Freak accident leaves director with severe burn injury

Though Punashcha���s shooting went off smoothly, Souvik Mitra will remain out of action for a while
His debut film might be nearing completion, but Souvik Mitra can���t help but remain out of action for a while now. The director, who completed shooting for Punashchawith Soumitra Chatterjee and Roopa Ganguly, met with a freak accident last Sunday and has taken to bed with a plastered face.
Recuperating from the injury, Souvik recalls, ���I was driving back from Mandarmani on Sunday night.Midway, I saw smoke coming out of the car���s bonnet. On opening it, the coolant burst out in my face. I have suffered severe burns and am back from the hospital. I can���t leave home in the next two months.���
Meanwhile, shooting went off smoothly for Souvik. ���The film was completed in straight 18 days, including an outdoor schedule in Santiniketan,��� he says.
Punashcha revolves around a famous Bengali author ��� Animesh Mukhopadhyay ��� who goes to Delhi to receive an award. On his way back, the 70-year-old writer, who is a family man, plans to spend 24 hours with Mohona, the woman he fell in love with in the ���60s. ���It���s not every day that you get to work with the Dadasaheb Phalke winner. While I was apprehensive, Roopa was a bundle of nerves. But Soumitrada would come on the sets with the enthusiasm of a beginner. He would have many questions about the dialogues, scenes, body language... Roopa, on the other hand, had worked with him many years back. Back then, Soumitrada had given her a lot of tips, which she follows like a rulebook,��� says Souvik.
So, what was the best memory of the shoot? ���There was a dinner sequence. The spread included postor bora, parshe maachher jhal, potoler dorma, maachher matha diye muger dal. Soumitrada, who eats less, tasted a bit of the food, while Roopa polished off the rest. To discourage her from eating too much, Soumitrada kept telling her, ���This is shooting food���. Roopa would also refer to him as Feluda all through. The duo had a lovely time shooting for the film,��� says the director.
The movie is currently in post-production and Souvik says, ���I���ll decide on the release once I���m a little better.���