The tales are so poignant, you cannot help but feel a deep sorrow.
A terrible sense of helplessness will creep into you.


THE LOWLAND - BY JHUMPA LAHIRI

Title : The Lowland Author : Jhumpa Lahiri SOC Rating : 4/5 Genre : Historical Fiction Publisher : Random House  Publishing Year : 2013 #Pages : 340

     

The best coming from Jhumpa Lahiri.
Her immaculate observation of even the most mundane things will send chills down your spine, just through the way of her narration.
The way she writes, it seems like she herself is telling us a story without any expression from her part, but her eyes are on the look to see if her listener is absorbing and feeling each of her words.
Her style will take you off-guard.
Her plot will will sink your feet in the ground.

With a keen eye, she shows us the abnormalities of the human mind. Its fanatic nature, its slow fall to obsession, its power to possess, its ability to love and remain unmoved under the onslaught of strong affections, its compassion, its ruthlessness, its stubbornness, its desire to hold on to hope even when it is roughly snatched away, is beautifully depicted through the lives of Udayan, Subhash, their parents, Gauri, Holly, Bela, Meghna and Elise.

Two brothers, Udayan and Subhash, share a bond very strong during its inception, but it turns weak when the two brilliant minds choose different paths in their lives.
Udayan decides to turn into a Naxalite and works to bring about a revelation in their presiding government. He dreams of a better world where the poor are not subjected to inhuman torture. He does not care about his life. He has bigger dreams, bigger goals to achieve. He wishes his brother shared the same view as him. Amidst all the tumult, he meets a simple but intelligent Gauri, a woman who shares his passion and falls in love with her.
But their love and his hunger for a different tomorrow didn't last long.

Subhash, fifteen months elder to Udayan, was always a little neglected by his parents in comparison to his younger brother. But that never irked him although he was well aware of it. He loved his brother unconditionally, tried to support him as much as possible, but didn't share his love to risk his own life. Subhash always wished for a stable, secure life and didn't understand his brother's zeal for something else. Leaving his hometown he went to Rhode Island to complete his PhD. All was going fine till the time the woman he had been intimate with decided to end their camaraderie and a letter from his parents reached him. His life turned into the choppy waters of the sea on a stormy night.
A compassionate man,wants to hold out his hand to reach out those in need, Subhash has to face the constant jibes of the absence of his brother and is brutally thrashed about by fate in terms of love. So much so that you wish you could reach out to him, comfort him, caress his hair and tell him all is fine. But you cannot and neither is anything ever fine in his life again. The last few paragraphs of this novel will tear you up.

Gauri, a woman for whom I hold nothing but sheer hate, could be empathised with at first. But her blunt brutality towards Subhash and her own child will not keep her in your good books. There are times when people may not like others, but given her situation, she leaves you wondering about her steely perspective. However, the loneliness that was at first forced onto her, but later on taken up voluntarily, slowly drives her to the brink of loosing her mind.

Holly,Bela,Megha and Elise are women who have come into the trio's life and left behind meaningful imprints.

The Lowland is a compelling read. If you don't read it at once you can never read it again. Also you cannot keep it aside as it will constantly prod you to read further.

A fluid read. A read to remember. A read to feel.

Grab the book from Amazon!

MY NIGHTINGALE : A LOVE STORY BURNED IN THE HYMNS OF INDIA'S GREATEST STRUGGLE - BY ARUN BHIMAVARAPU

Title : My Nightingale : A love story burned in the hymns of India's greatest struggle Author : Arun Bhimavarapu SOC Rating : 3/5 Genre : Historical Fiction Publisher : Notion Press Publishing Year : 2016 #Pages : 348

A riveting story entwined around facts dug up from times during the war of India's independence.

During those times, there were two kinds of Indians. One who revered the British and wanted them to stay and the rest who wanted them out of their lands.

Prudhvi was a man of the former kind and so was his father. But the love of his life, Sanjukta, believed otherwise. She loved freedom, wanted freedom, was so desperate for it that she was ready to go to any lengths and even denied to acknowledge her love for her husband.
Prudhvi, hurt goes to London, away from his wife, to ace what he was already good at, codes.

There he meets Emily. The third person to form the love triangle.

Emily, a genteel girl, falls hopelessly in love with the caring, gentle yet strong and intelligent Prudhvi.

Even though Prudhvi loved Emily as a dear friend, his loyalty lied elsewhere. He loved his wife dearly and couldn't forget her. His only wish was to hear the words 'I love you' from her lips and listen to their special song from her voice just before he died.

