Weekend roundup: Shooting starts in Bengal after 85 days, update on Kolkata film festival; here’s what made headlines in Bengali cinema

If you have missed the exciting news, gossips or latest developments that have rocked Bengali cinema this week, here is a weekly roundup for you. Take a look:

Till Wednesday morning, there was uncertainty whether the Bengali TV shooting will resume any time soon due to the rift between Artist’s Forum and Welfare Association of Television Producers, Federation of Cine Technicians & Workers of Eastern, and representatives of TV channels regarding the proposed medical insurance of the actors risking their lives amid the COVID-19 crisis. But, the moment West Bengal minister and Tele Academy chairman Aroop Biswas intervened the issues were sorted out clearing the way to resume shooting from June 11 after a gap of 85 days. The Bengali television industry was scheduled to start shooting on Wednesday to churn out fresh episodes to be telecast from June 15. But a dispute between the industry stakeholders left everybody in shock.

The debate is on whether this year’s Kolkata International Film Festival will opt for an online route like many other film fests worldwide? Recently Bengal minister Aroop Biswas had a meeting with festival director Raj Chakraborty, Indranil Sen, Arindam Sil, Parambrata Chattopadhyay and others. The main agenda was will it be a virtual film fest. After the meeting it was decided the film festival will be held on time in November but whether it will be online or at theatres that will completely depend on the infection rate and situation in Kolkata. Also, the event will be a less starry affair given the virus crisis and the destruction left behind by cyclone Amphan. There’s a chance that the number of films, viewers and guests will be curtailed. Another meeting will be held later to take a final call on whether the Kolkata Film Festival will be held online.

Nusraat Faria who last appeared in Birsa Dasgupta’s ‘Bibaho Obhijaan’ last year got engaged to her long-time boyfriend Rony Rashid. The couple, who had been in a relationship for the last seven years, broke the news on Monday, more than three months after their engagement. Faria and Rony both uploaded in separate Facebook posts a picture of their hands with engagement rings on, and captioned it: "Alhamdulillah by the grace of Almighty Allah and support of family And friends my Seven long years relationship has been finally blessed in March 2020. We are united." The Bangladeshi actress returned from her village home recently after a two month stay.

Who are we? Women. Regular, working, breathing, surviving bodies of existence. Providers, protectors and lovers of all beings on planet. Who are we? Women. An enthralling poetry that drips the society with their unjust views towards the sexes. That’s what sums up Rituparna Sengupta’s visual adaptation of Subho Dasgupta’s poem ‘Ami E Shei Meye’. It has been shot at home in a unique way and Rituparna’s acting once again floors us. While the Tollywood diva has also conceptualized the video, her daughter Rishona helped her a lot. As we see glimpses of Rituparna’s natural acting Raya Bhattacharya’s recitation takes us to a different world.

Mimi Chakraborty became the first Bengali actor to shoot outdoor for her latest music video ‘Amaro Porano Jaha Chay’ on Monday. Bengal government had already allowed film and TV shooting from June 1 but Tollywood decided to resume filming from June 10. So, it was the first outdoor shoot in Kolkata following the nationwide lockdown since March. Mimi and her 10-member team did the shooting for a Rabindra Sangeet music video in Rajarhat area following all the norms of social distancing strictly.

Industry insiders often say that Paran Bandopadhyay will only say yes to a role on his own terms and conditions and the acting powerhouse says it’s good to have a little bit of attitude. “I love working on my terms and conditions. I am a perfectionist and don’t take shortcuts when it comes to acting. For me, acting is a collective art and I prefer to concentrate on my work when I am on the floors. But these days, most of the actors and actress are only concerned about their looks and costumes than their performances. I have a serious problem with that. Their negligence can affect the entire scene of which I am also a part. And as for reporting late on the sets, yes I do as I don’t want to indulge in idle gossip,” explains the veteran actor.

While many have welcomed the decision to resume shooting in Tollywood there are actors who will be starting work despite fears of getting infected. Versatile actor Swastike Mukherjee whose one film release (Guldasta) got postponed and shooting for another (Shrimati) still to be completed feels it will be difficult to adjust with the ‘new normal’.

“Not only intimate scenes, you can’t shoot a simple mother-daughter scene while maintaining social distancing. Plus, even in a small-budget film, at least 100 people are on the set. And if one technician gets infected, the shoot has to be completely called off, with artistes being quarantined one by one. Unless we receive the greenest of green lights, filming will be really difficult. Actors also work very closely with makeup artistes and hairstylists, so, we will be exposed to risks of getting infected even before we are on the actual set,” explains the ‘Shah Jahan Regency’ actor.