Tollywood Roundup: Bengali celebs who made headlines this week

Whether it’s the exciting teaser of 'Kishore Kumar Junior', Arindam Sil’s ‘Balighawr’ getting postponed, rumours about Priyanks-Rahul’s settlement or Apu Trilogy’s digital restoration to Parno Mittra’s latest film; it was a week full of rumours and exciting news from the Tollywood industry. Here is a look at Bengali cinema's 10 of the most exciting news from this week.

Model turned actor Ravi Shaw is quite popular among those who closely follow Bengali TV serials. Ravi is now all set for his cinematic debut opposite none other than Koel Mallick. Produced by Surinder Films, the yet to be titled thriller is directed by Abhimanyu Mukherjee. Koel plays a hardcore journalist while the young actor will be seen as a crime reporter. Elaborating on his character in the upcoming thriller, Ravi has revealed, “My character in the film is a crime journalist who is a bit shy to express his feelings towards his love interest. Koel is also playing a hardcore journalist. She is straightforward. She understands everything. There is a touch of romance with twists in the story which is mainly a thriller.”

Directed by Soumojeet Adak, ‘Yeh Rishta’, a short film narrates an unusual love story between a first-year student Imon and a straightforward girl Aditi. Rii (Rituparna Sen) and debutant Rik Amrit will play the leads in ‘Yeh Rishta’. Rii, who is busy with films and web series right now, assured her fans that she will be seen in a completely different avatar in the short film. “People who always feel that I am all about boldness will be shocked to see me in a different avatar,” says Rii.

Directed by Rick Basu, Parno Mittra’s upcoming ‘Chupkotha’ revolves around a missing child, a mysterious mobile phone and an old house filled with a lot of dark secrets. The horror-thriller sees Parno as an investigative journalist Shivangi. When carrying out her investigation, she discovers an old phone and then comes a major twist in the story. What happens next forms the crux of the mystery. A large portion of the film has been shot in Kurseong which has made Parno a bit nostalgic as she grew up in the same place. ‘Chupkotha’ also sees Shataf Figar in a key role.

Prosenjit Chatterjee is all set to star in another Kaushik Ganguly directorial titled ‘Kishore Kumar Junior’. The upcoming musical drama narrates the story of a ‘Kishore Kanthi’ (one who sings and performs popular hits of Kishore Kumar) named Goutam Ghosh (played by Prosenjit). The celebrated actor has already said this film will be a tribute to the melody king Kishore Kumar. Now, to pay homage to the legendary singer, the makers recently released the first teaser of it on the 89th birth anniversary of Kishore Kumar. The teaser has already gained an overwhelming response from the audience, especially Prosenjit’s new look has made everyone nostalgic.

It was a big relief for Arindam Sil when he received the long-awaited permission to shoot in Bangladesh for his upcoming ‘Balighawr’ back in May. He was supposed to start shooting in Bangladesh from September. But the neighbouring country’s current political turmoil and upcoming national election have forced Arindam to postpone the shooting schedule of the Indo-Bangladesh venture. He is certainly not happy with the delay and feels it’s better to move on with his other projects like ‘Byomkesh Gowtro’ which is releasing this Puja.

Director Joydeep Mukherjee’s ‘Tui Sudhu Amar’ is all geared up for its August 31 release. The romantic-action flick sees Om, Soham Chakraborty and Bangladeshi actress Mahiya Mahi in the lead. The film has been largely shot in some prime locations of London. This is the first time Om is teaming up with Soham and the young actor is quite excited to be a part of this upcoming Bengali flick, “Soham da is a great actor and sharing screen with him gives me a chance to learn a lot of things.” Om made his cinematic debut with 2013 thriller ‘Arjun – Kalimpong E Sitaharan’, he said.

We have seen Shaheb Bhattacherjee in three Feluda films as the iconic sleuth’s cousin and sidekick Topshe. Directed by Sandip Ray, all of them – ‘Gorosthane Sabdhan, ‘Royal Bengal Rahasya’ and ‘Double Feluda’, were well accepted by the audience and critics alike. While Sabyasachi Chakraborty played Feluda in these three films, we have seen Abir Chatterjee as the sleuth in ‘Badshahi Angti’. While speaking about his fond memories of shooting for Feluda films, Shaheb reveals he himself dreams of playing Feluda one day, “I have played Topshe already. Now I really love to play Feluda’s role. It would be a dream come true. I have even urged Sandip Ray to cast me as Feluda but he has one condition. First I have to say goodbye to my earrings which I adore most.”

The digitally restored HD prints of Satyajit Ray’s iconic ‘Apu Trilogy’ is all set to be screened on the big screen for the first time in Kolkata. The event is an intriguing part of the 2018 Kolkata International Film Festival. 'Pather Panchali' (1955), 'Aparajito' (1956), and 'Apur Sansar' (1959) – all three movies will be shown at the film fest on November 11. Noted film preservationist Shivendra Singh Dungapur will present the trilogy before the viewers. New York’s Criterion Collection, a part of Janus Films, has recently successfully restored many Satyajit Ray classics which include the ‘Apu Trilogy’.

Tuhina Das first came into limelight with Arindam Sil’s ‘Asche Abar Shabor’ earlier this year playing a key character. Then the talented actress appeared in a small role in Kaushik Ganguly’s 'Drishtikone' featuring Prosenjit Chatterjee and Rituparna Sengupta in the lead. Now, if the latest rumours are to be believed, then a major career breakthrough awaits Tuhina. She will reportedly share the screen space with industry biggies Jisshu Sengupta and Kaushik Sen in national award-winning director Aparna Sen’s next ‘Ghare Baire’ which is a modern day take on Rabindranath Tagore’s 1916 novel ‘Ghare Baire’.

Rahul and Priyanka, once the cutest couple of Bengali industry recently locked horns in public after Priyanka chose to contest the divorce. According to industry sources, Priyanka demanded Rs 1.2 crore for the settlement. Rahul, however, reportedly called the demand an absurd one. As per him, the amount Priyanka asked for is more than his worth. The popular actor allegedly urged her to settle at 50 Lakh. Recently, both of them shot in Mussoorie for Arindam Sil's Puja release ‘Byomkesh Gowtro’.