Rajkahini
Rajkahini | |
---|---|
Directed by | Srijit Mukherji |
Produced by | Shree Venkatesh Films |
Starring |
|
Cinematography | Indraadip Das Gupta |
Distributed by | Shree Venkatesh Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 160 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Bengali |
Budget | ₹3.5 crore[1] |
Box office | ₹7 crore(super-hit) [1] |
Rajkahini (transl. Tale of Kings, can also be called Tale of the Raj) is an Indian Bengali-language historical drama film directed by Srijit Mukherji.[2] The shooting of the film completed in June 2015 and the film released on 16 October 2015. The film has an ensemble cast of eleven major female characters led by Rituparna Sengupta and also stars Saswata Chatterjee, Kaushik Sen, Jisshu Sengupta, Abir Chatterjee and Jaya Ahsan in other pivotal roles.[3][4] It has been remade in Hindi by Mukherji as Begum Jaan. The film was a critical and commercial success.
Plot
In June 1947, the British passed a bill regarding the partition of Bengal. Delving into the grim history of the Partition, Srijit's movie Rajkahini is weaved around a border between the two nations that runs through a brothel housing eleven women.
Meanwhile, the political sky is darkening. The
Exasperated at the futile attempts to evict Begum and her women from the house, Prafulla and Ilias turn to Kabir (Jisshu Sengupta), leader of a criminal gang, for help. Kabir and his gang commits all kinds of heinous crimes in these turbulent times of riots and violence. They chase Sujan and three other girls who were returning from the market. While Sujan manages to save the girls and help them escape, he himself gets butchered by Kabir. Sujan's death adds fuel to the fire in Begum's heart and they decide to have a final confrontation. Meanwhile, after being rejected by Begum Jaan, Master manages to trap a girl (Parno Mittra) into his schemes of getting back at Begum. He joins forces with Kabir and Prafulla. Ilias was dissatisfied with Kabir's ways but accepted the events as necessary for getting the job done.
That night, Kabir and his gang set fire to the brothel. The women, trained to use rifles by Saleem, put up a brave fight. Most of them get killed, however Saleem himself dies the most horrifying death. After the bloodbath, the remaining women including Begum enter the inferno of the house and willingly accept their death in their own "country", while being narrated the story of the legendary Rani Padmini of Rajputana.
When dawn breaks, the house and its inmates have been burnt to dust. The film ends with Ilias, Prafulla, Master and lakhs of refugees from Debiganj and Haldibari coming together to see the remains of Begum Jaan's brothel, as
Cast
- Rituparna Sengupta as Begum Jaan
- Lily Chakravartyas Kamala aka Thamma
- Sudipta Chakraborty as Juthika aka Juhi
- Jaya Ahsan as Rubina
- Saayoni Ghosh as Koli
- Sohini Sarkar as Duli
- Parno Mittra as Golaap
- Priyanka Sarkar as Lata aka Bostumi
- Ridhima Ghosh as Fatima/Shabnam
- Ena Saha as Banno
- Ditipriya Roy as Nolok aka Bunchki
- Saswata Chatterjee as Mr. Profullo Mohan Sen
- Kaushik Sen as Mr. Muhammad Ilias
- Nigel Akkara as Saleem Mirza
- Jisshu Sengupta as Kabir (special appearance)
- Abir Chatterjee as Master
- Rudranil Ghosh as Sujan
- Biswajit Chakraborty as Mr. Akhtar, Inspector-in-charge of Debiganj
- Kanchan Mullick as Mr. Shashikanta, Inspector-in-charge of Haldibari
- Rangpur(special appearance)
- Ashok Dhanuka as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
- Sanjay Gurbaxani as Jawaharlal Nehru
- Dicky Banerjee as Muhammad Ali Jinnah
- Louis Mountbatten
- Hastings Ismay
- Cyril Radcliffe
- Shataf Figar as lawyer of Pakistan
- Srijit Mukherjeeas lawyer of India
Reception
The film received critical acclaim on its release, despite a few reviewers pointing out cinematic flaws. Upam Buzarbaruah, reviewing for the
Remake
A Hindi adaptation, Begum Jaan, made by Mukherji and starring Vidya Balan with an ensemble cast, released in April 2017.[7]
Soundtrack
No. | Title | Singer | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Bharoto Bhagyo Bidhata" | Kabir Suman, Kaushiki Chakraborty, Rupankar Bagchi, Lopamudra Mitra & Others | 6:06 |
2. | "Jiya Maane Na" | Rekha Bhardwaj | 3:51 |
3. | "Saanson Se" | Rekha Bhardwaj | |
4. | "Shokhi Rongo Kato Bol" | Lagnajita Chakraborty |
References
- ^ a b "List Of Top 20 Highest Grossing Bengali Movies of All Time". pycker.com. 26 June 2018. Archived from the original on 19 July 2018. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
- ^ "Srijit Mukherjee's next film talks of people displaced by radcliffe people". The Indian Express.
- ^ "Rajkahini is world cinema, made in Bengali: Saswata, Kaushik Sen". The Times of India. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
- ^ "First Look: The 11 heroines of Srijit's Rajkahini". The Times of India. 7 March 2015. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
- ^ Buzarbaruah, Upam (19 October 2015). "Rajkahini". The Times of India. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- IBNLive. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
- ^ "Vidya Balan all set for partition tale 'Begum Jaan'". 21 April 2016.
External links
- Rajkahini at IMDb