Team Khakee: The Bengal Chapter was in Calcutta this week to kick off the promotions of their homegrown Netflix web series. A major part of that involved an exclusive conversation with Team t2 where Tollywood superstar Jeet — making his Hindi series debut — got together with co-stars Chitrangda Singh, Ritwik Bhowmik and Aadil Zafar Khan — to chat about the Neeraj Pandey series, that also stars superstar Prosenjit Chatterjee (who was present on the same day for a special interaction with the readers of t2), the various shades of Calcutta and more.

The first thing that the quartet of Jeet, Chitrangda, Ritwik and Aadil spotted before we kicked off our conversation at Drunken Teddy on AJC Bose Road, was a t2 trademark that has never failed us — a Khakee: The Bengal Chapter-themed cake, courtesy Frosted Delight, that brought out the ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from the actors as much as it compelled them to whip out their phone cameras and go click-click as they spotted ‘themselves’ on the cake — a cop’s figure modelled on Jeet’s Arjun Maitra, Chitrangda’s likeness, a sari clad politician, and cute miniatures of handcuffs and Calcutta motifs.

“That is me!” gushed Chitrangda on spotting her character, Nivedita Basak. “This is such a cute cake, thank you! This is so special!” “It’s so well done, simply superb,” added Ritwik. “I don’t want to cut this cake!” seemed to be the common sentiment, but the cake was finally cut with lots of cheering, with Jeet summing up the mood by saying, “Three cheers for Khakee!” Even as they took a bite, Chitrangda best summed it up with: ‘We look forward to your review for Khakee: The Bengal Chapter. Hope it is as nice as the cake”, accompanied by all-round laughter.

Priyanka Roy (Team t2): Since we started on a sweet note, before we delve into the dark world of Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, let us talk about the food. What has the Calcutta gastronomy story been like now and even when you shot here?

Chitrangda Singh: We all are foodies here, but I am on a bit of a diet and I haven’t really had the time to work out much over the last few days. But I love nolen gur, I love mishti doi. These two are my weaknesses.
Aadil Zafar Khan: We tried Tangra chilli chicken. It was yum!
Ritwik Bhowmik: As in not in Tangra, but Tangra-style chilli chicken! (Laughs) We wanted to go to Tangra... in fact, we begged the production (house) to let us shoot even one scene in China Town, so that we could keep eating while shooting... but that, unfortunately, didn’t happen! (Everyone laughs) But there is an entire section in the show which is about a character who is from China.
Aadil: The best Chinese food is in Calcutta! You won’t get such good Chinese anywhere else.

Piya Roy (Team t2): Has Jeet introduced you to any new dishes? Jeet, are you a foodie?

Aadil: Jeet da loves grilled fish.
Jeet: If you ask me whether I eat much or not, I can tell you that I eat as much as is required! (Laughs)
Ritwik: He doesn’t eat ‘much’, but he loves ‘maachh!’ (Everyone laughs)
Chitrangda: Prosenjit has a more disciplined diet than I ever could have. He was telling us about it. It was unbelievable! I was amazed at the kind of disciplined lifestyle he follows. He only eats egg whites and egg whites and egg whites! As for me, I like eating fish.
Jeet: I actually got mishti doi for them on set one day. Khub bhalo mishti doi chhilo from a famous sweetmeat chain in New Alipore.
Ritwik: Aadil and I have gorged!
Chitrangda: These two boys would only talk about food all the time!
Ritwik: Whenever the two of us would get a break from shoot — even if it was for two hours or less — we would get out and eat!
Aadil: How can one even resist eating here?! I love kosha mangsho! I could eat it forever! The thing about Calcutta is that there is food everywhere! Wherever you go, all the streets, everywhere... you find food stalls.
Chitrangda: While shooting Bob Biswas in Calcutta, Sujoy (Ghosh, filmmaker) took me to this Udipi place close to the lake (Rabindra Sarobar). It wasn’t a very fancy place, but it had the best south Indian food. It was Valentine’s Day and the place was crowded with couples... it looked like a film set!

Farah Khatoon (Team t2): There must have been many reasons for you to want to do Khakee: The Bengal Chapter. What was the primary one?