London fell prey to World War II, and Prudhvi parted from Emily to come back to India.

Back in his own country he went to meet his lovely wife, but met with such news that changed the course and aim of his life forever. Searching for her, he found that his Sanjukta after facing a horrendous encounter with Lord Canning , had turned into a rebel, a devotee of Bose. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

Overjoyed to see her husband after ages, the two spend a blissful night in the forest, sharing the details of their journeys so far. Prudhvi's heart burned with rage on hearing what Sanjukta said. He wanted revenge on those who hurt her. He wanted to rise in her eyes. He wanted to earn his wife's love. A single night with her, brought about radical changes in Prudhvi's beliefs towards freedom.

Next morning when Sanjukta couldn't find her husband she went crazy. But when she learned that her husband had finally realised the right path, that he had gone to work for Bose, she shed bitter-sweet tears. Prudhvi had left a letter to her. That was the last letter she ever received from him.

Now begins the tale of Prudhvi the freedom fighter, Bose - the venerable man and Gandhi, the poison of all the rationals eyes. Prudhvi puts his brilliance to encoding and decoding codes, his work and dedication allows him to meet the genius Bose. His diligence as a spy in foreign lands, his methods of manipulating Emily with a pang in his heart when fate plays a cruel taskmaster and his final act of saving Bose, earns him respect.

In this book we see the difference between Gandhi and Bose. We get to learn what a speculative mind Bose had, what a strong support he had undercover.

What happens to Prudhvi at the end and the two women who loved him is for you to find out.

All I can say is that this book is a must read. 

Grab the book from Amazon!

After a hectic week, I needed to unwind reading something which wasn't too serious,melancholic, mind numbingly dumb or added to the already soaring adrenaline levels of mine. So after a thorough scanning of the shelves at Starmark, I found this book.

When I read the synopsis, I realised this is the one. Something about the cover, I cannot put a finger on it, maybe the balance of it all, made me feel good about it.

Being a Bengali myself I could immediately relate to the summary and was eager to see what was between the covers.

A surprise was in tow as well 'cause when I opened the book I found the autograph of the author herself !!

Off to a good start then.

I devoured Creme Brulee in a day. I am choosing the word devoured because this book cannot be read in any other way. It goes on talking about food and the way it spins the story, you cannot possibly do anything else.

We have a lot of Bengali authors and some of them have written books on this breed but none have described it the way Ramona Sen has. She has given it the touch of reality and it is so easy to connect with what she has said, because this is what we see and do all the time. Others have always focused on different factors and been very obtuse about the true characteristic of us Bengalis. Agreed that we are lazy and afternoon siestas are a must or else we will end up having a throbbing temple by six in the evening and are, as some like to call us, pseudo-intellectuals at times. But there is more to us than that. And that is exactly what Ramona Sen has shown. She couldn't have described us any better.

The dialogues, the people, their nature, the locations, the emotions, everything about this book is an actual reflection of our families, of our lives. Bengalis are probably the most anglicised of the entire lot and are popularly known to snigger at others after they have flawlessly learned the tongue of the West.
Even if you aren't a Bengali by blood, being a Calcuttan will be enough to make you enjoy this read. Familiar names are strewn throughout the book and they definitely strike a chord with all Cal peeps, Bongs especially.
Food is an integral part of this book. So read it while munching on something or else you are bound to have hunger pangs.
The emotions have been dealt with very delicately and those who ponder on love matters should give this a read, as it deals with the common worries, such as how to face your ex, how to move on and how to profess your love. It talks about love, but not in a suffocating manner. It doesn't asphyxiate your brain with pointless eulogies on love and dejected poems from jilted wooers.
She hasn't belittled the Bongs, has very efficiently pointed out the flaws and fallacies and definitely has not overdone the good in us. She has shown the roshogolla like sweetness in us. :)

Most importantly she has brought forth an imperative aspect of the B-breed and that is liberality with an equilibrium.

The current trend, that we can see, rather sadly I must say, is of behaving in the extreme. There are some of us who wish to shed the tag of our culture and take after others and then there is another section who are downright orthodox and put their feet down when it comes to acceptance.
The former being more in number is alarming, as it is increasingly making our culture turn into a rarity and the latter are just making us visible enough to be sneered at.

But Creme Brulee brilliantly shows how to to have a broad outlook AND love our roots as well.
It continues to show the creativity Bong Brains have nurtured over generations.

