Jhora Palok - The Epilogue, based on Jibananda Das, is set to be screened at the Dhaka International Film Festival

Sayantan Mukherjee’s Jhora Palok - The Epilogue has been selected to be screened at the prestigious 21st Dhaka International Film Festival 2023. Jhora Palok (The Fallen Feather) was the title of Jibananda Das’s first collection of poems and has inspired the title of the film, which is inspired by the life and works of the poet.

Jibanananda Das, who wrote Banalata Sen, has acquired a cult status in Bengali literature over the past few decades. Any account of his life attracts a lot of attention, from young and old. The film documents the Bengali literary world spanning from the 1910s to the 1950s, with the biggest modern Bengali poet of all times, at the centre of an engaging storyline.
The film’s narrative is fashioned in the style of a non-narrative broaching the mystery hovering over the poet’s death – whether it was an accident or suicide. Das died in a tram accident in 1955 and his death has intrigued many. The film documents the psychological alienation, uncertainty over employment and unprecedented literary vitriol that Das had faced throughout his literary career.
“Jhora Palok (The Epilogue) significantly differs from any other biopic, in which interpretation of Jibanananda’s poetry has been carried out along purely academic lines. I wanted to trace Jibanananda’s poetic growth, paying attention to the poet’s psycho-sexual upheavals as well,” said the director.
The cast includes Bratya Basu, Jaya Ahsan, Rahul, Debshankar Halder, Kaushik Sen, Shantilal Mukherjee and others.
Jaya also spoke about the film being selected for the festival, “We are overwhelmed. It is a matter of great prestige and honour for us,” she said.