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