Kolkata, Mar 10 (PTI) Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's 'Abhagir Swargo' has now been adapted for the big screen, starring Bangladeshi actor Rafiath Rashid Mithila as the protagonist.
Director Anirban Chakraborty told PTI on Saturday, the Bengali film 'O Abhagi' portrays the raw and harsh reality of rural Bengal but in the 70s background instead of the actual setting over a century back.
"In O Abhagi, I stuck to the essence and spirit and main story of the Sarat Chandra work adding something new without tampering with the actual story", he said.
Asked about the reason for casting Rashid Mithila, the young film maker said "She fitted the role of Abhagi as visualised by me and when she took the make-up and faced the camera the effect was stunning".
Also having seen Mithila in past productions of both countries, "I knew she could execute the role as I wanted and I am more than happy with her performance", Chakraborty added.
Mithila is seen as a 16-year-old and a 30-year-old in the film and "she is so convincing in both ages not looking older", he said.
About the reason behind adapting the popular short story by writer Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, Chakraborty said "I had been struck by the thought to make a film on Abhagir Swargo for a long time".
Apart from taking up a work where a woman's side of the story is given due space, 'Abhagir Swargo' also reflects the empathy of a novelist like Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay about the fair sex and their situation in the society across the ages and in all his works, he explained.
Chakraborty, however, added he did not take up a Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay work, many of which had been commercial successes on celluloid driven by commercial considerations.
The film, which was extensively shot in junglemahal belt of West Bengal and also Ghatsila area of Jharkhand, stars Bollywood actor Subrata Dutta who essays the role of a 'zamindar' (landlord).
It will be released in cinema halls and multiplexes on March 29.