2010 has been a very important year for Bengali films. Our audiences have come back to the films. Line diye lokey ticket ketey multiplex-ey Bangla chhobi dekhchhe, Priya-tey dekhchhe, Star-ey dekhchhe… Directors are no longer making films for themselves. The audiences are taking part now. The jugalbandi is happening… between good films and good audiences. Just like a good film can enrich and entertain the audience, a theatre full of good audience enhances the film-viewing experience. Here are my four favourite films of the year.

The Japanese wife (Aparna Sen)

I love films which do not spell things out and wrap the proceedings with a sense of ambiguity and abstraction. Unspoken words always say much more than lines and lines of dialogue. The Japanese Wife is filled with such beautiful, muted moments. Of course, it’s an image-driven film, where the cinematic language is as strong, if not stronger, as the written text.

The love story has a rare surreal quality to it. Even the original story by Kunal Basu had magic realism written all over it. The theme of two soulmates not being able to meet each other was there in Antaheen too, but it wasn’t a relationship so uncommon. This one, between Snehamoy (Rahul Bose) and Miyage (Chigusa Takaku), was unreal. Despite the distance between them and the fact they had never met, the two had this unfaltering commitment towards each other. They would take permission from each other for even the smallest of things.

Also, Aparna Sen’s mastery over the medium is evident in the way she was able to bring out the sexual politics of the film. I can’t forget the scene where Snehamoy slowly opens the package containing the kites that Miyage has sent him. It was like him undressing her. Then there’s the character of Raima (Sen), her sexual undertones apparent in some scenes, not so apparent in others. The relationship between the three players is almost like an enigma which you try and understand sitting in the audience.

And who can forget that last sequence when Miyage comes to Snehamoy’s home for the first time and discovers his world, while Raima’s character discovers Miyage.... The film reinstates your faith in love, in relationships, in commitment. Definitely one of Rinadi’s (Aparna) best.

Abohomaan (Rituparno Ghosh)

I found it to be a very real story. Before the film’s release, I had heard a lot of rumours about the film being based on the relationship between Satyajit Ray and Madhabi Mukherjee. If we forget all that and take the story at face value, it’s a fascinating tale about a man, his wife, his son and a heroine.

A film director doesn’t only say ‘action’ and ‘cut’, he gets emotionally involved with his creation and starts to exercise a right over his muse. Add to that the parallels of the story with Nati Binodini. The scripting was beautiful and the making very much Rituparno Ghosh. The film scored high on literary value, even if it fell a bit short on its cinematic value.

And I loved the performances. Mamata Shankar and Ananya Chatterjee were simply brilliant! Ananya totally deserved the National Award for Best Actress. I was part of the jury and I believed she should win. But I also loved Mamadi’s act. She was able to bring out the character so well... of an understanding wife who can’t help but acknowledge her husband’s relationship with the other woman.

Autograph (Srijit Mukherjee)

It was like a breath of fresh air. A different kind of story with an absolutely fresh treatment. It’s a very welcome scenario when a new filmmaker comes and makes a film without any inhibitions. I don’t know whether Srijit would be able to make such a brave film a second time. In Autograph, there is never a case of playing safe, which to me is the USP of the film.
Autograph is about today... when success is so important, success at any cost. There’s a sense of competition throughout the film and yet you have a character like Nandana (Sen) who represents righteousness and a character like Arun Chatterjee (played by Prosenjit) who represents arrogance. I love the ending where a star who was so gung-ho about the film, his own production, decides not to release the film. It’s a very postmodern approach and fitting for today’s generation.
And the music! After Antaheen, here was a soundtrack which everyone tuned in to. The songs became really popular. Not just the tunes, even the words were beautifully written.

Moner Manush (Goutam Ghose)

You need guts to make a film like Moner Manush, with the kind of measly budgets we have for Bengali films. Kichhu korar nei! We have seen similar biopics in Hollywood... on Ray Charles (Ray) and Johnny Cash (Walk The Line) and Bob Dylan (I’m Not There) but look at the kind of budgets they had to play with. That Goutamda has been able to pull off a film on Lalan Fakir on this scale and on such a canvas is quite incredible. While watching the film, I kept thinking, why didn’t he get Rs 100 crore to make a film like this? Maybe he could have made it even better. The way he has brought out the beauty of nature in the film is unbelievable; it’s almost like he has painted everything with a brush.

But the best thing about Moner Manush is Prosenjit’s performance. He is brilliant! He has been able to live the character, become Lalan Fakir and that shows in every scene. By the time the film comes to a close, you feel uplifted, you feel elevated. Remember that trance-like dance in the end? Moner Manush draws you into its world and keeps you engaged throughout its running time. I am not sure whether Goutamda had commercial returns in mind when he made the film but look how well the film is doing!