Shaheen Akhtar is the author of five collections of short stories and three novels—Palabar Path Nei (No Escape Route); Talaash (The Search); and Shokhi Rongomala. Talaash won the Best Book of the Year Award for 2004 from Prothom Alo, the largest-circulation daily newspaper in Bangladesh. The English translation of the novel was published in 2011 by Zubaan Books, Delhi, India. Akhtar has also edited the three-volume Soti O Swotontora: Bangla Shahitye Nari about the portrayal of women in Bengali literature. She currently works for Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), a human rights / legal aid organization in Dhaka, Bangladesh.