Shuddhashar (শুদ্ধস্বর) was established in 1990 at the advent of the little magazine movement in Bangladesh as an independent magazine and periodical of anti-establishment writing, working towards a broader socio-cultural movement. Shuddhashar was one of the independent little magazines in Bangladesh from the 1990s to the early 2000s. In 2004, we also started a publishing house. From then until 31 October 2015, we published more than one thousand books. We became well-known for our commitment to finding and supporting young writers, promoting freethinking, and for our integrity in publishing material that was otherwise deemed too controversial.

These controversial publications – which included books critical of religious and social restrictions and taboos – led to us receiving several threats of violence. Some of our authors were also threatened and two of them, Avijit Roy and Ananta Bijoy, were killed in 2015. On 31 October, 2015, our office was brutally attacked by one of the radical Islamist militant groups in Bangladesh. Assailants broke into the office with the intent of killing our publisher and detained all staff while calling for blood. They struck the publisher down with a machete. He survived and continues our work to this day.

Today, Shuddhashar is a non-profit organization committed to promoting freedom of expression, human rights, democratic culture and values, and multiculturalism. We aim to inspire and promote at-risk writers, artists, and journalists. The platform focuses on being a multicultural, intellectual, and secular voice for Nordic countries – where we are now based – and for the many countries from which our exiled writers have fled.

Shuddhashar FreeVoice

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