Tollywood roundup: Bengali cinemas that made headlines last week

Be it the announcement of the entire cast of 'Byomkesh Gotro', Arpita Chatterjee's unbelievable makeover for her upcoming film, rumours of Prosenjit hosting the second season of a reality show or Jisshu Sengupta as next Feluda; it was a week full of buzz from the Tollywood industry. Here is a look at Bengali cinema's most exciting news from last week.

Rituparna Sengupta has every reason to celebrate. Three of her recent films, 'Drishtikone', 'Rong Beronger Kori', and 'Dharasnan' will be screened at the prestigious Habitat Film Festival in Delhi. The festival will start with Kaushik Ganguly's latest hit 'Drishtikone'. Atanu Ghosh’s award-winning 'Mayurakshi' and Aparna Sen’s 'Sonata' will also be premiered at the film fest.

Sandip Ray is ready for his next science-fiction movie ‘Professor Shonku O El Dorado’, inspired by his father Satyajit Ray’s story ‘Nakur Babu O El Dorado’. The shooting for the film will start by the end of this month and after completing the schedule in India, the whole team will fly to some exotic locations in Europe and Brazil. The first part of the shooting will be done in Kolkata and Giridih. Dhritiman Chatterjee will portray the character of professor Shonku in this film.

Arpita Chatterjee's aged woman with grey hair look, wrinkled skin, and exhausted expression has surprised everyone. Her unbelievable makeover is for Anjan Dutt's upcoming film 'Abyakto'. The film will see Prosenjit Chatterjee's wife in two completely different look - one of a woman at her mid-twenties, another of a 50-year-old woman. Make-up artist Aniruddha Chakladar and stylist Poulomi Gupta have been credited for the actress' incredible makeover.

'Hoichoi Unlimited has grabbed all the attention since its announcement. However, before the film could hit the floor Mimi Chakraborty, who was supposed to play the leading lady opposite Dev, backed out from the project. Then Rukmini Maitra reportedly replaced her in this movie. Now, it seems another pretty lady has joined the cast. Koushani will be seen in a key role in this comedy flick. Dev also gifted her a special poster on her birthday. Rumour has it she may replace Rukmini or be the replacement for Priyanka Sarkar's character in the show. Interestingly, Priyanka also recently dropped off from the project.

'Kaun Banega Crorepati' has turned out to be one of the most successful game shows in recent times. The second Bengali version of the same show - 'Ke Hobe Banglar Kotipati' - is all set to start soon. Saurav Ganguly hosted the first season of the show. Later, Bengal's beloved Dada went on to host Dadagiri. Now according to the latest rumours, Prosenjit Chatterjee has been approached to anchor the second season of 'Ke Hobe Banglar Kotipati'. However, the Tollywood superstar hasn't yet signed the dotted line.

The wait is finally over. The first look poster of 'Sultan The Saviour' is out now and the die-hard fans of actor Jeet are already loving it. Featuring the Tollywood hero in a fresh and vibrant look, the poster has gained a decent response. Directed by Raja Chanda, the action flick revolves around a kind and generous taxi driver, who would be seen in different character shades as the film progresses. Bangladeshi beauty Bidya Sinha Mim will play Jeet's love interest and Priyanka Sarkar has been cast as the Tollywood superstar's sister in this film.

Sara Sengupta, the elder daughter of Jisshu Sengupta, will mark her debut in Bengali cinema in Srijit Mukherjee's much-awaited film 'Uma'. According to the noted filmmaker, he had Sara in his mind while writing 'Uma' and she was the first and only choice for Srijit. Ahead of its grand release, 'Uma' has grabbed a lot of attention for its soul-stirring music and unique content. Sara Sengupta plays a terminally ill child in this film.

If you are eagerly waiting for a Byomkesh film here is a news of your interest. Anjan Dutt won't make Byomkesh anymore, but there is a good news too. Arindam Sil's 'Byomkesh Gotro' has been slated for a Puja release. Abir and Sohini are all set to retrieve the role of Byomkesh and Satyabati once again. Rahul Banerjee will play Ajit replacing Ritwick Chakraborty. Arjun Chakraborty will essay out Satyakam's role in the screen adaptation of 'Rokter Daag'. The shoot will start from June 6.

Arindam Sil has finally received the much-awaited permission of shooting in Bangladesh. The filmmaker, who recently completed shooting his part in Anjan Dutt's 'Finally Bhalobasa', took to his Twitter handle to reveal that the Bangladesh government has finally given permission to shoot for 'Balighawr' in the neighbouring country. Based on Suchitra Bhattacharya's 'Dheu Ase Dheu Jay', this film stars Abir Chatterjee, Arfin Shuvo, and Rahul in the leads. The shoot starts in August this year.

We have seen Abir Chatterjee plying both Byomkesh and Feluda. Now if all goes according to plan, the same thing can happen with Jisshu Sengupta as well. Sandip Ray will make next Feluda movie based on Satyajit Ray's 'Chinnomastar Obhishap'and he is looking for a new Feluda. Rumour has it that the makers want Jisshu to play the iconic sleuth character. Since Anjan Dutt has confirmed he won't direct any Byomkesh movie, Jisshu can't play the Satyanweshi anymore. However, the actor can only play Feluda if Kaustav Roy, the producer of Anjan Dutt's Byomkesh franchise let Jisshu sign the dotted line.