Faltu
Encyclopedia
Faltu is a Bengali
movie based on Syed Mustafa Siraj
's story Ranir Ghater Brittanto, and was released in 2006. It won the 2007 National Award. Produced by Arindam Chaudhuri (Planman Motion Pictures) and directed by Anjan Das, the movie featured Soumitra Chatterjee
, Indrani Halder, Yash Pandit
and Manjari Fadnis, Nirmal Kumar, Masood Akhtar
, Biplab Chatterjee
. This film had been selected from India for the Spain film festival in the competitive category.
in West Bengal
in the early 1950s. It is the story of a 20-year-old orphan called Faltu (faltu in Bengali
means worthless, junk) and his search for the man who has fathered him. This is also the account of a village and its people, woven around a narrative with myriad moments and a lot of dramatic events. Ranirghat is a small village made up by the refugees from the then East Pakistan
. (Its current population is 148.) The lives of the villagers take a new turn when a census official questions Faltu's parentage. While it is a well-known fact that Faltu is the son of Sureswari Dasi aka Suri Khepi (a mad woman on the street played Indrani Haldar
), no one knows who his father is. Neither does Faltu nor he has even bothered with the question. He was happy with what he was doing — driving a bus and ferrying villagers.
The census official's question opens a Pandora's box
. It turns out that many apparently upright men in the village — including Ismail (Biplab Chatterjee
), who brought up Faltu and taught him driving — raped Suri Khepi, taking advantage of her mental condition. Things reach a stage where everybody knows that Faltu's father is one of them, but nobody is sure of who that is. Faltu is not particularly concerned. He is more interested in earning his living, and pursuing his love interest — Tuktuki (Manjari Fadnis).
A government order brings in bad news for the villagers of Ranirghat. As part of "development" plans, the government wants to construct a bridge from the village across the river and villagers have to vacate. They agree to do so but, before parting ways, they want Faltu and Tuktuki to get married to make up for what they had done to Suri Khepi. A guilty feeling haunts all the rapists. That is when a twist in the tale crops up. The elders of the village calls a meeting to organize the marriage of Faltu and Tuktuki. When they propose the marriage to Tuktuki's father, he flatly disagrees in a weird manner. Then he went to Faltu and disclosed that he also had raped Suri Khepi: The marriage should not occur as Faltu and Tuktuki are stepbrother and sister. Tuktuki overheard this. She committed suicide and the next morning she was found hanging from a tree. The villagers of Ranirghat left with pain-stricken hearts, while the background narrator declares that "with a proud and wounded heart, and several questions in mind, the undefeated Faltu drives on." As the construction work of the bridge goes on, the last bit of film captures a night sequence at the construction site: an engineer, sensing the presence of any unknown one, turns on his torch on the person. The last scene freezes there, showing another mad woman trying to drink water from the streamlets pouring down from the upper iron structure. Like the case of Suri Khepi, perhaps this was the beginning of another story of committing sins.
The entire story deals with human relations and how the guilt of having done something wrong haunts everyone in the village. They want to make up for their sins, but end up opening a new can of worms and spoiling a marriage.
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
movie based on Syed Mustafa Siraj
Syed Mustafa Siraj
Syed Mustafa Siraj সৈয়দ মুস্তাফা সিরাজ is an eminent Bengali writer. In 1994, he received the Sahitya Akademi award for his novel Aleek Manush অলীক মানুষ...
's story Ranir Ghater Brittanto, and was released in 2006. It won the 2007 National Award. Produced by Arindam Chaudhuri (Planman Motion Pictures) and directed by Anjan Das, the movie featured Soumitra Chatterjee
Soumitra Chatterjee
Soumitra Chatterjee or Soumitra Chattopadhyay is an iconic Bengali actor from India, known among other things for his frequent collaborations with the great Bengali film director Satyajit Ray and his constant comparison with the Bengali screen idol Uttam Kumar.-Background:Soumitra graduated from...
, Indrani Halder, Yash Pandit
Yash Pandit
Yash Pandit is a Bollywood film and television actor, most known as a lead in Rok Sako To Rok Lo and Begali film 'Faltu and TV daily soap, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.-Career:...
and Manjari Fadnis, Nirmal Kumar, Masood Akhtar
Masood Akhtar
Masood Akhtar is popular Pakistani singer. He has fan base stretching from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pashtun areas of Balochistan to southern parts of Afghanistan, and has achieved much recognition. Masood sings in several languages: Pashto, Urdu, Hindko- Origin :Masood was born in Mardan, Khyber...
