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| Bollywood's Most Sizzling 'Eastside Stories'! | |||
'Chokher Bali' Based on Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore's novel by the same name, 'Chokher Bali', though not a Bollywood film still had a strong Bollywood influence in the (great) shape of Aishwarya Rai. The film also brought Rituparno Ghosh, the cerebral filmmaker from Bengal, closer to Bollywood. His film is set against the freedom struggle in Bengal at the turn of the last century. The ever-lovely Ash played a true blue, 'shundori mayeye' (pretty girl) Binodini an intelligent young widow, devoid of make-up, dressed in white. Ash as a manipulative seductress was perfect. The other Bollywood actress Raima Sen played Ashalata, a nave and soft character. 'Parineeta' After 'Devdas', another film subject originating from Bengali literature is Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's classic 'Parineeta'. Vidhu Vinod Chopra has decided to revisit this novel with Sanjay Dutt, Saif Ali Khan, Raima Sen and newcomer Vidya Balan in the lead. The film has been shot in Kolkatta and Darjeeling (including the famous toy train of the hill station) and is directed by Pradeep Sarkar. 'Parineeta', set in Kolkatta's typical upper class Bengali household, is a passionate little love story that questions conventions, commitments and is about the domination of women in a patriarchal society. 'Subhash Chandra Bose' Veteran filmmaker Shyam Benegal is making a mega budget film on the freedom fighter, Subhash Chandra Bose. Popularly called Netaji, he founded the Indian National Army against the British rule in India and fought them on the Burma border. The film is about the last five years of his life from the time he escaped from Calcutta and built an army of approximately 80,000 freedom fighters to his controversial death (he is believed to have died in a plane crash over Japan in 1945). Sachin Khedekar (Astitva), plays the prestigious role of Netaji.
'Namesake' Though Meera Nair is not a mainstream Bollywood filmmaker, yet her films, especially 'Monsoon Wedding' have glimpses of Bollywoood. Meera has gone with Bollywood actors like Nana Patekar, Naseeruddin Shah, Sharmila Tagore and Rekha in her films. She's now turning eastward and making a film on Pulitzer Prize winner Jhumpa Lahiri's book, 'The Namesake'. There were talks of casting Rani in the lead role of the Bengali girl Ashima, living in the United States. But with Rani not having bulk dates, Meera had to go with National award winner Konkona Sen and her mother Aparna Sen. She will be taking the rest of the cast for the film from Kolkatta except for the male protagonist who would be an Indian actor from the U.S.
'Kaalpurush' Bengali poet-turned filmmaker Buddhadeb Dasgupta is joining hands with Bollywood producer Jhamu Sughand for his next venture 'Kalpurush'. Playing a simple, middle-class Bengali housewife is none other than the Bollywood bombshell, Sameera Reddy. Paired opposite Rahul Bose, she is ambitious and ruthless. Mithun Chakraborty plays Bose's father in the film. 'Kalpurush' is based on the novel 'America America' written by Buddhadeb Dasgupta himself. |
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