Pheluda’s jungle diary

Sabyasachi Chakrabarty shoots — not with Pheluda’s .32 Colt, but with his camera — and shares ‘Royal Bengal Rahasya’ snippets
It had always been my dream to play the super-sleuth, Pheluda. Yes, it is “Pheluda” for me, and not Feluda. There is no ‘F’ in Bengali phonetics, but since it is a proper noun people may spell it the way they like.
Like everyone else, I was fascinated by the writings of Satyajit Ray.Sixteen long years have gone by since we did “Baksho Rahasya” for the small screen. Since then, we have been able to successfully complete 10 stories for television and four for the big screen. It is now time for people to see the fifth on the big screen — “Royal Bengal Rahasya”.
“RBR” would be my last appearance as Pheluda if the audience feels so. Audience reaction is the most important factor, followed by preferences of the producer and the director. I had said this to Bibhuda (Bibhu Bhattacharjee, who plays Jatayu) one day. He was quite disheartened and had said it would be his last too, if I left. Well, he left before I could. We shall always remember his contribution in eight of the stories. Babuda (Sandip Ray) has termed him a true professional, as he completed the shooting, dubbing, publicity photoshoot and interviews for “RBR” before he called it ‘quits’. It seems this is where I should quit too, as a tribute to Bibhuda.
Let me tell you about our latest venture. None of our Pheluda shoots went without hitches or hold-ups. “Royal Bengal Rahasya” had its share of hiccups too. When Babuda decided to film RBR for Sri Venkatesh Films & Surinder Films Combine, we were all excited. I was a little more so than others because this film would entirely be shot in the jungles and forests. The script, cast and crew were finalized but we could not find a single rajbari in North Bengal that matched the description. The zamindar’s palace-cum-hunting lodge was supposed be surrounded by forest and hills. The search for the right palace finally ended in Dhenkanal’s Borapada Forest. The palace of Shri RP Singh Deo.
We stayed in hotels in Dhenkanal town and drove about 8 km to the palace to shoot everyday. Shri Singh Deo is a registered hunter and his palace interiors had the perfect look of a hunting lodge with the heads of animals as wall-hung trophies. There were chital and sambhar heads. There was also the stuffed head and skin of a full-grown male tiger in an almirah. The tiger was shot by Shri Singh Deo in South Odisha on request of the forest department, as the tiger had started killing livestock and humans too. During our shooting, we saw Shri Singh Deo going out with his rifle, accompanied by aides. He had to frequently go to scare away the marauding elephants, the raiding army of langurs, wild boars and hyenas from his agricultural fields and nearby villages. He used to go to rescue these animals from being targeted by frightened humans. Not to kill or injure them.
We heard actual incidents of how Mrs Singh Deo bravely faced the snakes, civet cats, hyenas, mongooses, langurs, scorpions, spiders, etc. which used to invade her house from time to time. She always said, “If you live in the jungle, you have to learn to live with these creatures. After all, it is their home.” She also narrated to us how a group of elephants walked up to her backyard in search of food. Most of the time she had to face it alone as her husband was frequently away from home. The Singh Deo family helped us with their permission to finish the schedule on time. During the shoot we saw peafowls, heard elephants trumpeting and the alarm call of a frightened deer. We were even attacked by a swarm of bees one evening.
We had to shoot a well-stocked trophy room in the film. The Singh Deo palace did not have any. We had planned shooting it in Kolkata, but then got the information that Talcher Palace has a big trophy room. The permission was sought and obtained. We had to drive about 75 km to Talcher to shoot the scene. It came off very well. It was good while it lasted.
We also got the permission from the forest department, government of West Bengal, to shoot in Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary and Ballavpur Wildlife Sanctuary. Both the forests were wonderful locations. I am sure it would be very difficult for most of the viewers to identify which shot has been taken where. We have had the privilege of shooting the film with a rhinoceros beetle, a banded krait, a monocled cobra and a royal bengal tiger. Though we share screen space with the tiger, we’ve not met him physically. I am sure the audience is eagerly waiting for the release of the film; so are we.
Benuda’s travel must-haves Camera, lens: shoot at sight, but not with pheluda’s .32 colt cash/cards: because Magajastra is not always enough clothes/accessories: he’s definitely nattier than the kurta-trousers clad sleuth car/toolbox: why depend on Jatayu’s vehicle always? guide maps: he always shows the way, but a little help can always be handy