Three film projects in three decades: Tinsel world’s abiding interest in Nati Binodini
Times of India | 6 January 2025
KOLKATA: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee's decision to rename Star Theatre as Binodini Theatre highlights Bengali cinema's enduring interest in one of Bengal's pioneering female stage performers. Thirty years ago, Dinen Gupta directed 'Nati Binodini', starring Debosree Ray and Prosenjit Chatterjee. Before his untimely demise, Pradeep Sarkar was set to direct a Bollywood film featuring Kangana Ranaut as Binodini. While Sarkar's passing stalled that project, Ram Kamal Mukherjee's Bengali film 'Binodiini - Ekti Natir Upakhyan' is now set to premiere at the newly renamed Binodini Theatre.
What is it about Binodini's life that has piqued the interest of the Indian film industry? Those associated with cinematic adaptations based on Binodini agree that her life has numerous layers that lend themselves well to multiple movies. "My father's film explored Binodini's acting prowess and her connection with Ramakrishna Paramahansa. The film was a big success," said Dinen Gupta's daughter, Sonali Bose Gupta, who did the costume for the film.
Mukherjee's 'Binodiini - Ekti Natir Upakhyan', starring Rukmini Maitra and Chandan Roy Sanyal, is all set to scrutinise the complexities of society's perception towards the actor. Describing her life as a "bundle of paradox", he said, "while she was acknowledged for her acting prowess, why is her date of demise in 1941, not documented? Tagore's demise in the same year is well-documented. While the names of all female actors of her era were suffixed with Devi or Sundari, her name was suffixed with Dasi. Also, why was she chosen to portray Sri Chaitanya at a time when men were commissioned to portray women's roles?"
Another interesting plot point is her decision to write her autobiography twice over. She first wrote 'Amar Katha' in 1912 and then wrote 'Amar Abhinetri Jiban' (1924/25). "This she penned for a theatre magazine called 'Rup O Rang', the editor of which was Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Pradeep Sarkar and I endeavoured to envision what motivated Saratbabu to have her write the second autobiography," said Shibashis Bandyopadhyay, researcher for Sarkar's film.