Eastern Promise
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Leisure FASHION ENTERTAINMENT BOOKS CINEMA REVIEWS EYECATCHERS REVIEWS EYECATCHERS and has been shot on a budget of Rs 80 lakh. “Nothing like this has ever been attempted before. The fact that the film is not heroine-centric, though I am the producer, shows I mean business,” says Sengupta. But how is the industry minting money while interest rates run high? Suvojit Roy, CEO of Orion Entertain- ment, a company which is set to release its own film Jodi Ekdin, says, “A pro- ducer can earn from a few verticals— My theme and story are unconventional. theatre release, satellite rights, home video rights, music rights and overseas I am using cricket to counter politics. The rights. In the case of a Rs 60 lakh film, cricket club slams politicians and the chhakka the element of risk is minimal. For a is their way of protest. film like Madly Bangali, it is easy to conclude that the producer made RAJ CHAKRABARTY, Director of Le Chhakka money from all the four sources put to- gether.” Jodi Ekdin, starring Indraneil Sengupta and Priyanka Sarkar, talks about new age relationships and is be- ing made on a budget of Rs 65 lakh. The big divide between urban and rural viewers, that widens every year, has stymied the growth of Bengali films. Mainstream films did not have takers in the city till now. Theatres, as (CLOCKWISE FROM many as 300 of them, had closed down FAR LEFT) RITUPARNO in the past decade. Actor and executive GHOSH PLAYING producer Arindam Sil, 45, started the CHAPAL BHADURI WITH INDRANIEL SENGUPTA trend of such crossover films as the IN AREKTI PREMER then executive producer of the Moxie GOLPO; ARPITA Group with Bong Connection, a Rs 1- CHATTERJEE IN EKTI crore film starring Shayan Munshi, TARAR KHOJE; ASPIRING CRICKETER Raima Sen and Victor Banerjee in DEV IN LE CHHAKKA 2007. “This should have caught on a long time back, but at least it is happen- ing now. The mindset of the youth is By Abhijit Dasgupta changing and the gap between the switched to aggressive marketing and It’s not just Dutt; other filmmakers rural and urban psyches is narrow- t’s called Le Chhakka and it stars a all-round Bengali content such as the are also laughing all the way to the ing,” says Sil. He adds, “Compared to Mumbai import who really wanted upmarket Jara Brishtite Bhijechilo by bank. Like the director duo of Abhijit the 45 films that were made in Bengal Ito be a cricketer. Made for Rs 2 crore national award-winner Anjan Das. Guha and Sudeshna Roy whose glam in the past year, at least 80 releases are by Raj Chakrabarty and up for Eastern This was followed by singer-director doll Payel Sarkar-starrer Cross scheduled for this year.” release soon, this film on street cricket Anjan Dutt’s Madly Bangali which sent Connection ran for a record-breaking Despite this, the involvement of epitomises the revolution that out signals that the staid, conservative 10 weeks in central Kolkata. Roy says, corporate biggies has been minimal, has come to Bengali cinema. Freeing Bengali was willing to party. The film “I had made a film, Teen Yaarir Kotha, barring a few exceptions like RPG itself from the trap of remakes and was about city youngsters trying to two years back. It was a hat ke film but Enterprises’ Saregama which was near copy-paste jobs of southern make it big on the music scene. Dutt re- I could not get it released then. I wish behind arthouse films like Rituparno hits, Tollywood is morphing into its PROMISE turned again with Chalo Let’s Go, a it had been made now.” Star-turned- Ghosh’s Khela in 2008 and Rabiranjan 21st century avatar, thanks to a new travelogue based on changing relation- producer Rituparna Sengupta is wait- Moitra’s debut Mantra in 2005, both crop of filmmakers. ships starring Saswata Chatterjee, ing for the release of Potadar Kirti not so successful. Thirteen new multi- It all started with the box office No longer a remake factory, the Bengali film industry is Parambrata Chatterjee and Churni later this year. The film, also starring plexes have opened—eight in Kolkata, success of atypical potboilers last year rediscovering itself, and