Dewan Mohammad Saad more commonly known as Saad Dewan literally lit up AnimeCon Chattogram 2023 with his Akaza performances. He did a solo performance and a duet skit with a cosplayer portraying Kamado Tanjiro. The crowd loved both but surely, the Tanjiro vs Akaza battle was more entertaining as the cheers proved it.

Saad Dewan is a cosplayer from Chattogram and he is quite young being a first-year college student. He is an active member of House 2 aka Chittagong Cosplayers of the prestigious Bangladesh Association of Cosplayers (BAC). He also is affiliated with the oldest and largest anime community in Chattogram known as Chittagong Anime Bhokto.

Like the other cosplayers from Chattogram that I featured previously i.e. Arpita Sangma, Ero Senpai, and Tanjida Mumu; Saad Dewan is very much passionate. He is fairly new to the trade and is ignorant of many things regarding cosplay. Although he is still rough around the edges I see great potential in him.

Saad Dewan’s Journey So Far

Saad Dewan started cosplaying very recently and it was quite evident to the naked eye, for me at least. His accuracy was not quite up to the mark with many stark deficiencies in the overall cosplay. However, when the incomplete Akaza got on the stage and started doing the moves both in the solo and duet performances, it was a sight to behold. I thought then and there, “This lad has a bright future and I gotta feature him!”

“So, tell me! What got you into cosplay?”, I enquired marking the beginning of the interesting interview. “It started in AnimeCon Chittagong 2022 when a friend’s sister dressed up in the likes of ‘Ai Hayasaka’ from ‘Kaguya Sama: Love is War’ and I was simply amazed because just the thought of cosplaying at a convention never crossed my mind.”, Saad Dewan reminisced. “She dressed up as the character using only what she had at home and it definitely wouldn’t meet the standard of an official cosplay but it was still amazing to me and my friends as we hyped her up the entire day.”, he continued.

“Is that when you got the idea to cosplay?”, I enquired further. “Well, basically yes.”, Saad replied with an unsure tone, “After that Anime Winter Fest 2023 came in January where I was talking to her and she told me I would look good as “Shinji Ikari” from “Neon Genesis Evangelion” and I actually considered it because I loved the character and he is possibly the easiest character to cosplay in history.”

Then he continued, “So I went to the con dressed up as Shinji for fun and to show my friends but what I did not expect was that I actually got recognized for my cosplay! And by a fellow cosplayer who’s also a member of Chittagong cosplayers. After that, I chatted with the cosplayers and realized how simple it actually was to cosplay your favorite characters and I felt I could do it too. Not soon after at AnimeCon Chattogram 2023, I officially cosplayed as ‘Akaza’ from ‘Demon Slayer’ and I couldn’t be happier.

“Tell me about your inspirations, favorite characters, and your first cosplay!”, I urged for more information. “Cosplaying as a concept was known to me for a long time but no other people were as inspiring as my fellow cosplayers at Chittagong Cosplayers. When it comes to fictional characters most of my love belongs to video game characters but when it comes to anime I absolutely admire ‘Sakuta Azusagawa’ from ‘Bunny Girl Senpai’. I cosplayed Shinji Ikari for fun but my first official cosplay was ‘Akaza’ from ‘Demon Slayer’”, he replied.

A Passionate Hobby

“What does cosplay mean in essence to you?”, I asked. “It is purely a hobby for me to show my love for my favorite pop culture characters and a chance to meet amazing like-minded people and share my love for anime and video games.”, was Saad Dewan’s simple yet insightful reply. It is clearly evident that the art of cosplay is simply a hobby to him but there seems to be major passion and dedication behind this pastime entertainment.

“I believe tailoring and crafting your own costumes will make it that much more special and I plan to learn to sew for my next cosplay. I have not attempted anything that would require crafting props or tailoring costumes but I look forward to it in the future.”, he replied so to my question about the importance of tailoring and crafting for cosplays.

“What about makeup and wig styling then?”, I probed. “There are some characters where the unique wig styling and makeup are essential to re-creating their essence but as they do cost a lot I have to compromise and do what I can.”, Saad reiterated. “Is being in character necessary?”, I slid in the all-important question. “It’s always fun to be in character while cosplaying but it is not a necessity.”, Saad Dewan made his opinion known.

Saad Dewan’s Take On ACC23

“It was about a month before the competition. I knew it (ACC23) was coming so I had to start planning for my cosplay and performance. I had simply hoped for the best but did not expect to win anything as I knew I hadn’t reached peak accuracy for my character.”, Saad Dewan recounted his preparations and expectations of AnimeCon Chattogram 2023.

“How was the overall experience?”, I asked for details. “This year’s AnimeCon felt like the furthest thing from a summer event and it felt a little gloomy due to the weather but other than that I had a good time as usual. I was nervous at first but the judge’s friendly attitude made me open up and the same can be said for my appearance on stage. After 10-15 seconds the nervousness simply goes away as I shift focus from the audience to myself.”, he explained.

“It truly felt amazing to be cheered on so hard by such a crowd and it gave me so much confidence to try even harder next time.”, Saad exclaimed, “I was overjoyed for my friends who won the contest but I was also a little disappointed I didn’t. But it helped me to understand the ways to improve my costumes and execution. They all seemed just as excited as me to be cosplaying at such an event and it was nice seeing such reactions from fellow cosplayers.”

Ultimo

“What are your future plans for cosplaying?”, I probed. “I have long-term plans for cosplaying and I plan to keep making each cosplay bigger and better as long as I keep liking the designs of my favorite characters.”, Saad Dewan stated. “What do you think is the future of cosplay in Bangladesh?”, I probed further. “I think the cosplay culture in Bangladesh has only scratched the surface and in a few years, we will stand in awe of where the Bangladeshi cosplayers.”, he answered with hope and zeal.

“They are all very supportive of my cosplaying which allowed me to be as confident in my cosplay as I was. I am truly grateful to have such amazing friends and family.”, Saad explained the role of his family and friends. “Do you have any advice for aspiring cosplayers?”, I asked. “I believe everyone can become good cosplayers if they believe in themselves and have the support of the people around them. I never thought I’d get to be where I am today but the support from my family and friends and of course my fellow cosplayers has made me who I am today for which I am forever grateful!”, he let us know that he is thankful.

“So, what do you think of Deshi Geek?”, I enquired one final time. “I am also very grateful to Deshi Geek for giving pop culture enthusiasts a platform to voice our stories. Long live Cosplaying!”, he ended with a passionate slogan. And, peeps do follow his Instagram to appreciate his work: https://www.instagram.com/saadandcomplacency/