Jeet: Khakee: The Bihar Chapter (2022) set the tone for us. It has a huge following and a large reach and many people are discovering the series even now, all over the world. With Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, we are taking the momentum ahead and setting the bar higher. We have some great talent on the show and they have put in a lot of effort. I am not only talking about the actors but also the talent behind the camera.
Chitrangda: I couldn’t have asked for a better foray into the streaming space. Khakee: The Bengal Chapter, in fact, in many ways, took me back to my first film Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (2003). In Khakee 2, when I sat wearing that sari, much like my character Geeta in my debut film, I felt I had been taken back in time. Of course, in this series, it took another kind of presence to be a politician and I needed to do something quite different.
Ritwik: It has been a beautiful journey. The story is fantastic and so is my character, Shagor, and my co-stars, of course. It was so good shooting here in Calcutta.

Sanjali Brahma (Team t2): Calcutta forms an intrinsic part of the fabric of Khakee: The Bengal Chapter. But this is a side of Calcutta which is dark, grimy.... It shows the city in a way which we have rarely seen before. Did that also attract you, given that Calcutta is mostly presented as a cultural landscape?

Aadil: What you said is exactly what happened... and it is what makes it different. Largely, what you have seen of Calcutta is the intellect, art, culture... even in Khakee 2, we are showing culture, music, beauty, food....
Jeet: But as you said, here you get to see the underbelly, which is very interesting. The show anyway promises ‘Ek aur rang bhi dekhiye Bangal ka’. This side of Calcutta bahut zyada dikhaya nahi gaya hain.
Aadil: Seeing the underbelly of the city being captured was very interesting. Being somebody who is a non-Bengali, it was amazing for me to witness it... I was not aware that Calcutta also has this shade to it and the streets could look like this...
Chitrangda: I think Kaminey showed a little bit of it...
Ritwik: Yuva had it also... what Calcutta does in Khakee 2 is incredible. Even otherwise, if you take the same show, the same logline, the same storyline, the same characters and place it in any region of this country, it will be an equally effective story. But how Calcutta really contributes to this show is, as you said, it becomes a character. I am not using the word ‘stereotype’, but most stories have always wanted to look at Calcutta with a certain lens of beauty, of charm, of romance, of novels, of (Satyajit) Ray and (Rabindranath) Tagore....

I am glad that somebody from the Hindi film industry wanted to show Calcutta with another layer, depict the city in a manner in which it could contribute in a different way. There are many potent paradoxes in this city that impactfully support the storytelling of this series.

Subhalakshmi Dey (Team t2): Calcutta has a history of politics and political turmoil. How much of that do we get to see in the series and how did that impact your performances, given that OTT allows for more layered and audacious storytelling than traditional cinema?

Jeet: If it is there in the writing and the director knows how to bring that alive, as an actor your job gets done pretty easily. The show was always very clear in terms of writing and what it wanted to capture.
Ritwik: Calcutta should never be looked at in terms of just face value. There are so many layers to the city and I am glad that both the lawlessness and the iron-fisted enforcement of the law have come together so strongly in Khakee 2.

We also talk a lot about the hardships in the city and in the state, as a whole, in the early 2000s, and its dark aspects as well. It is about time we don’t shy away from it and begin to tell stories about it.
Chitrangda: Politics is such an important part of Calcutta. People here are so politically aware, it is a politically volatile city and I mean that in terms of everyone knowing and having an opinion about politics. It is, therefore, important to talk about these stories with a very strong political undercurrent, which I feel are as intriguing and attractive as the ones that romanticise Calcutta. Political energy is a huge part of what Calcutta is.

Almost everyone here has a political leaning, which doesn’t usually happen. A lot of times, most people — at least from the part of the country I come from — think it is not ‘cool’ to have a political opinion. But as soon as you come to Calcutta, things are very, very different. The best thing is that they take pride in it. The politics is as juicy as the food here! You will love what you see in Khakee 2!
Jeet: Neeraj (Pandey) does very well with these kind of themes. Even his first film, A Wednesday! or even Special 26, had to do with the administration of the state or the country. He handles them so well... the cerebral factor in it, the intellect factor in it. He writes and executes them very well.
Chitrangda: And he keeps it so real. That is what Neeraj is. He is so unapologetic about showing the truth. There is no covering up. Khakee is really an example of what he is.

Farah: In keeping with the theme song ‘Ek aur rang bhi dekhiye Bangal ka’, Jeet, if you had to show your non-Calcutta co-stars, a not-so-well known rang or facet of Calcutta, which would it be?

