Weekend Roundup: Soumitra Chattopadhyay no more, Mimi’s Diwali outing, filming begins for ‘Tirandaj Shabor’; here’s what made headlines this week in Bengali cinema

If you have missed the exciting news, gossips or latest developments that have rocked Bengali cinema this week, here is a weekly roundup for you. Take a look:

Actor Abhishek Bose, who was seen playing the role of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in the daily soap Netaji, will now be seen portraying the role of the freedom fighter on big screen as well. Abhishek has come on board for director Subhrajit Mitra’s upcoming period film ‘Mayamrigaya’ which is based on Rabindranath Tagore’s novel, Dui Bon, and was first published in 1933. The actor is excited to be a part of the project and said that the shooting of Netaji’s portions for the film will begin from January 23, 2021 on Netaji Jayanti, as a tribute to the freedom fighter.

In his long six decades in the film industry, Soumitra Chatterjee stood tall and mighty like an enduring banyan tree. Under his shadow, there are many who found their true calling, excelled in their parts and showed what it takes to go from strength to strength. Now, after his demise on November 15, tributes continue to pour in for the cultural icon of Bengal. The films he acted in now top almost every cine buff’s watchlist. And now, the makers of the family drama ‘Sanjhbati’ in which Soumitra Chattopadhyay played a crucial role have decided to re-release the film paying tribute to the maestro. The film will once again hit the theatres this Friday, November 20. It was originally released in December last year and earned quite a decent response.

Arindam Silm’s next film in the Shabor franchise, ‘Tirandaj Shabor’, finally hit the shooting floors from Tuesday with much anticipation. The thriller will be shot in Maithon, Kolkata and Asansol. Speaking about the cast of ‘Tirandaj Shabor’, the ‘Mayakumari’ director adds: “Saswata Chatterjee, Subhrajit, Devlina Kumar, Padmanabha Dasgupta, Joydip Kundu, Anirban Chakraborti, Shankar Chakraborty, Debjani Chatterjee and many more are in this film. There will be a really special actor in a crucial character which remains a surprise. I will also introduce Rammani who is a brilliant dancer and she plays one of the important characters.” Interestingly, Nigel Akkara will be seen in an important role of a taxi driver in the film. This is the first time the talented actor is working with Arindam.

Amid all the negativity and pandemic scare Mimi Chakraborty spent this Diwali at her ancestral home in Siliguri and it was something special for the actor-politician. “After 13 years, I got the chance to celebrate Diwali with my family and relatives at our ancestral home in Siliguri. As a child, I’d get together with all my cousins to decorate the house with diyas and candles. Fortunately, I got to relive those childhood memories again. We used to make rangolis too. Though I missed Chiku and Max (her pets) a lot, this family reunion has been quite special. My mashi had curated a healthy menu for me, so I eat to my heart’s content. I am so happy that crackers were banned. This move helped control air pollution. I see how my pets and stray animals suffer every year on Diwali. For their sake and the environment, I’ve always refrained from bursting crackers," she shared with ETimes.

It will be Soumitra Chattopadhyay’s first film after his demise. Come December, Bengal’s flamboyant hero, cultural icon who breathed his last on November 15 will be seen as a writer in Narugopal Mondol’s film ‘Abolombon’. Soumitra had completed the dubbing for this film before he started shooting for Parambrata Chattopadhyay’s ‘Abhijaan’. Beside Soumitra Chattopadhyay, ‘Abolombon’ will also see Lily Chakraborty, Biswajit Chakraborty, Meghna Halder and others in pivotal roles. The film revolves around a writer who is working on his latest novel Abolombon. Interestingly, when the writer finishes the novel he finds out the characters from his novel exist in his real life as well.

Indranil Roychowdhury who has already made two films ‘Phoring’ and ‘Mayar Jonjal’ is now ready with his third film based on Shyamal Bandopadhyay’s story ‘Jatin Darogar Betanto’. Starring Bratya Basu, Ritwick Chakraborty and Tuhina Das in the lead, the film will soon hit the floors. While Bratya Basu will play Jatin Daroga, Tuhina will be seen as a small-town girl opposite Ritwick. After receiving accolades for her natural acting in Aparna Sen directed ‘Ghawre Bairey Aaj’, Tuhina is now a well-known face in Tollywood. The talented actress is also playing key roles in Soumyajit Majumder’s ‘Homecoming’ and Parambrata Chattopadhyay’s ‘Abhijaan’ which is the biopic of Soumitra Chatterjee and Tuhina will be seen in the role of Waheeda Rehman.

A more than a month-long battle finally came to an end on November 15. Soumitra Chatterjee lost his battle with COVID-19 and with this it was an end of an era. The thespian breathed his last on Sunday morning after his condition went to an extremely critical state on November 14 and he was put on life support. Soumitra, who made his debut in Satyajit Ray's cult classic ‘Apur Sansar’, has been under treatment at a Kolkata private hospital since October 6 after he tested positive for COVID-19. However, he later tested negative but the Covid- 19 encephalopathy set in slowly and several other complications surfaced.