It shows us how a Young and Kapoor can love a Mookerjee.
It shows us how we can love our unbeatable nolen gurer payesh and enjoy their creme brulee too.

If only people took to the best of both worlds.

Title : Creme Brulee

Author : Ramona Sen

SOC Rating : 5/5

Genre : Romance/Fiction

Publisher : Rupa

Publishing Year : 2016

                                   

A catchy name + A fetchy plot = Eagoler Chokh.

The L.H.S of this equation is director and co-producer Arindam Sil’s success formula.

However,

A catchy name + A fetchy plot – The excess intimate scenes = A Possibly better Egoler Chokh.

In many stories sex and intimacy are of immense importance. Here, in Eagoler Chokh physical relationships play a vital role, but to retain its essence it could be a little restrained in terms of its number. The beauty and authenticity of romance or raw sensuality is kind of lost in the repeated love making scenes. Nonetheless there were some shots where the craze for human touch was well portrayed, like in the hospital where Bishan kisses his wife, the moments steeped in lust expressed with just a look or a loving caress and when the 15 year old Bishal was getting to know the skin of a woman for the first time.  But some of the other intimate scenes came out forced and at times seemed unnecessary.

To say it directly Eagoler Chokh is a very bold movie. No subtlety involved at all. 

Coming to our straight-to-the-point sleuth, ACP Shobor Dasgupta, Saswata Chatterjee couldn’t be better. The letter S stands for quite a few things – Smart, Sharp, Sincere, Sarcastic, Scintillating, Shrewd and many more and all of these are there in S for Shobor. His serious attitude peppered with a little snappy humour makes him even more fun to watch. Even though he is shown to be a being devoid of tender feelings, the glimmering drop of tear at the corner of his eye when he talks to Shivangi for the last time shows that he does have a heart.  

Anirban Bhattacharya as the rich and deeply flawed entrepreneur Bishan Ray delivers an appreciable performance. His profound drawl definitely added more drama to his character. 

Rita Fernandez, Nandini, Jahnabi, Shivangi Roy and her sister Shyamangi, the women involved with Bishan, have him entwined around their little finger. His life is toyed around by these women who themselves are tortured with their obsession regarding him. 

Arunima Ghosh didn’t have a considerable screen time, but she made her presence felt whenever she was on there. Didn’t let the character of the protagonist overpower her. 

Joya Ahsan as Shivani Ray seemed genuine, especially when she stared blankly and stuttered her first words after waking up from coma. 

Nandini played the scheming seductress pretty well. Payel Sarkar is turning out to be an ace in these roles. 

Ushoshi Sengupta debuts with this film and puts in a good effort. Her character is a surprise. 

Gaurav Chakroborty has honesty written all over his face, precisely the reason why he made such a suitable choice for playing the role of a gentle and austere police officer. We have usually seen him in emotional roles, causing a bit of a surprise when he was seen walking in the whites.

To end it all, the music accompanying the thrilling chases was very composed and talking about the chases, it was an immense delight in seeing crisp chasing scenes which are not elongated just for the sake of extending the movie.   

This second feather in the Shobor hat is worth a watch.  The end will leave you stunned.

For those who have missed it in the theatres, watch it in Prime Video now!

1. You had to either take part in the cosplay or in the blogging contest.
2. The best performers from both of them were sent to the next round, where you had to solve a given set of jumbled words within 20 minutes.
3. From there 10 people were selected and sent to the finals. In the final showdown you had to answer a rapid fire round in a span of 20 seconds. 

A lot of cuss words, a lot of sleeping with this person, that person, with him, with her, murder, murder and four more murders.

Its as if scotch, money and lust is what all life has to offer. While some may agree that these are ALL the best things in life, there may be some people who believe that these are nothing but some of the best things life gives us. I, happen to support the second group. Too much of blood, sex and alcohol make this movie very, very stifling. It overpowers the flimsy plot of the movie. The obvious saga which will come to the minds of many supporters of the former, is Game of Thrones. I would gladly like to point out that despite the gore and skin show Game of Thrones has an amazing plot as a breather, something which this movie grossly lacked. All Shororipu did was drown our sensible side in alcohol and stab our intellect over and over again.

The twist at the end comes as a total surprise. The surprise is so terrifically dumb that no one could have seen it coming. This script was surely the aftermath of a night soaked in scotch.

Even though Shororipu is regarding the seven sins which involves love, lust blah blah, it could have been portrayed with a sensible story line and not by something just strung along. After every passing minute, I thought OK, there will be something worth watching in the next scene maybe. I was disappointed, to say the least.

