in association with Human Resource Development Centre, IEM – UEM Group and in collaboration with Department of Economics, Vidyasagar University), September 7–11.
• AI and advanced technology for academics, CETL Professional Development Training, Center of Excellence for Teaching and Learning (CETL), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).

2025      

• Digital Security Training – Training of Trainers (DST-TOT), Asia Centre and Department of Computer Science & Engineering, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).
• Workshop on OBE Curriculum, Institutional Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).
• CETL Professional Development Training, Center of Excellence for Teaching and Learning (CETL), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB). Induction Training for Tertiary Teachers:
  • Teaching and learning strategies                      
  • Student Advising
  • Use of Technology (Moodle)                             
  • Assessment of Learning

2024      

• Certificate Course on Teaching and Learning (CTL), Center of Excellence for Teaching and Learning (CETL), University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB).

2020-21               

• Certificate Course on Teaching and Learning (CTL), organized by Center of Excellence for Teaching and Learning (CETL), Green University of Bangladesh (GUB).
• Research Methodology Course, Liberation War Museum (LWM), Bangladesh.

2019      

• Workshop on Mobile Filmmaking Workshop on Women Rights & VAWG Issues; supported by UNDP, SDC; organized by Rights Center.

2018      

• Short course on Documentary Filmmaking, Bangladesh Cinema & Television Institute (BCTI).