5 Bengali Screen Adaptations of Shakespeare's Plays
Bengali films have given some of the finest works in Indian Cinema throughout the ages. Bengal has been gifted with noted filmmakers like Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Tapan Sinha and Budhadeb Dasgupta. In recent times, the legacy has been continued by contemporaries like Rituporno Ghosh, Srijit Mukherjee, and Anjan Dutt, amongst others. It is surprising that there are very few works of Shakespeare that have been adapted on screen in Bengal. I am thankful to have watched almost all the very few that have made their way to the Bengali audience. Here is the list: 1. Bhranti Bilas: This is the first Bengali screen adaptation of one of Shakespeare's comedies, "The Comedy of Errors". It had Bengali legendary actor Uttam Kumar and noted yesteryear comedian Bhanu Bandopadhyay in double roles. The screenplay of this 1963 film has been beautifully synchronized, keeping in mind the mindset of the audience in that era. The bits and pieces of all the characters that were shown have been...