Dhee Majumdar and Rudraneel Ghosh came as respite. If you sit on your seats, you will sit for them. As the young Shekhar, Dhee Majumdar has a small role but he does justice to it. Effortless acting on his part, accurate expressions and perfect usage of his baritone voice. Rudraneel Ghosh is a wonder. The timid manager, to calm blackmailer, to a pretty good singer (the male voice in that pointless but peppy item number is his), Rudraneel Ghosh as Shubhankar Nandi was lovely to watch. Chiranjeet Chatterjee as the sleuth Chandrakanta brought a certain sharpness to his character which is commendable. Koneenika Banerjee, as the simpering and nagging assistant was watchable. Sudipta Chakraborty however seemed too loud and definitely overacted her part. Indraneel Sengupta didn't make a mark, but at least he didn't make us cringe so it was alright. Rajatava Dutta is a veteran actor so a brilliant performance from him is nothing but expected, nonetheless the kind of character he tried to portray probably calls for a different cast. That smile of his with his wide open eyes may send chills down your spine though. Sohona Saba, well, she can do better than this, hopefully.

The only scene which will bring a hint of smile to your face is when Chandrakanta says 'Kani ebar ektu popcorn niye esho toh.' and the lights are switched on for the interval.

An average film with a very clumsy end is what all I can say about Shororipu. 

Dhakuria Lake and Calcutta Rowing Club played the host this year to the All India Dragon Boat Festival.


The celebrations started off with professional rowers putting their oars to the water, on boats with a dragon head. The first boat to the shore wins. Mostly a Chinese audience, there were many Indians too rooting for the rowers, there were many Indians who had taken part in the competition. The winners were given trophies after the Chinese Lion Dance was over.

There were throngs of people waiting for the Chinese Lion Dance. It is a wonder to see and you cannot help but appreciate the effort of the boys under the costume. Not being able to see but maintaining your balance and coordination requires talent and a hell lot of practice. The typical music to which the Lions dance was played by a group of Chinese musicians. Here are a few videos for you to enjoy.




The emcee said that the Dragon Boat Festival is incomplete without eating a Zhong. A zhong is basically a sticky rice dumpling with a sweet or salty centre. The sweet filling is made up of bean paste and the salty filling can be anything you want, but the ones which were available had a mushroom filling.



A lot of stalls selling authentic Chinese delicacies were set up serving Chicken/Pork Pao, spring rolls, dumplings, wantons and many more. Tea is a speciality of China, so lemongrass and jasmine tea were available for the beverage lovers.

The Dhakuria Lake has a beautiful atmosphere and the lights and hubbub of the festivities brought about some life to the otherwise serene ambience.


A member of the club said that they should hold such an event in Park Street next time, to which the crowd vociferously agreed.

It was a nice to see the Chinese feeling comfortable and finding a home in Kolkata, away from their native land. It felt good to see the diverse cultures coming together, respecting each other and enjoying the moment.

Lets hope that this acceptance of all the good things in the world continues and many more festivities of such kinds come to the fore in our Kolkata. 

                                                                          Adda Tram

Nandita Roy and Shiboprasad has been raising the bar over the last few years and with Bela Sheshe they had set a benchmark for themselves.

Praktan lives up to the duos much deserved fame.

The two directors have set up a style. They bring back an old pair and narrate a story of two people in a way that makes the audience feel like its their life on celluloid. It is their ability to choose a particular string of the heart and strum it in ways that will make your eyes swell.

Rituparna Sengupta is an architect, an independent modern woman, loves her man so deeply that fails to recognise that her success brews jealousy in his heart.

Prasenjit Chatterjee is a middle class tour guide running his own business, has a busy schedule, actually a romantic but doesn't have time for his wife, is dominating, prefers to be the knight in shining armour and wants his wife to be the damsel, not in distress but always dependant on him.

All goes well at first but love flies out the window when money matters come barging in through the door. Prasenjit's character Ujjan oversees the love of his wife when she gifts him and thinks its her attempt in showing him that he doesn't have standards like hers. Rituparna's Sudipa tries to get her husbands attention by making compromises, by planning trips from her own pocket just so that the two can spend some quality time together, but doesn't understand that her attempts to draw him near are actually pushing him away as it hurts his self esteem.

Sudipa's last attempt to salvage their marriage goes in vain and the two separate.

The entire film is set on a train ride from Mumbai to Kolkata and is shown on the basis of a conversation between two women. The two women being Aparijita Adya and Rituparna Sengupta.

