With its burnt-orange brick façade, moss-green windows, and long, winding roads, the Alipore Jail Museum wears history on its sleeve. But it was inside a starkly different hall — whitewashed walls tinged with time, green windows cracked just enough to let in the rain-whipped July air, and iron rods separating one forgotten chamber from the next — that the trailer launch of Birangana, Hoichoi’s upcoming crime drama, unfolded. Post-Independence stillness lingered in the air, making the venue an unlikely yet unforgettable stage for the event.
Held on a monsoon-laced afternoon, the event was a collision of past and present — the grim, carceral history of the museum merging with a contemporary story of justice, rage and rebellion. Directed by Nirjhar Mitra, Birangana promises a visceral viewing experience that pulls no punches, and the trailer — screened inside one of the museum’s halls — was met with palpable silence, then a slow-build of awe.
Taking centre stage at the launch were Sandipta Sen and Niranjan Mondal, the lead actors of the series. Sandipta, graceful and composed, wore a midnight blue sari delicately embellished with stones, the soft sparkle catching the light in the museum’s dim corners. For her, returning to OTT with Birangana meant stepping into one of the most demanding roles of her career. She portrays Inspector Chitra Basu, a sharp, introspective officer navigating a deeply patriarchal police force. Raised by a single father after her mother’s sudden abandonment, Chitra’s life has been shaped by restraint, discipline and simmering frustration.
“Birangana is not just another crime thriller — it’s a layered, emotionally intense story about a woman trying to hold her ground in a world constantly trying to push her out. Chitra Basu is easily one of the fiercest characters I’ve played. We had rigorous practice sessions, especially for the action scenes. I spent days with our stunt coordinator and did back-to-back rehearsals to ensure Chitra looked like someone who has trained, someone who doesn’t hesitate when the moment demands force,” said Sandipta.
“What also made the experience special was working with Niranjan. Watching him transform into this chilling, unpredictable presence was surreal. He’s known for humour online, but on set, he was quiet, observant, and always ready to learn. He’s one of the sweetest and most sincere co-actors I’ve worked with, and he really surprised us all. And of course, Nirjhar — thank you for trusting me with Chitra. It’s not every day that a director hands you a character this raw and unfiltered. I truly believe Birangana is going to leave a mark.”
Sandipta Sen, Pratik Dutta, Nirjhar Mitra
Beside her stood Niranjan Mondal, marking his OTT debut with this project. Known primarily as a content creator with a flair for comedy, Niranjan turned heads in a loose-fitting red floral shirt paired with matching red trousers — a stark, stylish contrast to the dark undercurrents of his character. In Birangana, he plays the unnerving antagonist who forms a complicated bond with Chitra, even as he continues a pattern of violent crimes against women.
When we asked Niranjan what it felt like to go from making millions laugh on Laughtersane to portraying a cold, calculated antagonist in Birangana, he smiled and said: “It’s been a surreal shift, to be honest. Coming from Laughtersane, where everything is light, quick, and geared for laughs, to stepping into the skin of a character this dark felt like I was rewiring myself completely. Playing the antagonist in Birangana meant slowing down, holding silence, and exploring a kind of discomfort I had never faced before — both as an actor and as a person. I’ve always been surrounded by humour and noise online, with millions of people knowing me for punchlines. But here, I had to strip all of that away. I had to act in front of a whole crew and not just in my room in front of my phone. Sandiptadi is simply amazing — calm, generous, and so grounded in every scene. Just watching her work taught me a lot. Nirjharda, thank you for seeing this in me and believing I could pull it off. I still don’t quite know how to process all of this. It’s scary, yes, but also the most creatively exciting thing I’ve done so far.”
“I never imagined I would make my OTT debut in a role so dark,” Niranjan said, still visibly taking in the magnitude of the moment.
The trailer revealed just enough to unsettle. A brooding montage of unsolved murders, tenacious cops, patriarchy, bureaucratic pushback, and the unsettling calm of someone hiding in plain sight unfolded onscreen. And through it all, Chitra Basu’s gaze lingered — cautious, observant, quietly defiant.
The historic setting gave the launch a strange poignancy. The very rooms that once held revolutionaries and freedom figters, now bear witness to a story that confronts gendered power structures. In a moment that felt more symbolic than ceremonial, Sandipta and Nirjhar took time to felicitate the women’s unit of the Alipore Jail branch of the Kolkata Police. Every one of them was invited on stage and presented with a bouquet.
“These women don’t just wear the uniform — they embody the struggle that comes with it. I have felicitated them but I don’t think I have what it takes to commend such courage and valour. This series is different. We have already revealed who is chasing whom but the journey is so thrilling that all the anticipation lies within that,” said Nirjhar.
Set to stream from July 25 on Hoichoi, Birangana explores more than crime and punishment. It is a study of how women must constantly prove themselves in spaces designed to doubt them. In choosing the Alipore Jail Museum as its launchpad, Birangana has already begun telling its story — one rooted in rebellion, endurance, and the quiet fire of defiance.