| Zinia Sen |
| |
Here's the amazing story .
You are not a blood relation of Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay. How did the rights to all his works end up with you?
It all started with my father. He had just joined Presidency College and was all of 17 when he travelled to Malad on some work. He had cultural inclinations and knew many artistes in Kolkata. On that trip, when he got to know that Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay stayed in the area, he landed up at the author's house at 6.30 am. Dida, his wife, opened the door and thought that the young, good-looking boy had come for a role in films. People from Bengal used to often land up at their house for this purpose.Obviously , she did not entertain him, and said, "He won't be up before 10."
Over the next few hours, every time she opened the door, he was sitting there. Finally, when Sharadindubabu woke up, Dida told him about this young man, who then got an audience. Somehow, there was an instant connect between him and Sharadindubabu. As my father gradually grew close to the family , Sharadindubabu started treating him like his eldest son. Soon, he started handling the author's works. After Sharadindubabu's death in 1970, his sons started depending more and more on my father. They are scattered across continents and are not too clued into his works. After my father passed away , his eldest son's son, who too is no more, came to me and requested me to handle his works. The family got together and gave me the power of attorney , which has been lying with me since then. I sell the rights and transfer the money to the family's account.
You mean to tell us that despite being the executor of his legacy, you derive no benefit from it?
By God's grace, my family has been successful in business and we've been riding cars for generations. I don't need a single paisa from the sale of his copyrights.For me, what's important is to build Brand Byomkesh.
Share with us your memories of Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay. (Mukherjee) had come to our house.
Dadu looked at him and said, 'Oi kalo meyer sangei tor biye hobe re. Tui hyan bole de'. And that's where he got married. Sharadindubabu would never speak on public platforms, but was the heart of every family gathering. He had an amazing sense of humour and was a great friend. His wife was a beautiful lady . She would listen to all his stories first and even suggest changes. After he passed away , a manuscript was found from their house, which my father loved. He asked dida if he could publish it. Once she read it, she said, 'Wait till I die, as it's a lot about our lives'. It was the manuscript of Dadar Kirti. Within 10 days of being published, Tarun Majumdar bought the rights.
As an author, can you imagine the hold he has over so many genera tions? Think about this he passed away in the '70s, his stories are set in the 1920s-30s and this year, I've got royalty of '17 lakh!
After the release of every Byomkesh film, the publisher tells me that all existing stocks have been exhausted. And it's not just Byomkesh. Sujoy Ghosh has bought the rights to Tungabhadrar Tirey . Two of his ghost stories have already been made into films. Film rights to particular stories are generally sold for a definite time period -three years or more. I have sold one Byomkesh many times over. I remember my father selling Jhinder Bandi 11 times as no one could make it.Even Bikash Roy had bought it.Then when Tapan Sinha finally made it, Dadu wrote to my father saying, 'Tui amar etoboro sarbonash ta korli, sunchhi naki Tapna ta korei phello, ar toh bechte parbi na.' Tapan Sinha later asked my father for a copy of that letter.
Of the many people who approach you for Byomkesh, how many do you refuse every day?
I have people flocking to my chamber all the time. I refuse most. Just the other day , an actor tried to reason that if so many films are made, the value of Byomkesh would depreciate. I couldn't help smiling at his weak business aptitude. The author died in the '70s.It's been 45 years and I won't get royalty after the next 15 years. No one will buy the rights in the last five years, as they'll wait for the copyright to expire. So, I need to sell the Byomkesh rights multiple times in the next 10 years. Anjan (Dutt) has put a lot into the franchise in Bangla. He has already made three films. Up next is Kahen Kobi Kalidas. That apart, he has the rights to Agniban, Uposanghar, Durga Rahasya, Chiriyakhana and Magna Mainak. The rights will be with him till 2020.
Magna Mainak was once made by Swapan Ghoshal...
The film hit the theatres at noon, by 3 pm its fate was decided. I heard the film was bad.
How many Byomkesh rights did Rituparno Ghosh have?
Ritu had first come to me for Jhinder Bandi. He would land up at my residence once every month. He would reach at 7 in the morning and stay till 1 pm. One day , during an adda session, he said, 'Prabir kaka ami Byomkesh korbo.' I asked him whom he wanted to cast as Byomkesh. He said, 'Keno Bumba (Prosenjit Chatterjee)?' They even did a photoshoot. But after Abir's (Chatterjee) photos surfaced in the papers, Ritu dropped the idea.Ritu had the rights to Chorabali, apart from two other stories. He couldn't make Jhinder Bandi because he couldn't find a good producer. Much later, he revived the Byomkesh project. I remember Sujoy had called me to talk about Tungabhadrar Tirey and how nervous he was since he couldn't say no to Ritu.
When you sold the rights to Rituparno Ghosh, wasn't Anjan Dutt upset?
When Ritu came to me to buy the rights, I told him that Anjan already had some of them. He said Anjan could make it his way .I called up Anjan and he said the same thing. There were no issues between them ever.
How long do filmTV rights stay with the person buying them?
