BADA - Bangladeshi Artist Development Agency

My practice explores the connections between light, memory, identity, and place. Shaped by experiences of migration and cultural transition, I investigate the emotional landscapes between belonging, displacement, and transformation.

Originally from Bangladesh and now based in the Midlands, my work explores how places become repositories of memory, personal histories, and cultural experiences. Through painting, I transform architecture, changing light, and everyday moments into visual narratives that examine perception and identity.

Combining traditional painting techniques with digital experimentation, I create a visual language where colour, light, and form reveal the subtle connections between inner experiences, cultural memory, and the environments we inhabit.

Fateha Begum is a Birmingham-based Director and Creative Producer with over 20 years of experience in arts and education. She specialises in inclusive, issue-driven theatre and dance projects that engage marginalised communities. As a British Bangladeshi, she champions diversity and has led creative initiatives with organisations like The Birmingham REP, Birmingham Hippodrome and Loconomy. She has been working with AKDC since 2017 developing the Dance Forum Labs to engage and co create new work inspired by AKDCs productions. Her work spans local, national, and international platforms, blending storytelling, performance poetry, and community outreach to inspire change.

Kohinoor is a Bangladeshi Multidisciplinary Artist: Poet, Writer, Creative Producer, Arts Educator & Community Organiser from Birmingham who has been building community infrastructure for the past 15+ years.

She has performed & hosted on multiple stages across Birmingham including Hayati, Birmingham Festival with OPUS Arts 2023, JAAG festival 23/24, and recently hosted Poetry after Chai for Bangla Month with BADA 2025.

Kohinoor has been nurturing community-led grassroots initiatives across Birmingham through alternative & elective education since 2012. She has been working closely with The GAP Arts Project since 2023, facilitating & delivering Summer Programmes around Poetry, activism & stewardship.

Kohinoor is the Founder, Director, Creative Producer & Host of Kohetry Presents: Shu'ara; a third space for Poets, Musicians and Multi-Disciplinary Artists & Creatives to share their work in a family-friendly setting. Creating sustainable safe spaces for marginalised people from the Global South Diaspora; as a means of addressing, discussing and making positive changes in our local communities utilising art as a form of resistance to counter racism, fascism, inequality etc. Her work is rooted in re-indigenisation to provide holistic decolonial practises building bridges across multi-faith communities & offering mutual aid. 
 

'We are the custodians of the Earth & each other.'

Acclaimed Bangladeshi mime artist with over 30 years of experience in performance, direction, and education. Founder of the Bangladesh Mime Federation and Bangladesh Street Mime Council, with a vision to establish the country’s first professional Mime Institute. Known for pioneering a Bengali narrative theatrical style of pantomime, blending traditional theatre with global mime practices. Recognised nationally and internationally for contributions to mime art, with performances across South Asia and Europe.

I am a Bangladeshi visual artist currently based in Birmingham, UK. My artistic practice explores themes of memory, identity, cultural heritage, and belonging, drawing inspiration from the history, traditions, and lived experiences of Bangladesh. My work is deeply rooted in the soil and soul of my homeland while engaging with the complexities of contemporary life.

I have held two solo exhibitions and participated in numerous group exhibitions. Throughout my practice, I have sought to investigate how the past continues to shape the present and how traditional narratives can be reinterpreted through contemporary artistic approaches. I am particularly interested in exploring how cultural heritage can evolve while retaining its authenticity, creating a dialogue between tradition and modernity.

As part of the BADA Creative Commission, I am developing Echoes of Motherland, a mixed-media painting project that explores identity, memory, and connection within the Bangladeshi diaspora. The project examines how memory, language, culture, and a sense of belonging continue to shape people's relationships with their homeland, despite geographical distance. Through painting, Echoes of Motherland reflects on the enduring emotional and cultural ties that connect individuals to Bangladesh, demonstrating that home is not simply a place but an experience carried through memory, tradition, and shared stories.

Coming Soon!