Tollywood roundup: ‘Kakababur Protyaborton’, ‘Dharmajuddha’ and others; Bengali films that made headlines this week

Tollywood enjoyed quite some action this week. If you have missed the exciting news, gossips or latest developments that have rocked Bengali cinema, here is a weekly roundup for you. Take a look:

It will be a busy month for Dev in May. While Aniket Chattopadhyay’s ‘Hobu Chandra Raja Gobu Chandra Mantri’, bankrolled by Dev’s home production, will hit the theatres on May 1. Dev’s another film Avijit Sen’s ‘Tonic’ where he plays one of the leads will release on May 8. Not only acting, dev is also co-producing ‘Tonic’ alongside Bengal Talkies. Recently, Dev unveiled the much-awaited poster of ‘Hobu Chandra Raja Gobu Chandra Mantri’. Touted to be a fairy tale featuring Saswata Chatterjee, Kharaj Mukherjee and Arpita Chatterjee, it’s based on two stories of Dakhinaranjan Mitra Majumdar’s - Hobu Chandra Raja and Sarkarer Chhele.

Srijit Mukherji has already made two Kakababu films — ‘Mishawr Rawhoshyo’ and ‘Yeti Obhijaan’. While, the first film was a runaway hit, the second one received mixed reviews. And now, the third installment of Kakababu is set for a remarkable journey. A day before Srijit and his Bangladeshi wife Rafiath Rashid Mithila’s big Kolkata reception the muhurat of ‘Kakababur Protyaborton’ brought some exciting news for the fans. Most of the film will be shot in South Africa and will see prosenjit Chatterjee reprising the titular role while Aryann Bhowmik as Santu. A small part of the production team has already reached South Africa and Srijit will reportedly be flying down this week. Prosenjit and Aryann might reach Africa this week as well.

Raj Chakrabarty’s next ‘Dharmajuddha’ which was supposed to release on May 20 will now have its theatrical release on April 03. The release date might have been pushed back for better screen time. Bankrolled by Raj’s home production, the political thriller has an ensemble cast including Subhashree Ganguly, Swatilekha Sengupta, Soham, Ritwick Chakraborty and Parno Mittra among others. The film has already taken everyone by surprise with the gripping trailer and the melodious songs. The plot revolves around a small town of Ismailpur, which suffers an apocalyptic night as the town descends to anarchy as a sudden communal riot breaks out.

Swastika Mukherjee has started shooting for talented director Arjunn Dutta’s upcoming ‘Shrimati’. It’s a sweet and charming family drama where Swastika plays Shrimati, an upper middle class, simple, fun-loving housewife, a little disorganised but madly in love with her husband Anindya ( Soham). Shrimati is also infatuated by all the glitz and glamour of elite society life and slowly losing her own identity. Beside Swastika and Soham in the lead, the film also has Debjani Chatterjee as Pratima the mother-in-law, Trina Saha as Shrimati's sister-in-law Brishti and Kheya Chattopadhyay as the housemaid Kajol. Bollywood actor Barkha Bisht Sengupta, will be seen in a cameo role of Mallika in the film.

Indranil Roychowdhury who has already made two films ‘Phoring’ and ‘Mayar Jonjal’ is now ready with his third film based on Shyamal Bandopadhyay’s story ‘Jatin Darogar Betanto’. Starring Bratya Basu, Ritwick Chakraborty and Tuhina Das in the lead, the film will soon hit the floors. While Bratya Basu will play Jatin Daroga, Tuhina will be seen as a small-town girl opposite Ritwick. After receiving accolades for her natural acting in Aparna Sen directed ‘Ghawre Bairey Aaj’, Tuhina is now a well-known face in Tollywood. The talented actress is also playing key roles in Soumyajit Majumder’s ‘Homecoming’ and Parambrata Chattopadhyay’s ‘Abhijaan’ which is the biopic of Soumitra Chatterjee and Tuhina will be seen in the role of Waheeda Rehman.

Aritra Mukherjee’s directorial debut ‘Brahma Janen Gopon Kommoti’ which has already made the Bengali movie goers buzzing about the film hit the big screens on Friday. The social drama, bankrolled by Windows Production, also celebrates the International Women’s Day narrating the story of a female priest. The storyline makes one ponder about the outdated rites and rituals and questions the gender imbalance in society. The fresh pair of Ritabhari Chakraborty and Soham Majumder has floored the audience and critics alike.