A common man’s story

What is Kagojer Bou all about?
Upal is desperate for a job. His friend Subimal uses him to get close to Preeti (Paoli Dam),the woman he desires. Once he gets Preeti,he uses Upal again to get a divorce from his wife (Rimjhim Gupta). Kagojer Bou is about today’s world where everybody is driven by money. The novel is being interpreted in today’s context. The issues explored are how all relationships today are driven by considerations of money,that even love is a saleable commodity. I decided to cast Paoli against the grain of her screen image which till now,has been that of a good girl. She had felt that I would give her the wife’s role but I chose her to essay Preeti.

Why did you choose Sirsendu’s story over other writers’ works?
In 2002,I did Shilpantar based on Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay’s short story Patua Nibaran. He told me that he had quite liked the film. I am fond of his writings,particularly because of the kind of characters he creates. He looks at the reality around us from a common man’s point of view. He also has a tremendous sense of humour and irony in almost all his writings.

Most of your films are women-centric. But Houseful is not. It is private,individual and minimalist. What drew you to this story?
You are right. Sampradan,Devaki,Kantatar and Kaal were all women-centric,but Silpantar and Houseful were very personal films. Silpantar was about an artist whose art is rejected by the society and his art form is facing extinction. Houseful was about a filmmaker struggling to get an audience for his films. Though Kagojer Bou is not exactly women-centric,the women finally emerge the winners in the end. Kagojer Bou reflects our time because the characters are all driven by money,and morality is redefined in many ways.

How did you decide on the casting of the film?
Since we have interpreted the story in today’s context,we needed actors of this generation. Paoli,Rahul,Priyanka and Rimjhim are all new-generation actors of Bengal. They are as committed and talented as their predecessors were. We have shot some segments in the holiday resort of Mondarmoni and we have given Paoli a complete makeover for her role. She had to shed some weight and wear some skimpy dresses at Mondarmoni for some intimate scenes with Subimal. But most of the shoot will be in Kolkata as the film is rooted in this city.

What lines have you taken about the music since I find that this time,you have chosen a Bangla Band as one of your music composers?
Abhijit Bose has done the music for all my films beginning with Kantataar. He is doing the music of Kagojer Bou too. Along with him,Gaurab Chatterjee (Gabu of Lakhhichara) has also composed a couple of songs for the film. I started my film career with the late Gautam Chatterjee and I am happy that Gabu,his son,is beginning his career with Kagojer Bou. He has tons of talent. In Houseful,Kaya had composed a couple of songs. Abhijit Bose is my personal favourite. Rana Dasgupta is the cinematographer and Gautam Bose is in charge of art direction.

How long did it take you from conception to post-production to complete the film and when are you planning to release it in the theatres?
We had planned to do Kagojer Bou in Hindi a couple of years back. I had worked on the script then. But we have changed the script considerably. The film will be complete in four to five months. My producer Binod Lahoti plans to release the film after the Durga Pooja this year.