#Rewind2021: 5 of the most underrated films of the year

The year 2021 had a few releases due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown situation. However, certain good movies were released and some couldn’t be released. These films didn’t get much-deserved attention. Below are five such underrated Bengali films of 2021 that deserve a watch.

Released in theatres in February, Baratya Basu’s film is a touching story of a married couple, where Abir Chatterjee plays an introverted forest officer Ashoke Sanyal while Nusrat Jahan plays his wife Smita. The film also depicts the manner in which extramarital affairs impact the lives of all parties involved. Based on two short stories by Buddhadeb Guha, the film marks Bratya Basu's return to film direction after a long gap of 10 years. Dictionary is a film driven by some really good performances rather than a great script. The music and the beautiful visuals of Purulia also lend a helping hand. Mosharraf Karim’s terrific performance surely demands a watch.

Independent filmmaker Amartya Bhattacharyya’s third feature film was screened at Nandan for two weeks which is not a mean feat. The film is a daughter’s audacious search for her long-lost poet-father Michael Hemanta Biswas. Shatarupa can recall his voice – a physical memory of a person, whom she carries within her. On the other hand, with his daughter’s memory, the father had built an imaginary daughter, more specifically his poetic muse, who used to give him company in a strange city, and also gave his art fruition. Hence the film’s title develops.

Tangra Blues may be a musical, but it has nothing to do with the African-American genre of music the name seems to imply. The film tries to cover a lot of ground in mapping the tumultuous history of Tangra since the EM bypass’ construction began. The music makes the film a fun watch, and of course, the performances by the young actors Samiul Alam (as Chalu), Oishani Dey (as Pori) and others. Parambrata, too, is at his poignant best as the man with a violent past who teaches the slum boys and girls his kind of music. This genre needs more exploration in the Bengali movie space.

Although this film, directed by debutant Prasun Chatterjee, didn’t release in theatres, is surely an exceptional cinematic accomplishment. It’s a piercing, poignant tale of two 8-year-old boys in a Murshidabad village trapped in between the hostile climate of religious intolerance. Along with the young protagonists, the two communities and the indifferent village are also the key driving forces in this beautifully crafted Bengali film. ‘Dostojee’ sheds light on friendship and man’s empathy against bigotry but never diverts from highlighting the harsh reality. Locals too portray key roles in the narrative. They give ‘Dostojee’ supreme credibility.

Aditya Vikram Sengupta’s ‘Once Upon A Time in Calcutta’ tenderly captures a city in flux. The poignant film opens with a death and incidentally ends with another and it between, captures the bustling metropolis of the 1980s, living, breathing and pulsating through a handful of protagonists that the screenplay assembles delivering a vivid canvas. It is like an unsentimental and yet deeply felt ode to a constantly metamorphosing city. The film, after its premiere at the Venice International Film Festival became talk of the town but soon the craze surrounding the film died down.