Tollywood roundup: Bengali celebs who made headlines last week

Be it the latest controversy in Priyanka Sarkar’s personal life, the craze surrounding Indrashis Acharya’s upcoming ‘Pupa’, a surprising update on Hindi ‘Feluda’ or Jeet’s rumoured interest in making a Hindi film; it was a week full of rumours and exciting news from the Tollywood industry. Here is a look at Bengali cinema's 10 of the most exciting news from last week.

Everybody is curious how Priyanka Sarkar manages to put aside her personal life and concentrate on her work. Now, the actress has shared her secret. In the latest post on social media, she claimed that her recent film ‘Andarkahini’, for which she won the Best Actress Award (Jury) at the Hyderabad Bengali Film Festival, taught her a lot about how to survive such difficult situations and move on. ‘Andarkahini’ also won her the Best Actress Award at this year’s Dadasaheb Phalke Film Festival.

Anindya Pulak Banerjee’s latest directorial ‘Watchmaker’ has created a lot of buzz for all the good reasons. The experimental short film was recently selected at the Habitat Film Fest and now another feather has been added to Anindya’s crown. ‘Watchmaker’ has entered the final round of Oniros Film Awards in the Best Experimental Film category. Director Anindya himself plays the lead role of crazy watchmaker in the short film. Other than him, it also has Ritabhari Chakraborty, Ritabrata Bhattacharya, Aishika Bandyopadhyay and Joey Debroy in the lead.

Indrashis Acharya’s ‘Pupa’, inspired by the theme of euthanasia, is all set to hit the cinema halls on July 20. Rahul will be seen as a devoted son to a near-death comatose father who has passed all the deadlines given by doctors as there is no sign of recovery. Rahul explained how he got interested in this film, “I had no connection with Indrasish Da personally. We met at the screening of his last movie ‘Bilu Rakkhosh’ in Bijaygarh. You won’t believe, it literally shook me to the core. Frankly speaking, I haven’t received many offers of such challenging roles so far. For me, the character I am playing is really a special one.”

Speculations are rife Ambarish Bhattacharya is all set to make his debut in Bollywood. According to industry sources, director Pradeep Sarkar’s Hindi adaptation of Feluda will see Ambarish in a key role. The Bengali actor is now in Mumbai to shoot for an advertisement directed by Pradeep himself. He was last seen in the recently released Bengali horror movie ‘Hoyto Manush Noy’. Rumour has it Pradeep Sarkar’s Feluda film may not be a remake; it will only be inspired by Satyajit Ray’s first Feluda movie ‘Sonar Kella’.

Mainak Bhaumik's ‘Happy Pill’, a fun-filled comedy flick starring Ritwick Chakraborty, Parno Mittra, Sohini Sarkar and Mir in the lead, revolves around a person who accidentally discovers a pill that can help people to be happy. The official teaser of the movie is already out and it looks quite tempting. Ritwick Chakraborty will be seen as Sidhartha Chawdhury, a brilliant student who dropped out of medical college because of unfortunate circumstances and now runs a sweet shop.

Partha Sarathi Manna’s next ‘Oskar’ is based on the backdrop of 1983 Bengal. It’s an intriguing tale about an ambitious filmmaker who can go to any extent to fulfil his dream. But why has the story been set in 1983? Is there any particular reason? You would be surprised to know there is an interesting fact behind the particular year. The director himself has revealed that in 1983 Bhanu Athaiya won the first Oscar as an Indian woman in the category Best Costume Designing for the cult classic ‘Gandhi’. It was a historical moment for India, that’s why Partha Sarathi Manna chose 1983 as his film’s backdrop.

While Jeet’s latest release ‘Sultan: The Saviour’ has so far received a decent response from the box office, an exciting update about his next project has cropped up. Speculation is rife that he is gearing up to make a Hindi film, right from Kolkata. During a recent interview, the actor reportedly said, there is no dearth of talent in Bengal. So many filmmakers, artists and even technicians from the Bengali industry are doing a great job in Mumbai right now. So, there is every possibility to make a Hindi film for the pan-Indian audience from Kolkata itself.

Four-time National Award-winning director Tarun Majumdar is making a documentary-feature on the serious issue of unorganized labour in our country. Titled ‘Adhikar’, it will focus on the labour crisis. Almost 90% of the labour force is still unorganized in India. Tarun Majumdar broke an 8-year-long hiatus when his latest directorial ‘BhaloBashar Bari’ released in March this year. After giving a box office hit like ‘Chander Bari’ back in 2005, this family drama also managed to strike gold at the box office with Rituparna Sengupta’s brilliant acting.

Soumik Sen’s next ‘Mahalaya’, featuring Jisshu Sengupta in the lead, has already raised the curiosity bar ever since it was announced. The shooting for the period drama has already been wrapped up. According to industry sources, Prosenjit, whose home production will bankroll the film, wants to send ‘Mahalaya’ to film festivals all around the world as he believes the content of the film makes it a movie ahead of its time. The Tollywood superstar is also trying to reach out to the audience globally. The plot of this film revolves around the 1976 'Mahisasuramardini' program which had Uttam Kumar's voiceover in place of Birendra Krishna Bhadra. It followed uproar from special Bengalees and as a result, the original 'Mahisasurmardini' broadcast had to be brought back.

Abhirup Ghosh is all set for his next ‘Rahashyo Romancho Series’. The thriller has an ensemble cast including Priyanka Sarkar, Biswanath Basu, Kanchan Mullick, Rudranil Ghosh, Sayani Ghosh and Poulomi Das. The film has been shot largely in Kolkata and after a packed schedule, the shooting part has been wrapped up. It’s now in post-production stage. ‘Rohosyo Romancho Series’ revolves around three different plots from three different genres - crime, suspense and the supernatural. Abhirup’s last film ‘K: Secret Eye’ received critical acclaim.