It was an afternoon to remember. Firdausul Hasan and Hasnu Mukherjee hosted a lunch to foster deeper bonds between members of the executive committee of the Film Federation of India and people from the film industry of Bengal. The lunch at Guchhi, Hyatt Regency Kolkata, was a star-studded affair where guests mingled, shared stories, took a trip down memory lane and posed for the cameras, which captured their style and glamour. “Over my long years of association with films and having served in the main bodies related to this huge industry, in various positions, I realised that the business of movie making is largely about creativity and passion, so we cannot expect the people associated with it to function exactly like a corporate. Having served as the president and now the vice president of FFI, which is the apex body for films in our country, I felt that much is lost due to a lack of communication and interaction among all the people who are involved with this industry and are equally passionate about working for films. So when our executive committee meeting ended, I thought of spending some time doing fellowship activities over food and good music, which is so typical of us Bengalis! You see, not all official meetings happen in boardrooms! That is why I invited my friends from Tollywood, from the BFTCC and the executive committee of the Film Federation of India, so that they can get to know each other better and for a richer exchange of ideas. The result was a magical afternoon of making memories,” said producer Firdausul Hasan, vice president, Film Federation of India. He was also the past president of Film Federation of India and the Bengal Film and Television Chamber of Commerce.

Churni and Kaushik Ganguly, Hasnu and Hasan

“Over the years that Hasan was the president of FFI, I got the opportunity of meeting the members of the executive committee quite often and I can’t say exactly when they turned from acquaintances to friends. Soon we got to know one another better and started carrying our favourite food from our part of the country for our friends from the West or South or North. So just as our friends from the South brought Mysore Paak for us, we knew that our friends from the North liked Mishti Doi from Calcutta and soon it felt like one big family! We can say the same for our relationship with the members of BFTCC. We always met like a family. This time as the meetings got over and they were ready to return home, we wanted to treat them to an authentic Robibarer Bangali lunch. Of course, we wanted them all to meet the stars of the Bengal film industry and were lucky to find most of them free that Sunday. And what is better than adda over luchi-mangsho. We are so happy that Bumbada was there with us. I feel that it is easy to take forward any work professionally once we get to interact with one another in a relaxed ambience... that was the thought behind hosting the little gathering and it went beautifully. May we continue to move forward together, make more and better films and continue to create such memories with our friends,” said Hasnu.