‘Antonagar’: Portraying life in our metro
People from all walks of life live in this busy metro called Dhaka. They have different shades to their lives and thousands of untold stories that float through Dhaka's dingy air.
Out of the countless stories, Goutam Koiri collectively weaved a plot for his debut web-film, "Antonagar", which will begin streaming on Chorki from June 8.
The film is based on the interconnection between human relationships, their crisis and eternal bond. The hyper-link film will showcase the narratives of three couples, experiencing ups and downs of life, which the audience might connect with very easily, due to the light-hearted storytelling.
The three on-screen pairs that will be featured in the production from Runout Films will include Runa Khan(Rozina) and Shamol Mawla (Ilias); Sabnam Faria (Moushumi) and Shohel Mondol (Maruf); Nidra Neha (Purnima) and Prantar Dastider (Shubho).
Shamol Mawla shared that working with Koiri has been a pleasant experience. "Koiri and I share a great bond. Together, we have worked on quite a number of experimental projects and share lots of memories together. It is always fun to work with him."
Shamol plays Ilias, a CNG driver, who falls for his neighbour Rozina. Their chemistry grows with time, followed by sudden incidents that bring a twist in their lives. He noted that the film falls in the anthology genre, and a new form of storytelling in terms of local content. "People who love watching interconnected stories will definitely enjoy it."
Runa Khan plays Rozina in the film, who has two different sides to her life. "Rozina works in a parlour, and she lives in a place that is very crowded. She is one person at her workplace, and another one at home," elaborates Runa.
Sharing the experience of working with Shamol, Runa felt nostalgic about the days they worked together in "Sisimpur". She also praised the director as one of her favourites.
Koiri shared that he has metaphorically plotted the entire story, after collecting a series of events that he observed in his surroundings. "All of the characters in the film are named after celebrities of our country. This has been done intentionally. This is another metaphor, that life is no less than a film, as they both have certain levels of drama, intervals and a climax."
Shohel and Faria donned the roles of Maruf and Moushumi. Maruf is an employee at an undergarment shop, while Moushumi is Rozina's colleague at the same parlour.
"I have known Goutam Da for a long time, we have worked together behind the camera on many projects," said Shohel. "He shared the story with me a long time ago, for the part that I worked in, and for some reason it didn't happen. However, he connected that particular story to the hyper-link plot and we finally did it."
This is the second time Faria and Shohel shared the screen. "As a co-actor, she is very cooperative and fun to work with. I have really enjoyed working on this project and hope that the audience will experience something soothing on the screen," shared Shohel.
Faria's experience of working with the team has been satisfactory. "A reflection of reality will be seen in the film. I know the story of my part only, and it is one of such stories that has been represented in a unique way. I am grateful to the director for having me in such a team where my co-actors are phenomenal artistes. It made my work easier."
Chorki has been keeping the bar high by producing a variety of stories since its launch. It is time to tell how the audience embraces this new project, which will be released this Thursday.