Biman Bangladesh Removes ‘Lalsalu’ and ‘Chitra Nadir Pare’ From In-Flight Entertainment
Biman Bangladesh has stopped showing ‘Lalsalu’ and ‘Chitra Nadir Pare’ on its flights after years in its entertainment lineup. Here’s what the airline said.
DHAKA, Sept. 29 — Biman Bangladesh Airlines has stopped showing Tanvir Mokammel’s films Lalsalu and Chitra Nadir Pare on its flights after featuring them in its in-flight entertainment system for years.
The decision has prompted questions on social media, with Mokammel, who directed and produced both films, also addressing the issue in a Facebook post.
Kazi Riton, proprietor of Black & White, the company that supplies films for Biman’s in-flight entertainment system, said the company was informed about two months ago that the films would no longer be shown.
“We were told that the two films had been shown for more than 10 years, so a decision was made to stop showing them for now. They may be shown again later,” Riton told Prothom Alo on Tuesday.
Biman Bangladesh said the films were removed as part of its regular rotation of in-flight entertainment content.
Mahiuddin Ahmed, general manager of Biman’s public relations department, said in a written response that the airline generally updates its movies, TV shows and audio content every three months.
He said content changes are driven by licensing agreements, limited storage capacity and efforts to maintain passenger satisfaction.
According to Ahmed, Biman does not own the films and programs it shows. Instead, it obtains temporary exhibition rights through media brokers and content service providers. Those licensing agreements grant streaming rights for a specified period.
The airline is required to remove content when the relevant licensing period ends or when a new content cycle begins, he said. Limited storage on aircraft servers also means older content must be removed to make room for new material.
Lalsalu, released in 2001, and Chitra Nadir Pare, released in 1998, are both directed by Mokammel and have received multiple National Film Awards.
The removal of the films has generated discussion on social media, but Biman’s explanation attributes the decision to its regular content rotation and licensing and storage considerations.