Chitrangda: Come on Jeet, surprise us!
Jeet: The first thing I would like them to do is a darshan at Kalighat. That is such a beautiful aspect of the city. Apart from that, they have seen quite a bit of the city.
Ritwik: While we were shooting here, I would often take Aadil to a chai-er dokaan and we would just stand around and listen to the people conversing there. It used to be so interesting as well as stimulating. Growing up, I have spent all my summer vacations in Calcutta and I know the fabric of the city well... I wanted Aadil to have this unique experience of a chai-er dokaaner adda. I wanted him to experience that how personal as well as how profound a conversation can be between people in achai-er dokaan. So every time we got a chance, we would go stand there, have cha and listen to people having conversations. In fact, after a point, I didn’t even have to translate what they were saying... Aadil understood all of it so well himself!
Jeet: The Coffee House is, of course, an institution where that used to happen back in the day, and even now. It is a little modernised now, but the feel is still there. It is so much a part of the cultural fabric of Calcutta and a place that non-Calcuttans should experience at least once.
Aadil: And most people here love to have a conversation, which is so nice. I remember that one day, while shooting Khakee 2, I wanted to have a cold drink and I went into a shop for it. The man there didn’t have it but he spent the next 10 minutes fervently explaining to me why he didn’t have it! It was intriguing and funny at the same time.

At another time, we were at a traffic signal and a man on a bike started having a conversation with me in Bengali without even bothering to figure whether I understood or not! (Laughs)
Ritwik: It was the most beautiful sight... the man talking away and Aadil simply nodding all the time! And the man staying stuff like: ‘Aar hochhe na, aar korbo na’ and Aadil was simply smiling and nodding!
Aadil: After 10 minutes, I was like: ‘Bhai, kuch samajh mein nahin aa raha hain!’ (Everyone laughs)
Jeet: Isko adda bolte hain!
Ritwik: I love the word ‘adda’. It simply sums up something that is so typically Bengali.
Chitrangda: I had no idea that ‘adda’ has its roots in Bengali.
Jeet: In Hindi, ‘adda’ generally means a place where people meet, while in Bangla, it is the very act of conversing. It is quite intriguing.

Sanjali: Jeet, were there any Bengali phrases or words that you taught your co-stars?

Jeet: We just made a reel... Aadil, batao!
Aadil: ‘Ebaar mishti na, ebar jhaal!’
Jeet: I taught Chitrangda: ‘Aami tomake bhalobashi!’ (Everyone laughs)

Sanjali: If you had to teach them something now, what would it be?

Ritwik: (to Jeet) Please teach us some ‘Boss’ punchlines!
Jeet: ‘Aami kono ishwor noi je chhere debo, aar aami kono rakkhosh na je mere debo. Aami holam police, Arjun Maitra, chhara aar maarar moddhe lotke rekhe debo’.
Chitrangda: I am not even going to try! It only sounds nice when he (Jeet) says it! Superb!

Farah: Irrespective of gender, if you could pick any role from Khakee: The Bengal Chapter 2 other than the ones you play, which would it be?

Aadil: I love my character Ranjit. In fact, every character, even the smaller players, are so layered that all of them end up being so intriguing. But because I have lived the part of Ranjit and had the chance to get into the skin of the character, it is difficult for me to think of myself as any other character.
Jeet: Over the years, I feel blessed to have had the honour and opportunity of shouldering films as the protagonist. But purely from the creative point of view, if you remove terms like ‘protagonist’ or ‘hero’, I would love to play Shagor, which is Ritwik’s character. Despite being a gangster, it has a cerebral and sensitive quality to it, which I really like.
Chitrangda: Same for me... I would love to play either Shagor or Ranjit. I find playing bad very interesting, negative characters are so much more than just at the surface level... it is interesting to examine what compels a human being to turn negative.

My character in Khakee 2 is very righteous, strong and idealistic, and I really like that. But to turn bad, it takes something out of you. And then to be able to be convincing enough about why you are so bad, that is very exciting to play. I hope directors and producers are listening (smiling).
Ritwik: If everyone wants Ranjit and Shagor’s characters, then no way will want to play anyone else! We have struck gold! As Aadil said, I have never ever felt so elevated playing a part. Shagor, of course, is not the nicest man to play... he is a bad guy with a bad mindset. But I feel like you have to sometimes go through the filtration of the bad to understand what is good. Today, I respect what is good. I respect good things in my life and everything that I have been blessed with.