On the side we have a group of four musicians in the train to bring in a light note with their music, otherwise the movie would have been a tad bit too dour. We also have a newly married OTT couple, Biswanath Basu and Manali Dey, coming back from their honeymoon and an elderly couple, Soumitra Chatterjee and Sabitri Chatterjee, returning to Kolkata after a visit to their son's family.

 

The reason for showing the three married couples is to show the stark contrast between the various stages and types of marriage. The young couple returning from their honeymoon shows the enthusiasm, love and concern a couple share at the start, how they don't realise that marriage isn't always a smooth sail. The elderly couple shows how love and loyalty stands the test of time and stay together till the end. The two women show how mistakes can make a marriage go wrong and how they can be rectified given a second chance and a change of heart.

However a particular aspect was a botheration. Here they showed that a woman who is driven to make a successful career is the one who is refused to lead a smooth marital life, and the woman who forgets about herself and thinks that the sole reason behind her existence is to serve her husband and care for her child, comes out successful, makes no sense as such. What were they trying to say ? That a woman after marriage needs to let go of all her dreams, and just be a thing in her in-law's house to be pushed around ? A working woman wishes to have a husband and child as well. They are not devoid of feelings just because they earn money and wish to make a mark in her life. Whenever Sudipa told Molly that she has learnt a lot about life from her, learnt that compromises are required in a marriage, I couldn't help but feel a little agitated. Why does the compromise need to be forgetting who you are ? Why should the compromise be one sided ? Leaving the job isn't a compromise. Its a sacrifice. Learning to figure out some time for your loved around your hectic schedule is what is required.
This is the only complaint I have regarding this film. The message which came across is not appropriate.

The climax and the end is something that I shall not reveal. It is for you to find out by hitting the nearest theatres. All I can say is that it is a lovely portrayal of the past and present. The last scenes between Ujjan and Sudipa and the last line by Molly(Aparajita Adhya) to Sudipa will either leave you with a smile or with a tear in your eye.

The music of this movie is praiseworthy, especially the the songs Bhromor and Tumi jake bhalobasho. After you leave the theatres hunt these two on the net and play it on loop. For sure.
As for the acting Rituparna has showed a different dimension to her performance after a long time. Aparajita Adhay though natural and effortless mostly seemed a little loud at parts and Prasenjit has lived up to his name definitely.

When I was told to buy tickets for this movie I was pretty apprehensive about how it would turn out, but thank God I did or else I would have missed something this awesome.

Let me first tip my hat for Kaushik Ganguly as he dished out a spooky plot, remarkable direction and outstanding acting. When we see an actor on screen we do realise that he has slipped on the skin of a character but for Kaushik Ganguly you cannot say that. You actually clap for him when he murmurs 'Ami jokhon boli je bonduk thik ache tar mane bujhben je bonduk ta thik e ache'. It felt like he is Timir babu in real and reel life.

Special credit for the costume designer who put together Abir's look cause he looked smart, elegant and delicious. Coming to his performance, this is probably one of his best so far. He fit the role of a brigadier perfectly. The way he showed his angst, his disgust, his distress, his constant desire to win and the final display of passion for his wife whom he has spurned for long was stunning. He is clearly honing his acting skills.

We see our wonderful and beautiful Raima again. Her performance is commendable and the fact that she looked pretty goes without saying. She has definitely done better than what she did in Mon Chora.

Parambrata Chatterjee, our ever dependable actor did very well as the gentle but sharp baastuman Kushal.

Churni Ganguly too puts in a very appreciable performance as the deranged Antara, the elder sister of Abir, who hasn't recuperated from the loss of her husband and son in a car accident.

Cinematographer Gopi Bhagat needs to be mentioned, especially for bringing forth the charm and beauty of Darjeeling.

This is a movie based on relationships which is actually a surprise cause the title doesn't suggest that at all.
Bastushap is packed with lots of thrill and romance and since it is presented so well, do go and give it a watch.

Based on the story Banhi Patanga by Saradindu Bandopadhay this winter Arindam Sil gives us a racy pacy Byomkesh film for our regular dose of much needed thrill.

The movie rolls and enters Byomkesh Bakshi with his wife Satyabati and his author brother Ajit Bandopadhay who are greeted by Inspector Purandhar Pandey in the holy city of Benaras.

