Me Movies More

We have 2 schools near our house, and both are preparing for Sunday's Republic Day celebrations. Listening to the drum beats and patriotic songs feels so good. Yesterday, it was Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose's birth anniversary. I remember watching an old movie based on his life a long time back. This made me wonder why not make a list of such patriotic Bengali films today. So, today, I have listed 5 such patriotic Bengali Films: 1. Chattogram Astragar Lunthan (1949): Released at a time when India had freshly gained independence from Imperial British rule, this film centres around the Chittagong Armoury Raid and its mastermind, Masterda (Surya Sen). Surya Sen was a local teacher who planned to raid the Armoury with his small group of students, resulting in a fatal revolt. The immortal patriotic song, "Karar Ei Louho Kopat", penned by Kazi Nazrul Islam, was used in this film. 2. Ananda Math (1951): Ananda Math is one of my favourite novels by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay...

Ba, Bakul, and Brenda are back in Mumbai this time. Brenda was looking at the skyscrapers from her balcony. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon, and she invited Ba & Bakul. The mention of this grandmother-grandson duo brings a sigh of relief to her rather busy life in Mumbai. After last year's vacation in Goa, she was back in India to research an upcoming feature that her team had been planning for some time. Amidst meetings and conferences, she has taken a day off to spend an afternoon with them.  She was sceptical about calling Bakul and informing them she was in India, as she thought, how would that matter! She was in Mumbai, and they lived in Baroda! But she remembered Ba's departing words last time, " Come India next, I meet again." She could not forget that elderly lady's warmth. The few days she spent with them had been an experience of a lifetime she could never have imagined in her most beautiful dreams. How can a family be so warm and friendly to a strang...

New-age Bengali thrillers have captivated hearts all around. Over the years, filmmakers like Srijit Mukherji with his ventures like Vinci Da and Dawshom Awbotaar, Joydip Mukherji with his Eken Babu Franchise and Arindam Sil with Byomkesh franchise have been very successful with cinegoers. However, thrillers are not a completely new genre that have been explored by Bengali filmmakers. The Black & White era had given us some classic thriller movies that can still attract audiences. Today I am listing 5 such old classic black & white thriller films made in Bengal. 1. Jighansha (1951): This film was almost a pioneer in thriller films when it comes to the Bengali film industry. Based on The Hound of the Baskervilles, this film is about an heir to a princely state where his father is murdered and a mysterious woman roams around the estate at night. The mystery builds up more with some suspicious characters entering the plot. Detective Sen is appointed to solve the whole mystery and ...

Marc was looking at the remnants of what used to be his vast villa once. He could see clouds of smoke forming in certain places. It was still hot out there, with fire fragments flowing all over. In front of the gate was a huge pile of broken items- some turned to ashes and some half-broken. He could see something shining through the pile. He approached near to find a partially broken framed photograph. He picked it up to find one half of a picture of a beautiful 25-year-old woman with wavy blond hair and dreamy hazel eyes- his Lucy.  Fire - devastating, damaging & destructive! It has taken away all he has lived with for the last 5 years. Every object, every article, and every piece had been restoring Lucy's touch, her memories, and the feeling of her presence that brought life to all things inanimate. The garden where she grew her roses, the pool where she used to swim like a swan, all gulped by the deadly hunger of the forest fire!!  Tears rolled down the 55-year-old's ag...

Political thrillers are a less ventured genre by Bengali filmmakers. However, there are a few very well-made ones. Today, I will list a few such political thrillers by Bengali filmmakers. 1. Atanka (1986): " Mastermoshai, apni kintu kichu dekhenni. ( Masterji, you have not seen anything.) This infamous dialogue by the film's antagonist still brings shivers down the spine. The cold and stern tone, without any usual profanities used by political goons, instead maintaining the respect of his former teacher, his warning serves as the USP and determinant of the situation's intensity. A retired teacher accidentally witnesses the murder at the hands of one of his ex-students, who is now a political goon. His whole life turns into a living hell when he decides to inform the police. Atanka is one of Tapan Sinha's best works, showcasing the ugly truth of Bengal politics of the 80s. It featured powerful performances from Soumitra Chattopadhyay, Sumanta Mukherji, Bhishma Guha Tha...

"Myself Bakul from Baroda." A 30 something man approached Brenda. She was startled by the man's attire. She had never seen so many colours on a man before. She was left amused, "I am Brenda from New York." She could sense the man's nervousness. " You reporter?"  "Oh, yes, I work for the New York Flash." Brenda declared. The warm, cozy and colourful bookstore that they were in was very different from the usual ones. Situated by the sandy beach, it had a cafe, equally colourful. Even the books that adored the racks had been arranged in a rainbow themed pattern. Brenda quite liked the overall decor and theme. In fact she was planning to write about it in her next feature, when Bakul came. His outfit perfectly matched the cafe's overall theme. "Nice outfit." Brenda was not a pro at hiding her feelings. "Thanks, Ba's choice."  "Ba, is that your girlfriend?" "No no, grandmother." Suddenly the enti...