Asaduzzaman Noor (born 31 October 1946) is a Bangladeshi actor, politician and activist. He has been a Jatiya Sangsad member from Nilphamari-2 constituency since 2001 and served as the Cultural Affairs Minister during 2014–2019. Noor worked as an actor in theatre, film and television productions. He is best known for his role as Baker Bhai in the television series Kothao Keu Nei. His other notable television works include Ei Shob Din Ratri, Aaj Robibar, Ayomoy, Bohubrihi and Nokkhotrer Raat. His notable films are Shonkhonil Karagar (1992) and Aguner Poroshmoni (1994). In 2018, Noor was awarded the Independence Day Award, the highest civilian state award in Bangladesh, by the Government of Bangladesh. Early life Noor was born in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal (now in India) on 31 October 1946 to Abu Nazem Mohammad Ali and Amina. His family migrated to Nilphamari District in East Bengal (now in Bangladesh) in 1948. Both of his parents worked as school teachers. He studied in Nilphamari College, Carmichael College and the University of Dhaka. Career Acting Noor's acting career began with the theatre. In 1973, he joined the theatre group "Nagorik". He was a receptionist of the paper "Chitraly" at that time and went to take the interview of the prominent actors that time. There he met Aly Zaker, an actor of Nagorik, who asked him to visit the rehearsal of his new team. Later he joined that group. At first, he used to work behind the stage as a prompter. At one point the rehearsal of the drama "Toilo Shonkot" which was written by Rashid Haider was going on, when with only two days remaining until performance day, the leading actor of that drama Abul Hayat got injured. As Noor had learned all the lines in his role as a prompter, Zaker asked Noor to take the part. Following a bit of persuasion from the other cast Noor performed the role and thus began his career as an actor. Noor's first television drama "Rang-er Phanush" was directed by Abdullah al Mamun in 1974. Noor got his break-through in acting during his early days as a Bangladesh Television dramatic artist and has since starred in many television shows and films. In 2018, Noor returned to the stage with his long-term acting partner, Zaker, in a Bengali adaptation of Bertolt Brecht's play The Life of Galileo about the 17th Century polymath Galileo Galilei. The role of