Prosenjit to play Byomkesh Bakshi in Rituparno Ghosh's trilogy

Kolkata, Feb 21 (IANS) The famous fictional detective Byomkesh Bakshi will soon be back on celluloid, courtesy director Rituparno Ghosh, who has roped in Bengali film industry's superstar Prosenjit to essay the role.

Uttam Kumar played Bakshi in Satyajit Ray's film 'Chiriakhana' (Zoo) in 1967. Director Manju Dey also filmed a Bakshi novel 'Shajarur Kanta' (Thorns of Porcupine) in Bengali in 1974. But it failed at the box office. Actor Rajat Kapoor last played the character for director Basu Chatterjee's Hindi television serial on Doordarshan in 1993.

Director Rituparno Ghosh has recently approached Prosenjit to become Bakshi for his trilogy.

'I have decided to make films on three out of 43 Byomkesh Bashi novels. I will start shooting the first one 'Arthamonoratham' sometime in May-June. Prosenjit has agreed to play the protagonist of this series,' Ghosh told IANS here Saturday.

Ghosh said he decided to make 'Bakshi' keeping Prosenjit in mind.

'Bakshi is different from all the other fictional detectives in the sense that unlike Sherlock Holmes or popular Bengali detective Feluda, he is a married man. Hence, besides, being intelligent and a courageous man, he has a romantic and emotional side as well.

'Prosenjit is the superstar of today's Bengali film industry and he knows how to balance all emotions in front of the camera. So, he was automatically the perfect choice for playing Bakshi,' Ghosh said.

Talking about the narrative of the films, Ghosh said he will moreover stick to author Sharadindu Bandopadhyay's way of story-telling.

'But we will have to make slight changes so that contemporary audience can relate to them. For example, The novel 'Arthamonoratham' is set in 1933. But we will set the film post-1947,' the director said.

Bakshi's character was created by Bandopadhyay in 1932. He was deeply influenced by Arthur Conan Doyle's famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. But he was keen on conceiving an Indian version of the detective. Like Holmes, Bakshi too had a writer friend Ajit. They lived at a flat on Harrison Road in north Kolkata.