Reunion of actors from Feluda films at launch of ‘Feludar Prothom Topshe’ by Siddhartha Chatterjee

If Soumitra Chatterjee’s Feluda and Santosh Dutta’s Jatayu are etched in the memories of all those who have watched Sonar Kella (and there would be few cinema lovers who haven’t), so is the young lad who informs the waiting client with clockwork precision (“sare teen minute”), rushes to gulp down some toast and a glass of milk before joining the much-loved private detective and his much-admired cousin, Topshe. Siddhartha Chatterjee is not only the first on-screen Topshe but also, for many, the most favourite one.

Chatterjee recently launched his book, Feludar Prothom Topshe, at the Starmark Bookstore in Kolkata. The event was attended by Sandip Ray, Kushal Chakraborty (Mukul), Shantanu Bagchi (onnyo or other Mukul) and Moloy Roy (Gunomoy Bagchi in Joi Baba Felunath) along with Tridib Kumar Chattopadhyay (owner of Patra Bharati Publishers). What followed was a spontaneous adda session — remembering Ray and revisiting memories from the shooting of Sonar Kella and Joi Baba Felunath.

“Baba did not know that this film (Sonar Kella) would be a thundering success,” Sandip Ray once shared with Siddhartha Chatterjee. But, the film has been riding an all-time-high in popularity since 1974. And 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the film. “I also did not know that people would remember me as Topshe after 50 years,” shared a nostalgic Chatterjee.

A jugalbandi of memories between Topshe and Mukul

Chatterjee debuted in Ray’s Sonar Kella with no prior experience in acting. He was only 13 years old, a new teen excited about embarking on an adventure with Soumitra Chatterjee, the first on-screen Feluda of the Ray-verse. Chatterjee’s journey as Topshe continued in Joi Baba Felunath too.

Chatterjee’s liveliness had the audience break into laughter. “The book has been written in bits and pieces. I have never written a journal, and hence, recollecting was a challenge. Babuda (Sandip Ray), our Sidhu jyatha, came to the rescue many times, helping me with what happened and when,” said Chatterjee. The photographs in the book have also been shared by Sandip Ray. “I don’t know how much I resemble Topshe today, but people still recognise me as Topshe — whether it’s Topshe jethu or Topshe dadu,” he joked.

Joining Chatterjee on the nostalgic trip, Kushal Chakraborty, who played Mukul in Sonar Kella, said, “I never thought the film would be a landmark because I was a young boy at that time and really had no idea about these things.”

Chakraborty was friends with Chatterjee and Shantanu Bagchi on set. But he had another pal too — Mandar Bose — played by Kamu Mukherjee. Talking about an unforgettable experience, he laughingly shared, “When we were in Rajasthan, it was cold and Bijoya jethima (Satyajit Ray’s wife) used to apply cold cream on my face much to my reluctance. What followed was a trade — a packet of lozenges every day and I would be okay with the cream on my face. I had to share that packet with a partner — Kamu kaku.”

Ray’s sensibility was one of the topics that everyone in the room that day who had worked with him agreed on unanimously. Chakraborty recalled how the Oscar winning director called him one day and discussed a shot like two mature individuals. “I am making a set that will cost me Rs 20,000. The scene has emotions. Will you be able to do it? I spontaneously said, ‘yes’,” he shared.

From the eyes of the son, the colleague, the legacy bearer

“The book (Feludar Prothom Topshe) is unputdownable. There’s one photograph in the book from Bikaner. It made me realise, other than a few of us, many in that photo are not with us anymore,” said Sandip Ray, and the realisation hushed the audience, who perhaps took a closer look at those from Ray’s team sitting in front of them, to witness the cast of a film that won four national awards and Best Film, Direction and Screenplay from the Government of West Bengal in 1974.

“Sonar Kella was made for Kushal, because he (Ray) liked Kushal and he was of the right age to play the character. He was the first one to be selected for the film,” said Sandip Ray.

“The last casting of the film was Feluda. He (Ray) wanted to cast someone new — an amalgamation of Soumitra (Chatterjee), Suvendu (Chatterjee), Dhritiman (Chakraborty) and Barun (Chanda). I told him, you will never get a combination like this in one person!” shared Sandip Ray, laughing, as he recollected the conversation with his father.

According to Sandip Ray, Sonar Kella was the best outdoor shoot in his experience and also the most complicated one. “We shot the (climax) scene in half a day. Baba did not consult his famous kheror khata (a notebook) for storyboarding this time and took 75 shots in three hours,” he recalled.

‘Onnyo’ Mukul’s rendezvous with his Manik kaku

Shantanu Bagchi’s chance meeting with Ray happened because of his teacher, Partha Basu from school (Patha Bhavan, Kolkata). “Inform your father that I will be coming home tomorrow”, led to a closed-door meeting between Bagchi’s father and his teacher, which landed him in front of the iconic house on Bishop Lefroy Road. The first exchange that happened between the filmmaker and the young boy was, “Arey tumi!” (Oh, it’s you!). They both addressed each other as friends — a quality in Ray that Bagchi remembers till date, admiring his ability to be friends with people across all age groups.

Bagchi, who played the other Mukul in Sonar Kella, whose mistaken kidnapping led to the adventure, remembered performing snippets from Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne in front of Ray at the filmmaker’s house. That fostered a bond between them, ultimately leading to Bagchi slipping into the shoes of the short yet memorable character in Sonar Kella.

Gunomoy Bagchi — the body builder — an integral part of Ray-verse

Moloy Roy is an Arjuna awardee and a former Mr. India and Mr. Asia. Wondering how he met Ray and later became Gunomoy Bagchi in Joi Baba Felunath? “Soumitra Chatterjee used to come and meet my father — the former Mr. Universe Monotosh Roy. Satyajit Ray perhaps told him that he needed a bodybuilder for one of his films,” shared Roy, revisiting the bygone days. Roy soon met Ray. He recalled seeing him sitting in a room full of books. “Do you want to do the film,” Ray asked, and as they say the rest is history.

Remembering an incident from the shooting of Joi Baba Felunath, Bagchi shared, “I dropped Santoshda (Dutta) twice! He even sprained himself! Soumitrada (Chatterjee) suggested I lift a few people my size to practise.”