Next up, I’d want to cast Subhashree as an antagonist: Srijit Mukherji

Destiny, devotion and cinema converge in Lawho Gouranger Naam Re, Srijit Mukherji’s ambitious new film that travels across three timelines to explore the life and mystery of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. With Subhashree Ganguly stepping into one of the most layered characters of her career, the film has already stirred industry curiosity. In this conversation, Srijit and Subhashree open up about timing, faith and the creative risks that shaped a project that they believe arrived in their lives with purpose.

Q: What took so long for the two of you to collaborate on a project?

Srijit: The search was for the right character and the right script. I also think providence plays its part. This film is more than cinema for all of us. Subhashree is playing a dream character. Off stage she is Nati Binodini and on stage she is Binodini as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. She is a Lord Jagannath devotee in real life, which makes the collaboration even more special. I feel the project happened because it was willed by a higher force, not by us.

Subhashree: Everything has a fixed time that the higher power creates. We joined this project because it was meant for us. It is not only a film. It is something much bigger. This character will hold a special place in my life and not just in my filmography. I owe that to Srijit da and to everyone involved with the project. Script wise it is one of the best stories I have ever heard. I feel blessed to be part of it.

Q: This film diverges from your recent work. In what ways did it feel different for you?

Srijit: I have done historical fiction before. I have made Jaatishwar, Rajkahini, Ek Je Chhilo Raja, Gumnaami and Padatik. But this subject carries divinity, which changes the way you approach it. When you touch the mystery of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s disappearance, you enter a sacred space. This also became the third part of what is now my disappearance trilogy.

Q: Was the trilogy a conscious decision?

Srijit: Not at all. It struck me much later that I had made films about the three most iconic disappearances in Bengali history and cultural memory. It was entirely coincidental. Again, that sense of providence. Perhaps some force wanted these stories to pass through me.

Q: How challenging was it to combine the three timelines and keep the narrative coherent?

Srijit: To truly explain the process, one would need to read the script. The timelines are like three separate threads. We interweave them through transitions, parallels and reflections. Some parts of Mahaprabhu’s life are happening, some are being performed on stage and some are being filmed. The coherence comes from careful structuring.

Q: What aspect of playing Binodini and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu challenged you the most?

Subhashree: I had to be Binodini and Chaitanya Dev at the same time. When I am performing Chaitanya on stage, I am still Binodini, stepping into his role. That duality was tough. We had workshops to understand the dance theatre of the nineteenth century. It was challenging and interesting at the same time.

Q: I noticed from the poster outside that you appear bald as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a look not many would be comfortable to take on. Since the character demanded it, could you talk about embracing the look?

Subhashree: I am at a stage in my career where I fully surrender to the director’s vision. Since 2019 after Parineeta, my approach has changed. If a character demands something, I will do it. If Srijit da asked me to shave my head completely, I would do it. Creative risks excite me. The character comes first.

Q: When portraying historical figures, how important is accuracy to you?

Srijit: If documentation exists, I follow it. Fiction is for the gaps, not the basics. For example, Binodini’s makeup must look like the makeup of her time. Her bald cap for Chaitanya could not look like a smooth twenty first century prosthetic. It needs the imperfections of the period. You can fictionalise what is not recorded, but you cannot rewrite what is known.

Q: This has been a strong year for you with Grihapravesh, Anushandhan and Dhumketu. How do you look back at it?

Subhashree: After so many years of working, the excitement does not stay in the same way. As a child I would have felt thrilled. Now the process matters the most. We want our work to reach people, for them to feel something, good or bad. When audiences love a film, we feel grateful and move on to the next journey. I feel blessed for the love I received this year.

Q: What do you now look for in a character before saying yes?

Subhashree: I want roles that challenge me so deeply that I lose sleep thinking about them. I want tougher characters, more difficult journeys. That is where the joy of creation lies. It is a continuous process.

Q: What is the one feeling you want the audience to leave with?

Srijit: Epic.

Q: You are also working on another historical film. Has your interest in history grown consciously?

Srijit: I enjoy thrillers and I enjoy historical fiction. I read constantly, so these stories come to me. Swamiji used to say that the future is born from the womb of the past. If we do not celebrate and learn from history, our future becomes vulnerable. So yes, it is a conscious affection for the genre.

Q: How do you decide how much to fictionalise when working with history?

Srijit: When I have documentation to support facts, like in Padatik, I stay true to them. But when the story goes two hundred or three hundred years back and there are no records, I bring my imagination to some length. You interpolate and extrapolate. You find what might have happened from small hints. Fiction is a legitimate tool, but its foundation must be solid.

Q: Do you plan to collaborate again after this?

Srijit: I would love to. I am already imagining her in many roles. There is a script with a completely negative character that I want her to play. An actor’s full range appears only when they play black, white, grey and everything in between. There is also a women centred script I am thinking about for her.

Subhashree: I call myself water. I take the shape of the vessel. My only condition is that the character must keep me awake at night thinking about it.

Pics: Anindya Saha

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