10 of the most underrated Bengali films you shouldn’t miss

Over the past few years, Bengali cinema has given us few of the best-made Tollywood films which we will surely cherish in the coming years. Among the list of typical commercial films, dramas and comedies, there are few movies which stand apart for their unique storylines, script execution and some superb performances. Here is a list of 10 underrated Bengali films that you shouldn’t miss.

Kaushik Ganguly’s ‘Chotoder Chhobi’ revolves around all the predicaments of dwarves or midgets. Apparently called ‘abnormal’ because of their physical incongruity, the dwarves here are invested with the deserved dignity and hearts which can even tower above the ‘normalcy’ of those ‘tall’ ones. The story starts with the death of a dwarf-clown Shibu after his trapeze act goes wrong. The circus company offers a small amount for his treatment and sends it through Khoka who was Shibu’s colleague and a dear friend. He can’t accept the financial crisis Shibu’s family is going through. The news of Shibu’s suicide eventually aggravates his wrath. He leaves the circus company and befriends Soma, Shibu’s daughter, who turns his confidant.

‘Shukno Lanka’ is a perfect example of contemporary cinemas that fail to attract the audience due to lack of typical ‘masala’ elements. It tells the story of a veteran artist Chinu Nandy (Mithun Chakraborty) as we witness the twists and turns in his life, both at professional and personal levels. After seeing Chiru Nandy closely, it’s hard to even think that anyone else can play this character so well. Even as Mithun Chakraborty is the main lead, he remains simple yet respectful while speaking to others. His expressions and body language are perfect. The scene where the veteran actor breaks into an impromptu jig in a popular nightclub will bring a smile to your face. His character constantly reminds us about the importance of the title (dry red chilies) as Chinu Nandy’s presence seems similar to the chilies - ever present and always adding to the hidden flavour, but one whom you may not notice at a glance.

Despite a below average Box Office response nationally, Aditya Vikram Sengupta’s directorial debut ‘Asha Jaoar Majhe’ (Labour of Love) received accolades overseas. It won three awards in Best Film, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay categories at the New York Indian Film Fest. Aditya also won the Best Director of a Debut Film award at the Venice International Film Festival and Best Director award at Marrakech Film International Fest. A life that Sengupta narrates in the film focuses on the daily rituals of a man and a woman (Ritwick Chakraborty and Basabdutta Chatterjee), both at home and work, captured keeping every fine detail in mind. Every move, every reaction, every detail make the hypnotic quality of the film a class apart.

Kaushik Ganguly has woven two parallel stories into one narrative – the plot of a disturbed father-son relationship because of their contrasting work ethics and the neglected lament that comes from the single-screen theatre owners after the emergence of the new era of Multiplexes. Parambrata smoothly slipped into his character of an ambitious young man with a touch of his insecurities. The actors essayed their part exceptionally well and their subtle expressions with limited dialogues turn their characters even more real. Despite all these, ‘Cinemawala’ failed to earn a good amount of money at the Box Office.

This critically acclaimed film directed by Rituparno Ghosh had Raima Sen and Manisha Koirala as the female leads. Opposite Prosenjit Chatterjee, Manisha effortlessly portrayed a neglected wife, whose husband doesn’t want a child due to his busy film career. Rituparno's films generally have a poetic feel to its core. The whimsical feel comes in a nice subtle way and he knew how to use Rabindra Sangeet in his films. 'Khela' follows the same pattern but with a bit different theme considering other films. Here the primary focus is a child instead of a woman.

Anyone who has seen ‘Kahani’ still remembers the unpredictable and canning Bob Biswas whose humble figure showed great contrast to his true self of a professional killer. In Manoj Michigan's '89', Saswata Chatterjee is once again a killer, but this time he is different than Bob. His portrayal of an irrational, violent psyche will give send shivers down your spine. Despite Saswata’s stellar performance as a psycho serial killer, this Bengali thriller didn’t receive a good response at the Box Office.

Featuring Rudranil Ghosh as the central character 'Chaplin' will surely touch your heart and it fits the film’s narrative. As an intriguing part of a thorny world, modern-day thoughts and expressions are apparently far from being simple and straightforward. There is so much filth you would notice everywhere. It's a sheer wonder how Anindya Bandopadhyay creates such an innocent film like 'Chaplin', which is, arguably, the most remarkable debut of a Bengali filmmaker in recent times. But, unfortunately, it didn’t get the deserved recognition facing the challenge from commercial potboilers.

A blind school teacher once gets trapped into a criminal conspiracy. There are many elements for melodrama if you look at the patterns. But Saswata, playing Jayabrata Ray, gives a unique calmness, maturity and passion to the character that makes this romantic-thriller a must watch. The two women in this film you would happily fall in love with are Susmita (Raima Sen) for her utter vulnerability and Meghna (Sudiptaa Chakraborty) for her throughout restrained uprightness. While Raima, as usual, exudes her customary charm, Sudipta too excels in her role.

'Ichhe' revolves around three characters- Manas (Bratya Basu), Mamata (Sohini Sengupta Halder) and Soumik (Samadarshi Dutta). Manas has a laid back personality and doesn’t interfere in his son Soumik’s activity, but his wife Mamata wants Soumik to become really big. The mother-son ‘war’ starts when Mamata puts an end to the teenager’s relationship. Mamata always wants her son to be in her grip as she again tries to put an end to her son’s love life later. To make amends, she attempts to bring back her son’s first crush back in his life. How does a confused Soumik cope with this? Do the mother and son come closer or does this take him further away from her? These moral questions ultimately form the crux of the film.

Director Arindam Sil's family drama, narrating the story of Durga Puja has a significant message for the society. A long lost belief that says, the goddess lives inside every woman, is what the film is all about. It's simply the courage of 'Durga,' a young lady from Sundarbans that stops the robbery in the Basak family on Dasami night. Going against the social limitations and prejudices, Durga turns out to be the reflection of Goddess Durga, who protects everything good in this world.