As I said, they are generally for three years. At times they remain for seven years, depending on the amount paid. They come back to me after the specific timespan. At times agreements also specify the directors' names. Dibakar (Banerjee) first came to me eight-nine years back. He is Sudiptaa Chakraborty's uncle and she got me introduced to him. When I met him, I realized he was mad about Sharadindu. He called me up and asked me to watch Khosla Ka Ghosla, which was premiering on TV . I liked the film immensely and took a liking to him too. Earlier, he was supposed to produce the Byomkesh film himself. But then, when the producer was locked, he helped me negotiate. It was finally sold for many lakhs around three years back. Our agreement is such that if he doesn't do another film, the rights come back to me.
What I liked about Dibakar was the way he did his research. He remained camped up in Kolkata for about eight months. He asked me about the famous mess on Harrison Road. Even before Sharadindubabu, Jibanananda Das used to stay there. It's in a des olate state. Dibakar was so thrilled that he started jumping when I took him there. He was keen on shooting there, but I said the building would collapse if his team of nearly 100 people enters it! Finally, the mess was entirely recreated in Mumbai.
Basu Chatterjee made Byomkesh famous long back through his TV series. Who had sold the rights to him?
My father, though not much money was involved back then.
Basu Chatterjee got the rights for 10 years against a measly sum of '3 lakh. The series went on to be very popular. The first time I met Rajit Kapur, I saw him coming down the stairs wearing dhuti panjabi. I liked him immediately .
Today, television must be paying much more...
Much, much more. I had sold Byomkesh for television twice before Rana Sarkar took the rights. The Hindi TV rights are still with me. I don't wish to give them away as Dibakar has just started building a franchise; he might be interested after a point. In 2000, I sold the rights to Swapan Ghoshal for '750 per hour. He made 55 episodes. Today , I sell for a lakh per hour. Film rights would earlier cost '10,000, now it's '1 lakh. Anjan has also paid up to a lakh. I wanted to make the brand popular, I had no idea it would become a rage. Now I can com mand a price. So, I always look for the right producer. When I sold the rights to Swapan Ghoshal, he made a bad film. Back then, I did n't have much of a say . Much before that, Sajarur Kanta and Chiriyakhana were made by Manju Dey and Satyajit Ray .
How did Satyajit Ray land the rights to Chiriyakhana?
My father and Satyajit Ray were good friends. Both of them belonged to the 1942 batch of Presidency , though Ray left after a while. But my father and he remained friends. In fact, the name Sharadindu Omnibus was suggested by my father.
Which is your favourite Byomkesh film?
I loved Anjan's Bomkesh Phire Elo the most. The best part is that, it also made money . I know Sajarur Kanta is also running in the the atres. The director, Saibal Mitra, came to me years back to buy Byomkesh rights. He is an extremely nice man, whose talent hasn't been explored fully .
And your favourite Byomkesh?
In Bangla, Abir. And though I loved Rajit Kapur, I also like Sushant Singh Rajput. Abir is a very nice person. Now when Jisshu (U Sengupta) slips into Byomkesh's shoes, it will be a challenge for him.
So, who's your favourite sleuth?
Of course, Byomkesh. I am fully aware of the Byomkesh vs Feluda debate that keeps Bengalis on the edge. Feluda was born only after Byomkesh -rather, the writer -died. Feluda stories mostly cater to children; there are not many complexities.
What about Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay's other works?
Rana has bought the rights to his ghost stories. Sandip has already adapted two of his stories in Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy and Char .Now, there's a lot of interest in his novel, Chua Chandan. Problem is, the canvases are huge and it's difficult to make them in Bangla.Sujoy is already working on Tungabhadrar Tirey . I can also see Byomkesh merchandize getting popular. I've heard people are buying Byomkesh specs. I wouldn't be surprised if they next bring out Byomkesh dhuti-panjabi.Discussions about Byomkesh are always good, as people end up buying the books.
Do we see a lot more Byomkesh films coming up next?
Four directors have already approached me from Bengal. Rights will go to the one who gives me a better deal. I have the rights to Satyanweshi, Sajarur Kanta, Makorshar Rosh, Artham Anartham and Pather Kanta, among others. I will get a clearer picture in the next month. Right now all that I get to hear from people is, 'Byomkesh korbo, Byomkesh korbo'.
ON THE MYSTERY MAN
The first time I met Prabir Chakraborty, he kept stuffing me with food. He was amazed that a so-called Westernized man like me would be so interested in Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay. He even asked me how many films I wished to make, and when I said many, he was even more surprised as the concept of a franchise was still unknown in Bengal. His wife and he were supportive of me from Day One. His wife is, in fact, an encyclopaedia on the author.Whenever I need some information, I land up at their residence. Also, I keep him clued into all my Byomkesh films. He was depressed after Abir (Chatterjee) left, but eventually liked Jisshu (U Sengupta) after the first photoshoot. What I like most about him is that he never treats star directors and rank newcomers differently.
ANJAN DUTT, director
He is one of the best hosts that I have known and every time I meet him, Prabirda treats me to luchi-mangsho. I remember having a conversation with him before I played the sleuth in Ritu's (Rituparno Ghosh) film. When I got the rights to Tungabhadrar Tirey, the only thing he requested me was that the story should not be distorted. I don't know another person who is so encouraging about literary works.
SUJOY GHOSH, director-actor
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