Siliguri, March 3: Gone are the days when films were released silently at anonymous theatres of north Bengal and filmmakers did not bother about audience reaction at this corner of the world.

Though north Bengal has always been a favourite locale for outdoor shots, filmmakers for the first time have woken up to the fact that there is no dearth of intellectually-inclined audience in the region which has a great potential for marketing Tollywood films. They are now coming down personally to sell their films and take home audience feedback.

The best indicator of this trend is Mahulbanir Sereng directed by Shekhar Das, which is due for release at Dinabandhu Mancha here on March 10. What is special about the release is that the director, along with a host of representatives of the West Bengal Film Development Corporation (WBFDC), will be present to promote the film in the region.

An interactive session with the director will be something the Siliguri audience can look forward to. An exclusive screening of the film for Santhalis of north Bengal at Gorumara (date not finalised) is again a new formula, much on the lines of Aamir Khan’s screening of Lagaan for the Bhuj people.

Explaining the sudden interest to promote the film, the director of Mahulbanir Sereng said over phone from Calcutta: “Siliguri, which has emerged as a major urban centre of Bengal, has an intelligent audience which loves watching good films. This makes for a potential market, largely unexploited, for the Calcutta film industry. So far, the industry has been ignoring the north Bengal market. The time has come to give it due recognition.”

Das is probably the second Tollywood director to come personally for the screening of his film within a few days of the its release in Calcutta. On June 13 last year, Gautam Ghose had come with Abar Aranye, shot extensively in the Dooars, for the Siliguri audience. Ghose had then said at an interactive session that it is time for Tollywood to come out of the periphery of Calcutta and take the districts seriously.

“Since a long time, Siliguri and the districts were not considered the right place for film promotion, but now the industry seems to notice the importance of the region,” said Aravinda Roy, manager of distribution section of WBFDC, from Calcutta.

And as for the film, it is as the director says, “a kaleidoscopic view of a community in transition, the tribals’ search for identity in a fast-changing scenario”.