Train journey reveals a spiritual connection

Raajhorshee De’s next film, Purba, Pashchim, Dakshin (Uttor Asbei), is a paranormal thriller based on Avik Sarkar’s best-selling book, Ebong Inquisition. Paran Bandopadhyay, Kamaleswar Mukherjee, Rajesh Sharma, Gaurav Chakrabarty, Aryann Bhowmick, Rudraprasad Sengupta, Payel Deb, Eshika Dey, Suchandra Vaaniya, Daminee Benny Basu, Padmanabha Dasgupta, Bidipta Chakraborty and Manobi Bandopadhya play important roles in this film.“It is the first-ever spiritual thriller in Bengali cinema. Three short stories on paranormal situations — superstition, mistaken identity and reincarnation — are linked through the train journey of a patient and her fellow passenger. We will get to know who they are at the end of the film,” said the director.Kamaleswar, on his part, said, “I play a sutradhar in the film, who binds the three stories together. It was nice to work with this young and energetic team.” Does the director in him take a back seat when he acts in a film? “Absolutely. I am an actor when I am not donning the director’s hat on the sets. I try to follow what my director says.”Talking about the film, he said, “The plot of the film gradually unfolds through an eventful rail journey. Stuti, a widow suffering from a terminal disease, can only be treated by a particular doctor. During her journey, a co-passenger narrates to her three stories interconnected with each other. The stories relate to the worship of Goddess Kali and the practice of tantra in Bengal at the time of renowned Bengali scholar and pioneer of tantra, Krishnananda Agamavagisha.”