Today is the 81st anniversary of the birth of the legendary actor Abdur Razzak.

Bangladesh Film Artistes Association will observe his birth anniversary organising a dua mahfil at its office on Bangladesh Film Development Corporation premises today.

Razzak, widely known as ‘Nayak Raj’ to the country’s film enthusiasts, was born on January 23, 1942 at Nagtola in Taliganj of Kolkata.

He acted in different characters in Kolkata-based film industry before migrating to Dhaka in 1964.

Razzak started working with film production companies and got a break as an actor through Zahir Raihan’s Behula in 1966 and never looked back.

He won the hearts of film lovers playing diverse roles in films such as Abirbhab, Basari, Etotuku Asha, Nil Akasher Niche, Je Agune Puri, Mainamati, Dwip Nibhe Nai, Swaralipi, Ashikshit, Chutir Ghanta and others.

In his long and eventful career, Razzak acted in more than 300 films. His film Jiban Theke Neya is still considered a masterpiece of Bangla cinema.

At the zenith of his career, he got the epithet ‘Nayak Raj’ from Ahmed Zaman Chowdhury, editor of Chitrali.

In 1976, he emerged as a producer with the film Akangkha. Later, he made his directorial debut with the film Chanpa Dangar Bou in 1985.

He was awarded the Independence Award in 2015. He also received numerous awards in his career, including National Film Award in 1976, 1978, 1982, 1984 and 1988. He was also awarded Indo-Bangla Kala Music Award in 2003, Bachsas Life Time Achievement in 2009 and others.

Razzak passed away on August 21, 2017 at the age of 75.