''Ami Aadu'', formerly titled ''Aadur Prem'', is a 2011

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 produced by

New Theatres New Theatres is an Indian film studio. It was formed in Calcutta by producer B. N. Sircar (Birendranath Sircar, the recipient of Dadasaheb Phalke Award of 1970 And Padma Bhushan in 1972). It was formed on February 10, 1931. The company motto was ...

and directed by

Somnath Gupta Prabhas Patan, historically named Dev Patan, is a locality in Veraval, Gujarat. As the site of the Somnath temple and its associated Jyotirlinga (an aniconic representation of the god Shiva), it is an important place of Hindu pilgrimage. Plac ...

. In this film the protagonist, Aadu, a poor Bengali village girl from

Murshidabad Murshidabad (), is a town in the Indian States and territories of India, state of West Bengal. This town is the headquarters of Lalbag subdivision of Murshidabad district. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hooghly river, Bhagirathi Riv ...

, writes a letter to U.S. President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

informing him about the hardships in her life caused by the 2003 invasion of Iraq. This was Gupta's debut film as a director. Actress Deblina Chatterjee, who played the title role, made her cinematic acting debut with this film as well. The film received

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali The National Film Award for Best Bengali Feature Film is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India. It is one of several awards presented for feature films and awarded with Rajat Ka ...

in 2010.

Plot

It is the early 2000s;

is the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

and

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

is the

President of Iraq The President of the Republic of Iraq is the head of state of Iraq. Since the mid-2000s, the presidency is primarily a symbolic office, as the position does not possess significant power within the country according to the Constitution of Iraq, ...

. Meanwhile, Aadu, a young poor Hindu girl living in a village in Murshidabad, India, falls in love with Suleman, a Muslim garment supplier who lives in the nearby village of Amodiya. Suleman dreams of learning

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

and becoming a fluent speaker, so he can go overseas and find a job. Though Aadu and Suelman follow different religions, their families allow them to marry, and the marriage goes off smoothly. The impoverished Suleman decides to head to

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

with his friend Jabbar in search of a good job, leaving his new wife Aadu in the village. Then, in March 2003, the United States invades Iraq. Because of the war and the resulting political turmoil, all communication links between Aadu's village and Iraq are cut off. Aadu and the villagers gradually learn news about the bombings and destruction in Iraq and are horrified. The helpless Aadu decides to write a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush, whom she heard was "all powerful", informing him about the troubles in her life caused by the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

Cast

Deblina Chatterjee Deblina Chatterjee is an Indian film and television actress. Career She started her career in the performing industry in 2010, after being cast as Aadu in the Bengali feature '' Ami Aadu'' (2011), marking her film and acting debut. The movie w ...

as Aadu *

Samadarshi Dutta Samadarshi Dutta is a Bengali film actor. Career Dutta is a Film and Television Institute of India graduate. In 2011 he debuted in acting with Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy Nandita Roy (born April 3, 1955) is an Indian filmmaker, ...

as Suleman *

Bidipta Chakraborty Bidipta Chakraborty is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Bengali films. She had appeared in Debesh Chattopadhyay's play ''Brain''. Personal life Bidipta was born to eminent theatre actor Biplab Ketan Chakraborty and dancer Dipali C ...

Rudranil Ghosh Rudranil Ghosh is an Indian actor who works primarily in Bengali films. Education Rudranil Ghosh completed his early education at Santragachi Kedarnath Institution, Howrah under West Bengal State Board. He graduated from the Narasinha Dutt ...

as Jabbar *

Ena Saha Ena Saha (born 28 May 1996) is an Indian film and television actress and producer who predominantly appears in Bengali films and television shows. She is known for her portrayals in the films Cheena Badam, SOS Kolkata, Bhoot Chaturdashi and ...

as Amina *

Mithu Chakraborty Mithu Chakrabarty is an Indian television actress and theater personality. She is the wife of veteran Bengali actor Sabyasachi Chakrabarty. Personal life Mithu Chakrabarty is the wife of veteran Bengali actor Sabyasachi Chakraborty. They ha ...

* Pradip Mukherjee *

Biplab Chatterjee Biplab Chatterjee is an Indian actor and director of television and films, mostly associated with the Bengali Film industry. Career Biplab started his film career with Satyajit Ray in his film '' Pratidwandi''. He is popular for his antagonis ...

as Mainuddin * Angana Basu *

Soumitra Chatterjee Soumitra Chatterjee (also spelt as Chattopadhyay; ; 19 January 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 histor ...

Pradip Mukherjee Pradip Mukherjee, also known as Pradip Mukhopadhyay (11 August 1946 – 29 August 2022), was an Indian actor and dramatist who primarily acted in Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali movies. Although not famous for acting in mainstream movies, Pradip ...

Release and reception

The film was released on 25 February 2011 and got positive reviews from critics. ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnath Goenka. In 1999, eight y ...

'' gave it four stars and in ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

'' critic's rating the film got three and a half starts out of five stars. Acting of both Deblina Chatterjee as Aadu and Samdardhi Dutta as Suleman were critically appreciated. ''The Indian Express'' wrote in their review, Debalina Chatterjee's as Aadu was "mind-blowing" in the film. Soumik Halder's cinematography, specially the shots of rural Bengal and editing of Arghyakamal Mitra were appreciated too.

References

External links

* {{National Film Award Best Feature Film Bengali 2011 films Bengali-language Indian films 2010s Bengali-language films Films set in 2003 Indian interfaith romance films Iraq War in fiction Best Bengali Feature Film National Film Award winners 2011 directorial debut films New Theatres films

Plot

Cast

Release and reception

See also

References

External links