Bengali cinema recapturing its old glory in India

Scenes from “The Japanese Wife” and “Autograph” (right).

Bengali cinema in India's Paschimbanga state is getting back the lost audience, as a series of thought-provoking films in recent years have tasted commercial success.
The long-held perception that meaningful cinema does not do well in box office is withering away, paving the way for commercial revival of the industry, according to a latest study on the eastern media and entertainment sector by India's apex business and industry body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
Films like “Baishe Srabon”, “Autograph”, “Moner Manush”, “Abhohoman”, “Anuranan”, “The Japanese Wife” and “Shukno Lanka” have walked the tightrope between box office success and critical acclaim.
Gone are the days when Bengali films would struggle to find theatres against Bollywood potboilers featuring big stars. Contending that the Bengali film industry is on its way to regain lost glory, the study said that in the last 3-4 years, the industry has seen the emergence of 'middle-of-the-road' cinema, which is commercially viable and yet thought-provoking.
This has resulted in movies that cater to all sections of the Bengali film audiences-- the urban and those in the districts.
Consequently, from an average of 40-50 films in 2006, the industry today is producing close to 100 films per year, according to figures from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC).
The box office collections for Bengali films have started reaching figures as high as Rs 5-6 crores, which is a significant increase from the past half a decade, the report said.
“The Bengali film industry known for its rich past and contribution to the Indian film industry is on its revival path. We are seeing films with fresh storylines emerging as commercially successful, domestically,” veteran filmmaker Goutam Ghose was quoted as saying in the report. His film “Moner Manush”, with a cast drawn from India and Bangladesh, is estimated to have garnered revenues of Rs 1 crore from theatrical releases alone last year.
“Today I am proud to say that the Bengali film industry has really come of age. Good Bengali films with proper marketing garners as much attention as any big blockbuster Hindi or a Hollywood release,” said producer Mahendra Soni of Shree Venkatesh Films.
Predicting that Bengal, once regarded as the 'Mecca' of Indian films, will eventually be back with a bang, Suvojit Roy, CEO of Orion Entertainment, said the palette is complete with films of different genres, catering to the needs of every movie enthusiast.
The entry of big producers like Mahindra's Mumbai Mantra, Reliance Entertainment and Mukta Arts has injected the much-needed corporate finance to the Bengali film industry. However, the industry continues to grapple with challenges at the ground level due to issues of piracy and poor exhibition infrastructure that threaten the sustenance of this growth curve.
Further, addressing areas such as a steady flow of Bengali content for the semi-urban and rural audience as well exploring overseas markets could prove to be beneficial for continued growth of the industry, the FICCI report suggested.