, Biplab Chatterjee
Biplab Chatterjee
Biplab Chatterjee is a Bengali Indian male actor and director of television and films.-Early life:Biplab was born on 8 July in Kolkata. In 1962, he passed higher secondary from Park Institution and graduated from Anandamohan College, an affiliate of the University of Calcutta in 1965.-Career:Biplab...
. This film had been selected from India for the Spain film festival in the competitive category.
Plot
The story is set around Ranirghat of Murshidabad DistrictMurshidabad district
Murshidabad district is a district of West Bengal in eastern India. Situated on the left bank of the river Ganges, the district is very fertile. Covering an area of 5,341 km² and having a population 5.863m it is a densely populated district and the ninth most populous in India...
in West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
in the early 1950s. It is the story of a 20-year-old orphan called Faltu (faltu in Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
means worthless, junk) and his search for the man who has fathered him. This is also the account of a village and its people, woven around a narrative with myriad moments and a lot of dramatic events. Ranirghat is a small village made up by the refugees from the then East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
. (Its current population is 148.) The lives of the villagers take a new turn when a census official questions Faltu's parentage. While it is a well-known fact that Faltu is the son of Sureswari Dasi aka Suri Khepi (a mad woman on the street played Indrani Haldar
Indrani Haldar
Indrani Haldar is a Bengali actress. Indrani, also known as Mamoni, was born in Kolkata on January 6, 1971. Her father is Sanjoy Haldar. She finished her schooling from the Multipurpose Girl’s School and graduated from Jogamaya Devi College, an affiliated women's college of the prestigious...
), no one knows who his father is. Neither does Faltu nor he has even bothered with the question. He was happy with what he was doing — driving a bus and ferrying villagers.
The census official's question opens a Pandora's box
Pandora's box
Pandora's box is an artifact in Greek mythology, taken from the myth of Pandora's creation around line 60 of Hesiod's Works and Days. The "box" was actually a large jar given to Pandora , which contained all the evils of the world. When Pandora opened the jar, all its contents except for one item...
. It turns out that many apparently upright men in the village — including Ismail (Biplab Chatterjee
Biplab Chatterjee
Biplab Chatterjee is a Bengali Indian male actor and director of television and films.-Early life:Biplab was born on 8 July in Kolkata. In 1962, he passed higher secondary from Park Institution and graduated from Anandamohan College, an affiliate of the University of Calcutta in 1965.-Career:Biplab...
), who brought up Faltu and taught him driving — raped Suri Khepi, taking advantage of her mental condition. Things reach a stage where everybody knows that Faltu's father is one of them, but nobody is sure of who that is. Faltu is not particularly concerned. He is more interested in earning his living, and pursuing his love interest — Tuktuki (Manjari Fadnis).
A government order brings in bad news for the villagers of Ranirghat. As part of "development" plans, the government wants to construct a bridge from the village across the river and villagers have to vacate. They agree to do so but, before parting ways, they want Faltu and Tuktuki to get married to make up for what they had done to Suri Khepi. A guilty feeling haunts all the rapists. That is when a twist in the tale crops up. The elders of the village calls a meeting to organize the marriage of Faltu and Tuktuki. When they propose the marriage to Tuktuki's father, he flatly disagrees in a weird manner. Then he went to Faltu and disclosed that he also had raped Suri Khepi: The marriage should not occur as Faltu and Tuktuki are stepbrother and sister. Tuktuki overheard this. She committed suicide and the next morning she was found hanging from a tree. The villagers of Ranirghat left with pain-stricken hearts, while the background narrator declares that "with a proud and wounded heart, and several questions in mind, the undefeated Faltu drives on." As the construction work of the bridge goes on, the last bit of film captures a night sequence at the construction site: an engineer, sensing the presence of any unknown one, turns on his torch on the person. The last scene freezes there, showing another mad woman trying to drink water from the streamlets pouring down from the upper iron structure. Like the case of Suri Khepi, perhaps this was the beginning of another story of committing sins.
The entire story deals with human relations and how the guilt of having done something wrong haunts everyone in the village. They want to make up for their sins, but end up opening a new can of worms and spoiling a marriage.
