''Dena Paona'' ( bn, দেনা পাওনা) () is a 1931

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

film directed by

Premankur Atorthy Premankur Atorthy (1890–1964) was an Indian novelist, journalist, and film director. He was involved in Hindi and Bengali cinema.Amar Mullick Amar Mullick (May 1899 – August 1972) was an Indian actor and director. Career Mullick was born in 1899 in Kolkata, British India. Although he was a civil engineer by profession but passionate in films. He joined New Theatres group in 1932 and ...

, Durgadas Bannerjee,

Jahar Ganguly Jahar Ganguly (October 1904 – 1969) was an Indian actor and theater personality. He received Best actor award in 6th Annual Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards in 1943 for his performance in ''Bandi''. Career Ganguly was born in undivi ...

, Nibhanani Devi, and

Bhanu Bandopadhyay Bhanu Bandyopadhyay, also known as Bhanu Banerjee (born as Samyamoy Bandyopadhyay; 26 August 1920 – 4 March 1983), was an Indian actor, known for his work in Bengali cinema. He acted in over 300 movies, in numerous plays and performed freque ...

. Based on a novel by

Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, alternatively spelt as Sarat Chandra Chatterjee ( bn, শরৎচন্দ্র চট্টোপাধ্যায়; 15 September 1876 or ৩১ শে ভাদ্র ১২৮৩ বঙ্গাব্দ � ...

and produced by

New Theatres New Theatres is an Indian film studio. It was formed in Calcutta by producer B. N. Sircar (Birendranath Sircar, the recipient of Dadasaheb Phalke Award of 1970). It was formed on 10 February 1931. Motto of this company was– ''Jivatang Jyotire ...

, it is credited as the one of first Bengali

talkie A sound film is a motion picture A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, percep ...

s, and along with

Alam Ara ''Alam Ara'' () is a 1931 Indian Hindustani-language historical fantasy film directed and produced by Ardeshir Irani. It revolves on a king and his two wives, Navbahaar and Dilbahaar, who are childless; soon, a '' fakir'' (Muhammad Wazir Khan) ...

, was one of the first sound films produced in India. The film explored the ills of the

dowry A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment b ...

system and touched on the problems of female oppression in 19th century

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

Plot

Jibananda is a drunkard Zamindar. Ekkari is his companion in all his sinful deeds and greed for money. Sorashi is the priestess in the local Chandi Temple and the estranged wife of Jibananda. She is adamant and stubborn, but responsible and honest. She has immense influence in certain sections of local society. When Sorashi was young, she was known as Alaka. Circumstances force Sorashi to stay whole night in the drunk Jibananda's house. This created a ripple amongst the local villagers when they come to know about this incident. But Sorashi gave a legal statement to the police and Magistrate that she went to the Zamindar's house willingly. Jibananda was freed from all offences due to this statement. But the village leaders were very strict about their decision. Sarbeswar Shiromani, Mr. Chowdhury, and Janardan Roy decided not to assign the responsibility of a priestess of the temple to Sorashi any more. Nirmal, the son-in-law of Sabeswar Shiromani, is very impressed by the attitude and intelligence of Sorashi. Jibananda later tries to make advances on Sorashi but she refuses him, making him angry. He attempts to evict her from her shelter. Sagar and his team wait for Sorashi's order to fight against Jibananda. But Sorashi is totally dispassionate and decides to leave the temple as well as the village forever. This brings an unexpected change in Jibananda as he realises his mistakes and surrenders to Sorashi. In response to which she accepts his unconditional apology and accepts him.

Cast

* Bhanu Bannerjee as Nirmal *

Durgadas Bannerjee Durgadas Bannerjee (1893–1943) was an Indian Bengali film actor who appeared in many roles from 1922 to 1943. Early life Bannerjee was born on 3 December 1893 to a zamindar family at Kalikapur, Kolkata. Garia Rajbari was his ancestral hom ...

as Jibananda *Nibhanani Devi as Shoroshi *

as Sagar Sardar *

Amar Mullick Amar Mullick (May 1899 – August 1972) was an Indian actor and director. Career Mullick was born in 1899 in Kolkata, British India. Although he was a civil engineer by profession but passionate in films. He joined New Theatres group in 1932 and ...

as Ekkari *Bhumen Roy as Nirmal *Shishubala as Haimabati *Umasashi in a crowd scene

Plot

Cast

References

External links

See also