''Saheb Bibi Golam'' is a 1956 Bengali film directed by Kartik Chatterjee. It is based on a Bengali novelist Bimal Mitra's 1953 novel of the same name. The film explores the tragic fall of

feudalism Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...

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 ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

. The title of the movie and the story is a reference to the plot simultaneously exploring a platonic relationship between a beautiful, forlorn wife of an aristocrat and a career-driven clerk. The film stars Sumitra Devi,

Uttam Kumar Uttam Kumar ( bn, উত্তম কুমার; born Arun Kumar Chattopadhyay; 3 September 1926 – 24 July 1980), popularly known as the Mahanayak, was an Indian actor, producer, director, Screenwriter, script writer, composer, and sing ...

Chhabi Biswas Chhabi Biswas (''Chabi Biśbās'') (13 July 1900 – 11 June 1962) was an Indian actor, primarily known for his performances in Tapan Sinha's '' Kabuliwala'' and Satyajit Ray's films '' Jalshaghar'' (''The Music Room'', 1958), '' Devi'' ( ...

Pahari Sanyal Pahari Sanyal (22 February 1906 – 10 February 1974) was an Indian actor and singer who is known for his work in Bengali cinema. Sanyal acted in many Bengali films, such as ''Harano Sur'', ''Bhanu Goenda Jahar Assistant'', and ''Shilpi''. B ...

. This film directed by Kartik Chatterjee, is a movie adaptation of a Bimal Mitra’s novel that goes by the same name. The storyline is based on the backdrop of the British rule in India and deals with the shocking downfall of Bengal feudalism during that period. Featuring Uttam Kumar, Sumitra Devi along with Chhabi Biswas this film is one of the best Bengali films that has ever been made and was later saw a Hindi remake titled ‘Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam’ that proved to be one of the most critically acclaimed Bollywood movies. The film is considered one of Best Bengali films ever made.

Plot

The film opens at the ruins of an old

haveli A ''haveli'' is a traditional townhouse, mansion, manor house, in the Indian subcontinent, usually one with historical and architectural significance, and located in a town or city. The word ''haveli'' is derived from Arabic ''hawali'', mean ...

in Calcutta, where a group of labourers are busy pulling down what remains. When the workers break off for lunch, the overseer (

) wanders through the mansion. As he sits at a place there begins a flashback to the end of the 19th century. Sumitra Devi in Saheb Bibi Golam (1956)

The lower-class and educated Bhutnath arrives in colonial Calcutta looking for work. He is granted to stay in the grand mansion of an aristocratic family. He works at the Mohini Sindoor factory run by Subinay Babu (

), a dedicated member of the

Brahmo Samaj Brahmo Samaj ( bn, ব্রহ্ম সমাজ, Brahmô Sômaj, ) is the societal component of Brahmoism, which began as a monotheistic reformist movement of the Hindu religion that appeared during the Bengal Renaissance. It was one of th ...

. Subinay Babu's daughter Jaba (Anubha Gupta) is amused by Bhutnath whom she considers an unsophisticated rustic. Bhutnath becomes fascinated with the goings-on in the mansion and every night observes the decadent lifestyle of the Choudhury brothers. One night the servant, Bansi (Kanu Banerjee), takes Bhutnath to meet the younger landlord's beautiful wife Pateshwari ( Sumitra Devi) who implores him to bring her Mohini Sindoor believing it will keep her unfaithful husband home. Bhutnath is struck by her beauty and sadness and inadvertently becomes Pateshwari's secret confidante. A bomb explodes in the marketplace and Bhutnath is injured in the ensuing crossfire between freedom fighters and British soldiers. Jaba looks after him. Pateshwari's repeated attempts to appease her husband fail until she becomes his drinking companion to keep him by her side. Jaba's marriage is finalised with Supavitra (a member of Bramho Samaj) but after her father's death she declined the marriage. Bhutnath becomes a trainee architect and goes away to work on a training project. After his return he find the mansion in partial ruins. Pateshwari is now a desperate alcoholic and her husband, paralysed. Meanwhile, he learns that he and Jaba were betrothed as children. One night Pateshwari asks Bhutnath to accompany her to a nearby shrine to pray for her ailing husband. Their plan to go to the shrine is informed to the elder landlord (

), who suspects that Pateshwari is having an affair with Bhutnath. He orders his henchmen to chase them. As Bhutnath and Pateshwari travel in the carriage, it is stopped by the henchmen. Bhuthnath is knocked unconscious and Pateshwari is abducted. When he wakes up in hospital, Bhutnath is informed that Pateshwari has disappeared and the younger landlord is dead. The flashback ends. Bhutnath's workers inform him that a skeleton is found buried in the ruins of the mansion. From the bangles around the hand of the corpse, Bhutnath realises it is the remains of Pateshwari.

Cast

as Bhutnath * Sumitra Devi as Choto Bou Rani *

as Mejo Babu *Nitish Mukherjee as Choto Babu *

Chhaya Devi Chhaya Devi ( bn, ছায়া দেবী; 3 June 1914 – 25 April 2001) was an Indian actress known for her work in Bengali and Hindi cinema. She appeared in hundreds of films for over five decades. Her first lead role was in Debaki ...

as Boro Bou Rani *Padma Devi as Mejo Bou Rani *

as Subinay Babu *Anubha Gupta as Jaba * Jahar Ganguly * Bhanu Banerjee *

Kanu Banerjee Kanu Banerjee (Kanu Bandyopadhyay) (20 June 1905 – 27 January 1983) was an Indian actor and director of Bengali cinema and theatre.Soumitra Das and Dalia Mukherje (5 August 2012)"The matter-of-fact actor of many parts"Kolkata, India: '' ...

as Bongshi *Haridhan Banerjee * Nabadwip Haldar

Soundtrack

Reception

The film regarded as one of the greatest Bengali film ever made. Generally film become superhit. Uttam Kumar performance as Bhootnath was great acclaim by the critics. Famous actor Biswajeet Chatterjee inspired to his performance when he played Bhootnath role in Drama at Rangamancha theater. This film is considered as one of the best film ever made.

Remakes

In 1962 the film was remade in Hindi as '' Sahib Biwi Aur Gulam'' by

Guru Dutt Vasanth Kumar Shivashankar Padukone (9 July 1925 – 10 October 1964), better known as Guru Dutt, was an Indian film director, producer, actor, choreographer, and writer.Rajadhyaksha, Ashish, and Paul Willemen. 9941998''Encyclopedia of Indian ...

(Producer and director) and he also played Bhootnath role while

Meena Kumari Meena Kumari (born Mahjabeen Bano; 1 August 1933 – 31 March 1972) was an Indian actress and poet, who worked in Hindi films. Popularly known as ''The Tragedy Queen'', she was active between 1939 and 1972. Kumari is widely considered one of ...

and

Waheeda Rehman Waheeda Rehman (born 3 February 1938) is an Indian actress and dancer. Regarded as one of Hindi cinema's finest actresses, Rehman's accolades include a National Film Awards, National Film Award and three Filmfare Awards. Rehman was honoured wi ...

also starred as Chhoti Bahu and Jabba role. It's remade again in Bengali in 2016 in same title starring Swastika Mukherjee,

Anjan Dutta 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 ...

and

Ritwik Chakraborty Ritwick Chakraborty is an Indian actor who works in Bengali cinema. He made his debut with Pagol Premi in 2007. He plays different roles in different sorts of movies, so he is a versatile actor in Bengali Film Industry. Career Chakraborty wa ...

References