''Shubho Mahurat'' (2003) is an Indian

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 ...

detective

mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, i ...

directed by

Rituparno Ghosh Rituparno Ghosh (31 August 1963 – 30 May 2013) was an Indian film director, actor, writer and lyricist. After pursuing a degree in economics, he started his career as a creative artist at an advertising agency. He received recognition for his ...

. The film is based on Agatha Christie's 1962

Miss Marple Miss Marple is a fictional character in Agatha Christie's crime novels and short stories. Jane Marple lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur consulting detective. Often characterized as an elderly spinster, she is one of Ch ...

detective novel ''

The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side ''The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side'', a novel by Agatha Christie, was published in the UK in 1962 and a year later in the US under the title ''The Mirror Crack'd''. The story features amateur detective Miss Marple solving a mystery in St. ...

''. It won two

National Film award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directora ...

including Best Feature film in Bengali.

Plot

The phrase "Shubho Mahurat" is associated with the beginning of shooting for a feature film. The first shot is marked by a grand reception. This Miss Marple-esque film begins with this event. An NRI producer, Padmini Chowdhury (

Sharmila Tagore Sharmila Tagore (also known as Begum Ayesha Sultana; born 8 December 1944) is a retired Indian actress, primarily known for her work in Hindi and Bengali cinema, Tagore is the recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award, and the F ...

), has come to India to invest in a film. Her second husband Sambit Roy ( Sumanta Mukherjee), an out-of-work director, is assigned the job of direction. The out-of-work director has a shady past. A witness to his shady past is an aspiring actor, who was subsequently thrown out of the acting circuit. This actor started a catering service for the film unit. The NRI producer insists on casting a retired actress, Kakoli ( Kalyani Mandal) in a prominent role. Kakoli, a drug addict, subsequently dies under mysterious circumstances, on the day of 'Shubho Mahurat'. The journalist Mallika Sen (

Nandita Das Nandita Das (born 7 November 1969) is an Indian actress and director. She has acted in over 40 feature films in ten different languages. Das appeared in the films ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth'' (1998), '' Bawandar'' (2000), '' Kannathil Muthamittal' ...

) is the only person present at the time of the death. The suspicion naturally falls on the husband of the actress, who reportedly has an amorous relationship with another lady. The unnatural death of the actress causes a police investigation. An

IPS IPS, ips, or iPS may refer to: Science and technology Biology and medicine * ''Ips'' (genus), a genus of bark beetle * Induced pluripotent stem cell or iPS cells * Intermittent photic stimulation, a neuroimaging technique * Intraparietal sulcus, ...

officer named Arindam (

Tota Roy Chowdhury Tota Roy Chowdhury is an Indian actor and martial artist based in Kolkata. He predominantly appears in Bengali and Hindi cinema. His notable roles include Feluda in the web TV series Feluda Pherot based on Satyajit Ray's Feluda series. He ma ...

) takes up the investigation. During the course of investigation, Arindam befriends Mallika. Meanwhile, Mallika catches the fancy of a still photographer named Shubhankar (

Anindya Chatterjee Anindya Chatterjee is an Indian bengali film director, music director, singer, lyricist, actor and producer based in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the singer-lyricist of prominent Bengali band Chandrabindoo. In recent times he has compos ...

) who, incidentally, is closely related to the NRI producer. This NRI producer had a past no less interesting than the other protagonists. The NRI producer was an actress of repute in her heyday. She divorced her husband and left the country to settle abroad. Before that, she had given birth to an abnormal child. The course of the film reveals that she bore a grudge against Kakoli for spreading a contagious disease to her while she was pregnant, resulting in the abnormal child. Another amorous affair runs parallel to the main theme: The camera assistant was repenting for his past affair with the hairdresser. The hairdresser has her problems and she was extracting money very often from the camera assistant. All through the movie, the aunt of the journalist, Ranga Pishima (

Raakhee Raakhee Gulzar (born Rakhee Majumdar on 15 August 1947 and known as Raakhee) is an Indian actress who has appeared in many Hindi films and Bengali films as well. In four decades of acting, she has won three Filmfare Awards and one National Fil ...

), gives vital leads to the investigation through deductive logic. She is able to read the mind of the niece correctly. Her valuable inputs finally leads to solve the murder mystery.

Cast

as Padmini Chowdhury *

as Ranga Pishima *

as Mallika Sen *

as Arindam * Sumanta Mukherjee as Sambit Roy * Kalyani Mandal as Kakoli * Rajesh Sharma as Sumit *

Aparajita Adhya Aparajita Auddy is an Indian actress who works primarily in Bengali film and television industry. Filmography Television References External links * * https://celebhub.in/bengali-news/in-bengali-serial-lokhi-kakima-superstars-lead- ...

as Pramila *

Moumita Gupta Moumita Gupta is a Bengali film and television actress. Works Films * '' Ebong Kiriti'' (2017) * ''Bhroon'' (Unreleased) * ''Mone Pore Aajo Seidin'' (2011) * ''Bhumiputra'' (2006) * ''Je Jon Thake Majhkhane'' (2006) * ''Nagardola'' (2005) ...

as Kalpana *

as Shubhankar *

Abhijit Guha (director) Abhijit Guha is an Indian film director, actor and writer working in the Cinema of West Bengal, Tollywood film industry. Guha and Sudeshna Roy have worked together in the field of audio visuals since 1994. The duo debuted with their first film ''S ...

(special appearance) *

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 ...

(special appearance) *

Soumitra Chattopadhyay Soumitra Chatterjee (also spelt as Chattopadhyay; 16 June 193515 November 2020) was an Indian film actor, play-director, playwright, writer, thespian and poet. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors in the history of ...

(special appearance) * Subhendu Chattopadhyay (special appearance) *

Madhabi Mukherjee Madhabi Chakraborty (''née'' Mukherjee; born 10 February 1942) is an Indian actress. She won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in the Bengali film ''Dibratrir Kabya''. She has acted in some of the most critically ac ...

(special appearance)

Awards

* 2003 -

National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress The National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcast ...

for

* 2003 -

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of severa ...

References

External links

* {{authority control Bengali-language Indian films Indian detective films 2003 crime drama films Films based on Miss Marple books 2003 films Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress National Film Award-winning performance Films directed by Rituparno Ghosh Best Bengali Feature Film National Film Award winners 2000s Bengali-language films Indian crime drama films