Cast
- Yash PanditYash PanditYash Pandit is a Bollywood film and television actor, most known as a lead in Rok Sako To Rok Lo and Begali film 'Faltu and TV daily soap, Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.-Career:...
... Faltu - Manjari Fadnis ... Tuktuki
- Soumitra ChatterjeeSoumitra ChatterjeeSoumitra Chatterjee or Soumitra Chattopadhyay is an iconic Bengali actor from India, known among other things for his frequent collaborations with the great Bengali film director Satyajit Ray and his constant comparison with the Bengali screen idol Uttam Kumar.-Background:Soumitra graduated from...
... Potter - Indrani HaldarIndrani HaldarIndrani Haldar is a Bengali actress. Indrani, also known as Mamoni, was born in Kolkata on January 6, 1971. Her father is Sanjoy Haldar. She finished her schooling from the Multipurpose Girl’s School and graduated from Jogamaya Devi College, an affiliated women's college of the prestigious...
... Mad woman - Nirmal Kumar ... Priest
- Sumanta Mukherjee
- Debesh Roy Chowdhury
- Masood AkhtarMasood AkhtarMasood Akhtar is popular Pakistani singer. He has fan base stretching from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pashtun areas of Balochistan to southern parts of Afghanistan, and has achieved much recognition. Masood sings in several languages: Pashto, Urdu, Hindko- Origin :Masood was born in Mardan, Khyber...
- Pradip Mukherjee
Crew
- Producer(s): Arindam ChaudhuriArindam ChaudhuriArindam Chaudhuri is an Indian economist, management guru, former member Planning Commission and a honourary director of the IIPM Think Tank at Indian Institute of Planning and Management. He is the founder of the Planman Consulting. He is the winner of three National Film Awards from the...
Planman Motion Pictures - Director: Anjan Das
- Story:Syed Mustafa SirajSyed Mustafa SirajSyed Mustafa Siraj সৈয়দ মুস্তাফা সিরাজ is an eminent Bengali writer. In 1994, he received the Sahitya Akademi award for his novel Aleek Manush অলীক মানুষ...
- Production Design:
- Dialogue:
- Lyrics:
- Editing :Sanjeeb Dutta
- Cinematography:Shirsha Roy
- Art:Samir ChandaSamir ChandaSamir Chanda was an Indian art director and production designer across Indian cinema, including Hindi, Bengali and Tamil, most known for his work in films like Dil Se , Guru , Omkara , Rang De Basanti , and Raavan .He also directed a Bengali film, Ek Nadir Galpo starring Mithun...
- Sound:Anup Mukherjee
Critical reception
- A rich audio-visual experience — The TelegraphThe Telegraph (Kolkata)The Telegraph is an Indian daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Kolkata since 1982. It is published by the ABP Group and the newspaper vies with the Times of India for the position of having the widest widest circulation of any newspaper in Eastern India.According to the Audit...
(8 stars out of 10) - Anjan Das has meticulously crafted each scene in the film… You just cant stop praising it! — BartamanBartamanBartaman Patrika is an Indian Bengali language daily newspaper published in Kolkata by Bartaman Pvt. Ltd. Apart from the Kolkata edition, the newspaper has four other simultaneous editions, published daily from four major towns of West Bengal -- Siliguri, Burdwan, Malda and Midnapore...
- A moving saga with cutting edge depiction — The HinduThe HinduThe Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
- The film scores on the storyline and direction — The PioneerThe PioneerThe Pioneer or The Pioneers may refer to:* The Pioneer , a sculpture by Solon H. Borglum listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places*The Pioneers , a sculpture by Lorado Taft...
Awards
- BFJA Awards(2007)
- Best Actress In a Supporting Role Indrani HaldarIndrani HaldarIndrani Haldar is a Bengali actress. Indrani, also known as Mamoni, was born in Kolkata on January 6, 1971. Her father is Sanjoy Haldar. She finished her schooling from the Multipurpose Girl’s School and graduated from Jogamaya Devi College, an affiliated women's college of the prestigious...
- Best Director- Anjan Das
- Best Screenplay- Anjan Das
- 54th National Film AwardsNational Film AwardsThe National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it is administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.Every year, a national panel...
-Best Film on Family Welfare BestNational Film Award for Best Film on Family WelfareThe National Film Award - Best Film on Family Welfare winners:...