Kolkata, Feb 10: Three decades after their acclaimed pairing in Aparna Sen’s ‘Yugant’, veteran Bengali actors Anjan Dutt and Roopa Ganguly are set to return to the screen together, reuniting after 31 years in debutant director Samarpon Sengupta’s upcoming film ‘Pratyabartan’.
Last seen together in 1995 as Deepak and Anusuya – a pairing that lingered in the collective memory of Bengali cinema lovers – the two actors will now portray an elderly couple in the “family drama”.
‘Pratyabartan’ marks Sengupta’s first feature film for the big screen. The director said he considers himself fortunate to have such seasoned performers anchoring his maiden venture.
“This film talks about a family crisis. In today’s time, we hardly have time for the person existing beside us. We are busy with our mobile phones and often fail to speak even for two minutes with our loved ones. Many people suffer from loneliness,” Sengupta told PTI, adding that the story emerges from these everyday realities.
Dutt and Ganguly’s on-screen chemistry, Sengupta said, retains its warmth even after decades, while offering audiences “a new side to their performance” in his film.
The film, slated for release in June, follows the journey of physician Dr Dipankar Sanyal (played by singer-actor Silajit Majumder) and his wife Shalini (Aparajita Addhya), who move from a remote village in Purulia district to Kolkata, driven by aspirations of a better future for their daughter.
As the couple becomes entangled in the relentless pursuit of success, their daughter retreats into the virtual world, grappling with distress and isolation.
Sengupta said the characters in ‘Pratyabartan’ are firmly rooted in lived experience, reflecting the sense of dislocation faced by those who migrate from districts to cities in search of opportunity.
“None of the characters in my film are imaginary. They represent the loneliness inside many urban homes in today’s metro cities,” he said.
Shot across Kolkata and Purulia, the film features an ensemble cast including Kharaj Mukherjee, Koneenica Banerjee, Roopa Bhattacharya, Debranjan Nag and Arunava Khasnabis.
“There is also a story of returning to one’s roots in the film, which will make viewers realise the value of family,” Sengupta added.
Roopa Ganguly was last seen on the big screen in the Bengali blockbuster Raghu Dakat, where her performance drew praise from audiences. (PTI)