finding profit in path-breaking Ganguly. Both of Dutt’s films were Priyanshu Chatterjee from Mumbai one each in Durgapur, Asansol and which not only won critical acclaim but made for between Rs 50 lakh and 70 and Firdaus from Dhaka, is about a Darjeeling, and two in Siliguri. also made money. Filmmakers plots, as it experiments with genres and actors lakh, and both were hits. don who falls in love with a movie star, Ratnavali Dutta, assistant manager, 66 INDIA TODAY ◆ FEBRUARY 1, 2010 FEBRUARY 1, 2010 ◆ INDIA TODAY 67 Leisure FASHION ENTERTAINMENT BOOKS CINEMA REVIEWS EYECATCHERS marketing, Inox, says, “Last year, like Rituparno Ghosh’s Chokher Bali Kalyan Roy, in a cameo appearance. Antaheen by Aniruddha ‘Tony’ and Raincoat. Chakrabarty, 34, He is set to become producer this year Roy Chowdhury was a landmark started his career with TV five years and he has chosen Aveek Mukherjee, film. Content has become king again.” ago. He got noticed with two top 42, cinematographer of Bunty Aur Names are changing too; many reality shows, Mirakkel Akkel and Babli, as his director for Ekti Tarar sound distinctly “un-Bengali” now. Dance Bangla and telefilms Teesta, Khoje, which will see the return of Filmmaker Subrata Sen, the man who Ek Chhut and Naba Basanto between Shayan Munshi and Prosenjit launched Konkona Sen Sharma 2005 and 2006. His first film Chatterjee’s wife, Arpita, to the big in Ek Je Acchey Konnya in 2001, Chirodini Tumi Je Amar in 2007 screen. “This film had 15 main says, “Bengali films have been created history, grossing 15 times its characters playing an equal, pivotal timelessly called stuff like Nyaya- budget of Rs 80 lakh. His next two role. Shabana Azmi said she thought Annaye and Vichar-Avichar. It had films, the Rs 2-crore Challenge fetched it was at least a Rs 10-crore film almost become an education in 10 times that amount and Prem Amar, because its look had fascinated her,” antonyms. All this is changing.” a Rs 1.5-crore film, fetched 20 times says Roy Chowdhury. Birsa Dasgupta, 30-year-old the money invested. Coming up is Le Even Prosenjit, 50, has put his grandson of filmmaker Harisadhan Dasgupta, would agree. His film, 033, made on a budget of Rs 1.5 crore, is (LEFT) FIRDAUS, RITUPARNA SENGUPTA being jointly produced by NDTV AND PRIYANSHU Imagine, its first film production, and CHATTERJEE IN JEET the Moxie Group. Says Dasgupta, “033 DUTTA’S POTADAR is Kolkata’s telephone code. In this KIRTI; SHARMILA TAGORE AND APARNA film, it is also the name of a rock band SEN ARE SEEN and the film explores music tradition TOGETHER IN and how connections are made and TONY’S ANTAHEEN broken through music.” Swastika The film industry is changing its look to reflect the young men and women of today. They are aggressive and smart. It is a bonus that these films are making money as well. ANIRUDDHA ROY CHOWDHURY, Director of Antaheen Mukherjee, 30, who plays the lead, has Chhakka. “My theme and story are customary heroics on the backburner signed her eighth film in a matter of a very unconventional. I am using and will be seen in two films, Clerk few months, making her perhaps the cricket to counter politics,” he says. (for the first time in Bengal, the first Tollywood heroine to do so. One of the most significant movies posters of the film show the hero in a The Midas touch is now in the made last year which set the bathtub) and Lalan, a film based on hands of a few, the new movers and mainstream ball rolling towards the legendary folk singer. Kaushik shakers of Tollywood such as actor meaningful cinema was the Rs 1.5- Ganguly is ready with his film, Arekti Dev, director Raj Chakrabarty, com- crore Antaheen. It raked in profits that Premer Golpo, on gay love made on a poser Jeet Ganguly and the giant, were twice the investment. In budget of Rs 1.5 crore. Bengali films Venkatesh Films (VF). Run by Shrikant Antaheen, Roy Chowdhury, 44, seem to be well out of their musty Mohta and Mahendra Soni, VF has pro- brought Sharmila Tagore and Aparna closet but where they go from here is duced national award-winning films Sen to work with Sen’s husband, a story in the making. n 68 INDIA TODAY ◆ FEBRUARY 1, 2010.