It was a giveaway when Sujan ‘Neel’ Mukhopadhyay wrote on social media: “Aditya Vikram Senguptar notun cinemar jonyo, nijer bibhinno boyesher chobir songroho khujte giye pawa dhon sompottir bhandar theke… (Found a bunch of gems while looking for photographs of different ages for Aditya Vikram Sengupta’s next film).” Now, sources in the industry have confirmed that the director, known to be a festival favourite, is ready with his next — Aquarium. This will be his third venture after the much talked-about
Asha Jaoar Majhe
and
Jonaki
. Besides Sujan,
Bratya Basu and
Sreelekha Mitra will be seen in important roles in the film.
“The film is about a Kolkata-based couple — Ela (Sreelekha) and Sisir, her husband. Sujan is likely to play the character. While Ela is a go-getter, Sisir is comparatively submissive. Bratya plays Sreelekha’s half-brother. The film also touches upon the chit fund scam that shook Bengal in recent years,” the source added. Interestingly, a few of the crew members, including the DoP, are from abroad. “The film has a long shooting schedule, not less than 40/45 days. Aditya takes time to conceptualise his film and when he does, it becomes a solid piece of work. His way of working is extremely unconventional, especially if you compare it with the Bengali film industry,” a close observer said. When contacted, Bratya, Sreelekha and Sujan refused to comment on the project. “I can’t talk about the film,” said Bratya. Sreelekha concurred, “I can’t divulge anything now.” Despite repeated attempts, the director did not respond. Meanwhile, painter Shuvaprasanna, the director’s father in-law, who had earlier screened Jonaki at his art foundation, said, “Aditya is working on his next and surely we will try to screen it here.”
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