After solving a murder mystery in the deserts of Rajasthan last summer, eccentric cop Ekendra Sen is back with a fresh adventure, this time in a quaint village named Tungkulung in North Bengal. Directed by Joydeep Mukherjee and starring Anirban Chakrabarti as Ekendra Sen (Eken Babu), Season 7 of Hoichoi’s Eken Babu series — Tungkulung E Eken — is a whodunnit splashed with jokes and jibes that have become familiar to us by now.
Based on Sujan Dasgupta’s novel Khuner Age Khuni Khoja, the plot of Tungkulung E Eken centres around the mysterious death of the local king, Shyam Sundar Rana (Bodhisattva Mazumdar), and the investigation led by Eken Babu, and his two assistants Promotho (Somak Ghosh) and Bapi (Suhotra Mukhopadhyay).
The story begins with Eken Babu arriving in Tungkulung with Bapi and Promotho, where he is slated to be felicitated. In between travelling around the picturesque tea gardens, they meet king Shyam Sundar Rana, who is scared that his life is at risk. The very next day Shyam Sundar Rana is found dead by the railway tracks. Among the suspects is his adopted son Binoy Pradhan (Satyam Bhattacharya), who stands a chance to inherit his estate.
Tungkulung E Eken lacks the tautness that one associates with the Eken Babu franchise. By the second episode, you can guess where the storyline is headed, stripping it of the much-needed suspense. It is Eken Babu’s idiosyncrasies and quintessential middle-class Bangaliness that make you keep watching. Whether fumbling through proverbs or hilariously butchering Hindi, the self-deprecating detective remains a constant amusement.
However, after six seasons and two feature films, these comedic instances have grown somewhat stale. Anirban Chakrabarti's performance as Eken Babu is passable, perhaps because the character is losing its charm over time. Some comic scenes elicit laughs but others feel forced and dated.
The supporting cast, including Suhotra Mukhopadhyay and Somak Ghosh, remains underutilised, with limited opportunities to showcase their potential. Debraj Bhattacharya and Satyam Bhattacharya deliver convincing performances in their respective roles.
