The ensemble cast of Take Five — (Clockwise from top left) Sandhya Mridul, Sonali Kulkarni, Simone Singh, Kay Kay Menon and Parvin DabbasRaima Sen and Shayan Munshi in The Bong Connection

It’s yet to get a theatrical release but The Bong Connection has been receiving rave reviews at every screening. First it was the Osian Film Festival in New Delhi. And then on Monday it was the turn of the packed audience at the International Film Festival of India in Goa to be regaled by Bong humour. Director Anjan Dutt and producer Joy Ganguly were present at the screening and were pleasantly surprised by the way the essentially non-Bengali festival crowd responded to the tale of two Bengalis.

“It was really overwhelming,” says Ganguly. “They not only loved the film they were able to get all the nuances. Someone came up to us and said that The Bong Connection comes as a breath of fresh air at a time when we only understand north Indian cinema as crossover material.”

Buoyed by the response to his first production, Joy has already finalised his second film under the Moxie Entertainment banner. And this time it’s in Hindi. “We want to produce good and nationally appealing cinema, but from Bengal,” stresses Ganguly.

To be shot in January and February in the hills of Kalimpong and Darjeeling and then in Calcutta, Take Five will be a Hindi thriller to be directed by adman Arindam Nandy. However it is the film’s ensemble cast — Kay Kay Menon, Sonali Kulkarni, Parvin Dabbas, Sandhya Mridul, Rajat Kapoor, Simone Singh, Vinay Pathak, Shauvik — which makes the movie a delicious proposition.

Going from Bengali to Hindi was a natural progression, feels executive producer Arindam Sil, who also has an important role in the film. “The idea is to make good and entertaining cinema from Calcutta,” he says. “Even while making The Bong Connection, the target audience was the youth and not just Bengalis. Now, with Take Five, we have also taken out the language barrier to reach the maximum possible audience.”

Take Five is a psychological thriller, which kicks off when a couple goes to the hills on their honeymoon and suddenly the husband disappears. “The film then goes on to a rainy evening in Calcutta when everyone starts discussing what could have happened to the couple,” explains Nandy, who will take a sabbatical from his job as chief creative officer with Response.

A student of literature, it is the oral narrative technique that inspired Nandy to make his directorial debut. “Right from Ramayana and Mahabharata till today, we are used to hearing stories from the elders in the family,” he elaborates. “You know brishtir raate golpo bola is a legendary experience, where facts and fiction blend seamlessly. And that is the crux of my film. I am also intrigued by the fact that we all wear masks day in and day out. So whom do you trust? Who’s the real who?”

Take Five tries to answer this question, with an eclectic cast and a talented technical team. While National Award-winning cinematographer Aveek Mukhopadhyay will shoot the film, veteran editor Arghyakamal Mitra will set the pace and Bishwadeep Chatterjee of Devdas fame will do the sound recording.

Nandy is confident that despite his cast being devoid of any so-called star, he will be able to pull the audiences in. “At the very outset I did not want a big name simply because this isn’t your usual hero-heroine film,” he reasons. “I have been fortunate to rope in some of the best actors in the industry who will play characters and not themselves. It is essentially a multiplex film and I am confident that young people who are exposed to world cinema will watch Take Five.”

So feels Parvin, fresh from the success of Khosla Ka Ghosla. “Today, even small films can become blockbusters,” says the actor who is excited to return to Calcutta where he shot for one of his first modelling assignments. “Take Monsoon Wedding for example. As long as it is a good script meant to entertain audiences, I am in. Also, if the quality of the cast is good then the quality of the performances get better.”

Take Five should have a mid-2007 release.