Piya: It is interesting that no one chose to play the cop!

Ritwik: Sir (Jeet) plays the coolest, most sincere, most layered cop that has been seen in a very long time! He has really blown us away from the moment he came on set and started playing Arjun Maitra.

For me and Aadil, playing our characters became very personal. We also judged these characters when we read the script. We were like: ‘Yaar, yeh aise kyu hain?’ Then to live their lives, understand them and then wash them away from your system, that experience has been unparalleled.

Priyanka: The genre of cops vs gangsters is as Bollywood as the movies itself. Could you pick a favourite in the genre that has stayed on with you?

Chitrangda: For me, it is Sholay... every single time! All the lines, everything is so iconic... Holi kab hai? kab hai Holi? (Laughs)
Aadil: Every character, every dialogue, is famous. Kitne aadmi thhe? Itna sannata kyun hain? Namak khaya hain, ab goli kha.
Jeet: Mac Mohan became famous only on the basis of one line in the whole film — poore pachaas hazaar! That is remarkable.
Chitrangda: I love Mr India also! Mogambo, what a character... so, so iconic! We have grown up on these characters. With both Sholay and Mr India, what is noteworthy is that the villain is as iconic as the hero. People love these villains as much, if not more! Sometimes, it is these villains who even made the heroes.
Jeet: The protagonists or the heroes will stand strong only when they have strong villains around them.
Ritwik: Right from Ardh Satya to Sarfarosh to Ab Tak Chhappan, we have had fantastic cop crime dramas. The genre is absolutely entertaining, so engaging and the twists and turns are so amazing. Even Jeetda’s Power blew my mind when I watched it.
Jeet: I like Deewaar... it has a very timeless quality to it.

Subhalakshmi: In true Khakee spirit, if you could form a dream investigation team with any three fictional detectives or cops, who would they be?

Ritwik: If you talk about detectives, the first names that come to my mind are the classic Bengali ones like Feluda and Byomkesh.
Chitrangda: I loved Pankaj Kapur as Karamchand. Then there is Sherlock Holmes and Byomkesh. I used to love watch Karamchand. Snippets of it still come up on Instagram reels posted by handles that focus on pop culture of the ‘80s and ‘90s and I love seeing them.
Ritwik: He was funny but one also took him seriously. To achieve that fine balance was remarkable.
Chitrangda: Even Sushmita Mukherjee was brilliant as Kitty. After Karamchand, she did that namak ka ad, which was so good!
Aadil: I would love to have a team with Arjun Maitra in it, with Karamchand and Byomkesh Bakshi.

Sanjali: Why did it take Jeet and Prosenjit so long to come together for a project?

Jeet: Just destiny, I guess. It was destined to happen this way. The two of us and neither any producers or directors could crack anything for us together all these years. It had to happen this way and I am excited that we are finally coming together for Khakee 2.

Piya: What was the energy like between the two of you on set?

Jeet: Very good, we bonded very well. Also, Bumbada and I may not have worked together before but whenever there has been anything connected with the wellbeing of the Bangla film industry, whether it is bigger and better causes for the smooth running of the industry, we have rallied together. We have discussed how to address issues and problems. We have both been an active part of the artistes’ forum, working towards the betterment of the industry. I have known him for the longest time and now that we got an opportunity to work with him, it was fantastic. I also produced a film (Aaye Khuku Aay), with him a few years ago, in which he played the lead.

Over the years, we have been approached for projects. I love the fact that Khakee 2 happened to us, because it is a show where all of us collaborate and not compete with each other.

Farah: Ritwik, when is a Bengali film happening for you?

Ritwik: I hope very soon. I would love to be in one. Being a Bengali is an identity I wear with pride and honour. My mom would be the happiest when I do a Bengali film! We always speak Bangla at home, I have grown up on Satyajit Ray films and Bengali literature and music. I really hope somebody comes up with a project which I can be a part of. In fact, Jeet da has asked me if I want to do a Bangla film... and I was like: ‘Yes!’ I at least want to do one Bangla project just to express gratitude to the culture I come from.