''Grihajuddha'' (

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

:''Crossroads'') is a

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

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 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, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

directed and written by

Buddhadev Dasgupta Buddhadeb Dasgupta (11 February 1944 – 10 June 2021) was an Indian filmmaker and poet best known for his Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali-language films like ''Bagh Bahadur'', ''Tahader Katha'', ''Charachar'' and ''Uttara (film), Uttara''. Five ...

and starring

Sunil Mukherjee Sunil Mukherjee (November 16, 1914-March 30, 1992) was an Indian politician and leader of Communist Party of India. He was the founder secretary of Communist Party of India Bihar unit. Biography Early life He was born on November 16, 1914 in th ...

. The film was produced under contract from the

Government of West Bengal The Government of West Bengal also known as the West Bengal Government, is the subnational government of the Indian state of West Bengal , created by the National Constitution as the state's legislative, executive and judicial authority. The ...

. The Naxalite movement in Bengal in the 1970s forms a backdrop to the film. The film was entered into the main competition at the 39th edition of the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

Plot

The Chief labour officer of a private steel company in Barrackpur senses corruption in the management. An idealist he resigns and is murdered. The secretary of the trade union, Probir gets to know of it and is murdered. His comrade Bijan manages to escape and absconds. Nirupama, the sister, who silently cherishes Bijan, along with Sandipan, a reporter, tracks down the hired gang of killers, which include Sital, the goal keeper in a smalltime football team. Sital reveals that they had been lured with the promise of a job. But the promises were not kept and sital wishes to disown his past. Meanwhile, Bijan has made good as a salesman in Nasik and returns to Calcutta as a changed man. His values had been eroded by time and success. He tries to justify his desertion of his earlier convictions, but fails to convince Nirupama. He wants a settled married life with Nirupama. She still clings to the ideals of her dead brother. But confusion and desperation forces Nirupama to accept his proposal. On the date of marriage, Sandipan is found dead in mysterious circumstances. Confused, Nirupama wants to postpone the marriage. Quarrels follow and Nirupama realises that the void between them is too wide to be bridged. The rift, however, forces a helpless girl to the threshold of self awareness. She realises that she, The film ends with Niupama beginning the struggle all by herself.

Cast

Anjan Dutt Anjan Dutt (Bengali: অঞ্জন দত্ত) is an Indian film director, actor, and singer-songwriter known for his work in the Bengali alternative music genre ''anyodharar gaan''. As an actor, Dutt began his career in Bengali cinema i ...

as Bijon *

Mamata Shankar Mamata Shankar (born 7 January 1955) is an Indian actress and dancer. She is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She has acted in films by directors including Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Rituparno Ghosh, Buddhadeb Dasgupta and Gautam Ghosh. I ...

as Nirupama *

Goutam Ghose Goutam Ghose (also spelled Gautam Ghosh born 24 July 1950) is an Indian film director, Actor, music director and cinematographer, who works primarily in Bengali cinema. He is the only Indian to have received the "Vittorio Di Sica" Award, Italy ...

as Sandipan * Shashanka Bhattacharya *

Manoj Mitra Manoj Mitra (born 22 December 1938) is an Indian theatre, film and television actor, director and playwright. Early life Mitra was born on 22 December 1938 in Dhulihar village of Satkhira, Khulna, Bangladesh. Initially he used to study at home ...

as Newspaper Editor * Prabir Guha *

* Pradip Sen * Monidipa Roy

Production

Casting

In 1981,

Gautam Ghose Goutam Ghose (also spelled Gautam Ghosh born 24 July 1950) is an Indian film director, Actor, music director and cinematographer, who works primarily in Bengali cinema. He is the only Indian to have received the "Vittorio Di Sica" Award, Italy ...

had done a film with Mamata Shankar called

Dakhal ''Dakhal'' () is a 1981 Indian Bengali film directed by Gautam Ghose, with Mamata Shankar, Robin Sen Gupta, Sunil Mukherjee and Sujal Roy Chowdhury in lead roles. The film is about a woman belonging to nomadic tribe from Andhra Pradesh, know ...

. Gautam Ghose said “ While directing Mamata, I would enact some scenes. She called up Buddha and praised my acting skills. In fact, she also to him that he should approach me for the role in ‘Grihajuddha’." Buddha and Mamata reached his residence to convince him to play the part.

Production

Gautam Ghose said about Buddhadeb Dasgupta in an interview " He would always tell the unit that I don't need extra takes since I am myself a cinematographer and know how to walk keeping pace with the trolley. Buddha was trying to develop a new style since the days of ‘Grihajuddha’. We would often get into arguments over why he was doing things a certain way. He would then tell me about wanting to develop a new style. Since I am also a film-maker, I could understand that."

Trivia

1. One of the thugs Shital Das that visited the deceased Prabir Dutta's house was shown to be the goalkeeper of Friends Sporting Club, Kolkata.

References

External links

* {{Buddhadeb Dasgupta 1982 films Bengali-language Indian films 1982 drama films Films directed by Buddhadeb Dasgupta Films set in Kolkata 1980s Bengali-language films Indian drama films