Meghla Dasgupta

A tribute to auteur Mrinal Sen, the film intricately weaves the personal and professional journeys of Kunal Sen and Ranjan through their collaboration on an ambitious film project, Chaalchitra, in 1981.

A superannuated gentleman residing in the countryside is suddenly drawn into the world of theatre. The local group wants him in a Bengali version of a Pirandello play and he becomes involved with one of the players, a young girl in her twenties who, like him, is new to theatre. Against the backdrop of the pandemic and the imminent war in Ukraine, this story of a highly unlikely relationship unfolds even as a strictly conservative society looks on with baited breath. As the pandemic necessitates a hiatus in the rehearsals and the emptiness of his house engulfs him, the lonely gentleman gets sucked into a world of fantasy; his expectations build up and he becomes acutely sensitive to his milieu.

Take a trip back to the 90's in Kolkata when moments spent even during a load shedding were priceless.

Set against the backdrop of the turbulent 1970’s, ‘Hoawa Bondook’ is a tale of love and longing.

This 108-minute feature, set in Kolkata, delves into the revival of Tapan Theatre by capturing the essence of four actors working on a play amidst the historical venue’s resurrection post-COVID.