April’25 was a happening month as we witnessed a series of film releases over the weeks. Bangla cine-goers had the entire range of genres on offer from dark thriller, family drama, romance, comedy, folk culture, psychology, and everything in-between leaving them almost spoilt for choice.
We are paying extra attention to the fact that these films we’re watching have some classic Bangla artists in action in them – Sharmila Tagore, Rakhee, Moushumi Chatterjee, Mithun Chakraborty, Anjan Dutt – and these greats are taking our breath away with their smooth timeless-meets-right now aesthetics. Everyone seems to be talking about this ‘phenomenon’ everywhere. Does this mean a new era for Bangla films is here? We’ll wait and watch.
Puratawn (The Ancient) – The film about a delicately-woven mother-daughter relationship where the past and present intertwine closely, Puratawn has Sharmila Tagore, Rituparna Sengupta, and Indraneil Sengupta in lead roles. Suman Ghosh’s release marks the return of Sharmila Tagore to Bangla cinema after 16 years and she delivers an effortless performance as the octogenarian mother.
Killbill Society – A sequel to Hemlock Society, the directorial venture by Srijit Mukherjee features Parambrata Chattapadhyay and Koushani Mukherjee in lead roles. It focusses on the theme of mental health in the context of internet scandalization, slander campaigns by faceless keyboard warriors, public disgrace, and a love story blooming in the midst of it all.
Amar Boss – Directed by Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy with Shiboprosad Mukherjee, Rakhee Gulzar, and Srabanti Chatterjee in lead roles, this is a heartwarming story about Animesh Goswami, who’s trying his best to handle his personal and professional lives superbly. Things take a dramatic turn with his aged mother’s insistence on attending his office along with him. The film marks the return of Rakhee Gulzar after more than two decades.
Shreeman Vs Shreemati – A romantic comedy that revolves around Justice Amal Chowdhury (Mithun Chakrabarty), his firm stance against divorces and a bickering couple, Sourav (Parambrata) and Amrita (Madhumita Sarcar), who are given a unique challenge to save their crumbling marriage. The film by Pathikrit Basu that also stars Anjan Dutt in a pivotal role, dwells on the themes of love and relationships, the complexities of modern marriages, and a quirky role-reversal challenge with an unexpected twist that involves the judge himself and his own long-running divorce case against his wife, Aparna (Anjana Basu).
Bhamini – A detailed and evocative film that brings together elements of folk, culture, traditional art forms with the overarching elements of corruption and exploitation. Directed by Swarnayu Maitra, Bhamini features Priyanka Sarkar, Tathagatha Mukharjee, Sandip Bhattacharya, Chhanda Karenji Chatterjee, and Umakant Patil in lead roles.
Aarii – Capturing the simple and complex experiences of the weave and waft of family ties, Aarii shows us a range of emotions typical of modern-day life. Moushumi Chatterjee, Yash Dasgupta, and Nusrat Jahan play the lead roles of an aged ailing mother, her caring and deeply involved son, and a city writer who enters the mother-son duo’s lives. Aarii is directed by Jiit Chakraborty.
Annapurna – A family drama that shows a mother in London struggling with loneliness and determining to start her own food business, Annapurna has Ananya Chatterjee playing the role of Annapurna and is directed by Anshuman Pratyush. It stars Ditipriya Roy and Rishav Basu in lead roles.
Durgapur Junction – A Bengali thriller from start to finish, Durgapur Junction has Swastika Mukherjee, Vikram Chatterjee, and Akshay Kapoor in lead roles. It dwells on a case of unexplained deaths in Durgapur from a certain brand of vitamin capsules that was revived by a gutsy journalist. The film is directed by Arindam Bhattacharya.
With inputs by Neha Karmakar and Nilankur Ganguly
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