Abir in his dhuti panjabi attire and with his smartness and sharp intellect remind us of our olden golden rich bangaliana. His clear cut words and no nonsense attitude reiterates the fact that he is the perfect choice for portraying a sleuth.
Sohini Sarkar gives us a cheerful Satyabati who is demure, intelligent and adds a  certain cuteness to her personality.
Ritwick Chakraborty, the sidekick of our detective as Ajit Bandopadhay has the edginess of a creative mind and also provides some comic relief at times in such a sombre background.
Harsh Chhaya draws an endearing picture of Inspector Purandhar Pandey who plays an ideal host to our family from bengal.

Now comes Inspector Rathikanth Chowdhury marching into Purandhar Panday's residence to invite him to Deepnarayan Singh's palace for a gala night. Having guests over, Purandhar Pandey politely declines the invitation, but Deepnarayan Singh's generous hospitality is extended which is why our trio too are invited.

Deepnarayan Singh happens to be a rich, powerful zamindar of Benaras around whom mysterious tales are woven especially about his second wife Shakuntala Singh, played by Nusrat Jahan. Rumours say that he has married Shakuntala, a woman half his age, by his own will and against hers.
Whatever the rumours maybe Adil Hussain as Deepnarayan Singh will leave a mark on you even with his short screen time. That voice. That smooth talk. Those titbits of bangla. Many bong women can be heard sighing whenever his face is on screen. Though Nusrat Jahan needs to hone her acting skills, she cut a very beautiful picture throughout the movie.

Night falls, guests come pouring in and a beautiful mujra is presented by Koneenika. Meanwhile Inspector Rathikanth comes in with the news of a robbery in Dr. Pannalal Palit's, the doctor who gave Deepnarayan Singh a new life,modest dispensary.
And that is when the mystery knocks at our detective's door.

Appreciable performances rule all over but we miss the way in which Byomkesh Bakshi slowly unwinds the facts before his audience. Here the revelation is narrated a bit too fast by Abir which bereaves us of enjoying the moment where we are left aghast.

Cinematographer Soumik Halder has beautifully captured the wondrous Benaras in his lens.

Bikram Ghosh deserves special mention for his music direction. Well placed catchy songs are always welcome in a good film.

Over all Har Har Byomkesh makes for a satisfying watch.

PS: Spoiler alert !!! A painting plays a pivotal role here and at the end you will find a scene which is a total rip off of Jai Baba Felunath. Director Arindam Sil says that it is a tribute although. And for the ones drooling over Abir Chatterjee, you will find him romancing his lady love here.

Watch it here in Amazon Prime, if you have missed it in the theatres!

Mon Chora, seems like a low budget attempt in romance by Sandip Ray. Nonetheless barring some errors, it is quite watchable.

Abir Chatterjee and Saswata Chatterjee save the movie from turning into a snooze fest. Saswata once again shows his brilliance by being the meek Monu, who can even kill for his lady love Miss Lily. Abir is slowly turning out to be the ultimate detective and romantic hero. He has a certain sharpness in his mannerisms which is very refreshing.
Raima Sen shimmers through the movie as Nanda and tries to follow the foot steps of her grandmother Suchitra Sen in the way she flutteres her lashes and in her dialogue delivery, but she kinda falls flat on that. We have seen superior performances from her and expect much more. We needed more life from her and less of the plastic stuff. She could have positively been better if she gave more of herself and tried to imitate her granny less. Though it wasn't a terrible attempt on her part, we would prefer seeing a Raima than another Suchitra.
June Malia shines as Miss Lily and she did what she does best, drinking and seducing men. That's all that she has been doing lately, on screen that is.
Paran Bandopadhay too was in his usual comic self.

Sandip Ray may have inherited his father's foodie genes, which is oh-so-evident when we have Paran Bandopadhay relishing his dinner with his doting granddaughter Nanda (Raima) watching him lovingly and saying 'Pudding er jonno jayega rekho kintu' in the opening scene, but he has his father's large shoes to fill in the suspense sector.
We have seen him primarily direct Feluda movies and whatever non-Feluda movies he has made all have a thriller element in them. Mon Chora too has a whiff of suspense, which is one of the highlights of the movie. But the thrill present in the original story of Saradindu Bandopadhay could have been delineated better. The major draw here lays in the charm of innocent love and that is depicted modestly by Abir and Raima. And there is a surprise at the end which you cannot possibly guess and will be thinking of throughout the movie.

The movie has a very 80's feel to it with the exception of a single iPhone only. If winter spells romance for you and reminds you of long lost days then you can positively drop in a nearby theatre and give Mon Chora a watch. Despite its flaws it will leave you with a warm fuzzy feeling with your partner by your side.