Ghosts in Bengali cinema are enjoying a mini-renaissance of their own with Anirban Bhattacharya’s Ballabhpurer Roopkotha, thanks to Raghu-da — a naughty spirit who has a weakness for comely lasses and Sanskrit verses.
We pick four ghosts who played a pivotal role in Bengali movies and stole our hearts with their large-hearted gestures.
Bhooter Raja from Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne
In Satyajit Ray's 1969 classic Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne, Goopy (Tapen Chatterjee) and Bagha (Rabi Ghosh) are banished from their respective villages for their atrocious music. The two meet in a desolate forest and encounter ghosts of various kinds. They pleased the king of ghosts, called Bhooter Raja in Bengali, who granted three boons to the duo. Thus begins the adventures of Goopy and Bagha.
The film also features a brilliant song-and-dance sequence featuring ghosts, portraying class distinction and colonial influence in Indian society. The different types of ghosts with different attires are a visual treat. The background score is a variation of a well-known segment of Carnatic classical music with instruments like the mridangam, khanjira, ghatam and the morsing.
Pishima from Goynar Baksho
Directed by Aparna Sen and based on a story written by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay, Goynar Baksho is a comedy horror film released in 2013. Featuring Moushumi Chatterjee as Pishima, the film also stars Konkona Sen Sharma and Saswata Chatterjee in key roles. Rashmoni aka Pishima became a widow at a tender age and started living in her father’s house. No one in the family understood her pain and loneliness.
After she passed away, Pishima’s spirit comes back to haunt her nephew’s wife Somlata (Konkona), who is now in possession of her jewellery box. Pishima’s manoeuvres at scaring Somlata will leave you in splits. Moushumi Chatterjee delivers one of her career-best performances in this film.
Kadalibala in Bhooter Bhabishyat
Bhooter Bhabishyat, directed by Anik Dutta, is a fantasy horror movie. The ensemble cast of the film, released in 2012, includes actors like Parambrata Chatterjee, Sabyasachi Chakrabarty, Swastika Mukherjee, Paran Bandyopadhyay, George Baker, Samadarshi Dutta and Mumtaz Sorcar.
The story revolves around an old decrepit house haunted by the spirit of its last owner Darpa Narayan Chowdhury (Paran). Other ghosts, including the spirits of coquettish theatre actress Kadalibala (Swastika) and local goon Haatkata Kartik (Saswata), soon join him and live amicably in the house. But they are about to lose their abode of peace when a local promoter decides to tear down this building. The ghosts team up and get to work to save their residence.
Chhayamoy in Chhayamoy
Haranath Chakraborty's 2013 horror comedy is based on a novel by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay. Father-son duo Gaurav Chakrabarty and Sabyasachi Chakrabarty play important roles in this film, alongside veteran actor Dipankar Dey.
Gaurav’s Indrajit is a UK-based scholar, who comes in search of a hidden treasure to Simulgarh in West Bengal. When Indrajit discovers the hidden wealth, a corrupt moneylender Gagan Sapui, played by Dipankar, accuses him of robbery and snatches all the treasures from Indrajit. A benevolent ghost, Chhayamoy (Sabyasachi Chakrabarty), who was once the minister of the Zamindar family, comes to Indrajit’s rescue and helps him expose Gagan Sapui’s nefarious intentions in front of the entire village.
