Hoichoi’s latest web series Bodhon takes a long, hard look at the aftermath of a gender-based crime and at a society that concentrates its energies on victim blaming and shaming instead of taking action against perpetrators. Directed by Aditi Roy, the series stars Sandipta Sen as Raka Sen and Ditipriya Roy as Shinjini Mukherjee in lead roles, supported by Chandreyee Ghosh, Pushpita Mukherjee, Koushik Roy and Honey Bafna. A chat with the lead actors of Bodhon, now streaming on Hoichoi.

Ditipriya, what does Bodhon mean to you, as a story or as a concept?

Ditipriya: The story portrays the trauma and suffering of a young rape victim. What is disturbing is how society looks at her. For me, the journey of the victim to fight for justice is very important. It conveys a message that the powers of good are strong enough to fight against the powers of evil.

Sandipta, tell us the thoughts that crossed your mind when you were offered this role…

Sandipta: Firstly, I was very excited to have been given the opportunity to play such a powerful character. Raka (the character she has portrayed) also has many shades to her character; she is mentally very strong, speaks her mind and always stands by what she believes to be right. I knew it would be interesting to explore all the facets of her nature by getting into her skin. Also, I was looking forward to the idea of working with director Aditi Roy, who is wonderful to work with and Ditipriya, with whom I had shared screen space in my first television serial 13 years ago!

Ditipriya, recently we have seen many series on gender violence. What do you think Bodhon brings to the table that others have not?

Ditipriya: Actually Bodhon comes up with the frightening fact that even apparently regular guys who you are familiar with can pose a threat to you. In the story, the rapists were a part of a common friends group, who probably had no intention of causing Shinjini any harm. But once the male ego is hurt (after Shinjini slapped one of the boys), they become capable of committing this horrifying, violent act. They become rapists mainly because they are on a power trip and they cannot tolerate it that a girl won’t bend down to their wishes. It stems from a false sense of superiority that some men possess, and one of the issues that Bodhon addresses is that this needs to be checked.

Sandipta, do you feel that your character has any resemblance with you as a person?

Sandipta: Oh yes, in my student days my friends would call me a rebel because I always protested when I saw something wrong or unjust had happened. Since childhood, I have been very vocal about my beliefs and what is right and wrong. So in that sense, Raka Sen, who is determined to fight for justice, and Sandipta Sen are similar to each other.

A moment from Bodhon

Ditipriya, was this one of your toughest roles? Did you have any misgivings about portraying Shinjini?

Ditipriya: On the contrary, the initial brief I got made me feel that I am quite similar to Shinjini. She is innocent-looking and is somewhat of an introvert. Like her, I too am a bit shy, I take time to open up in a new group and prefer to mingle with a small group of friends. I was confident that I would understand how she felt, way better that anyone else could. It was definitely a tough role and I would have preferred to go for workshops or rehearsals to prepare myself better. However, time was a constraint and so it could not be done. And though my screen time in Bodhon was less compared to other films or series I have worked on, I am happy to have made a mark in this series.

Sandipta, did you have any role models in mind when you started prepping for Raka Sen’s character?

Sandipta: Not really. I have mainly tried to focus on Raka’s life journey to get important clues about how her mind works. Being a psychologist, character analysis is all the more interesting to me. I have tried to find out how she is as a person from her own dialogues or when others have spoken about her. I tried to imagine how she would have felt or reacted in a particular situation or what her diary entry would have looked like on a particular day. These were the keys with which I unlocked her character.

Ditipriya, how did you prepare for your role?

Ditipriya: Ideally I would have needed some time to prepare for this role, but that was not to be. I became busy with another project soon after signing up for this one. Mainly I read some books about rape victims just to be able to understand the psyche of a woman who has experienced this trauma. Chanel Miller’s survivor’s account Know My Name completely changed my perception of what I felt I knew about it earlier. I also watched at least four or five films on sexual violence against women. All these helped me internalise the agony and the sense of humiliation, outrage and violation that a woman feels when she becomes the victim of such a terrible sexual crime. They brought me closer to Shinjini (her character). It was challenging but the effort was worth it.

Sandipta, did you get directorial guidance about your character? Could you share a memorable shooting experience?

Sandipta: Yes of course. Despite a very tight schedule, we found time to sit together and discuss my character. Fortunately I have a very good rapport with her and it soon became very clear to me what Aditidi (director Aditi Roy) wanted. And that made my job a lot easier. I must also add that working with her was a breeze. She has this amazing ability to remain calm in all situations no matter how stressful they may be. From her, I have learnt to focus on problem-solving rather than allowing myself to be bogged down by any hurdle.

I know my habit of constantly humming tunes on the shooting floor to stay relaxed would annoy others but honestly, everyone was quite indulgent. And as Aditidi knew that I get hungry very frequently, she would make it a point to get me to eat well so that I could give my best when acting.

Sandipta, tell us something about Raka’s backstory. How did it help you bring out nuances of her character?

Sandipta: Raka was brought up with great love and care by her parents. She was smart, intelligent but very naughty since childhood. She was also straightforward and brutally honest. She loved her city so much that she gave up her job and returned to Calcutta as soon as she got a job offer at the college she had studied in. In fact that is why she had decided not to follow her boyfriend when he went abroad. These details helped me in understanding the various shades of her character and work on them.

Ditipriya, what kind of support did you receive from your co-actors? Could you share any experience during production that has a special place in your heart?

Ditipriya: We had to work within a very strict deadline but the atmosphere on set was so friendly that you never felt hassled or exhausted. Our crew was amazing! We ate together, talked about a thousand topics and grew really close to one another. I would hardly enter my make-up van because I would prefer to sit with the crew on the sets and talk with them even when I had no shot to give. And, of course, I share a special bond with Sandipta, who I respect and adore for so many reasons.

Sandipta, what was it like working with Ditipriya after so many years?

Sandipta: I have always felt that she is a natural, spontaneous actor, even when she was a kid. Now she has grown and matured beautifully as an actor. In Bodhon, she has performed extraordinarily well and it was such a pleasure to act with her once again. It felt really good to see how wonderfully she has shaped as an actor and I am so proud of her.

Ditipriya, your performance has received a lot of praise already. How does it feel?

Ditipriya: Obviously it feels great. Any performance is ultimately for the audience and it makes me very happy to know that they have liked my work. My fan base mainly consists of the viewers of my daily soap Rani Rashmoni and I am grateful to them for their continued love and support.

Sandipta, what kind of feedback have you got on the series?

Sandipta: It’s been huge. In such a short span of time, I have been flooded with audience appreciation for the series and also my performance. Credit for this must also go to Hoichoi’s promotional activities, which has helped expand the reach of our audience and generated a very strong impact. Besides the accolades on social media, I must also share another experience during my recent trip to Paris. I was sitting in a restaurant when a waiter suddenly came up to me and congratulated me on my work in Bodhon. He introduced himself as a Bangladeshi and said that he had watched it on the Hoichoi app and loved it. Any actor is happy when the audience value their work, but this was very overwhelming for me, to be appreciated so far away from my own country. In fact, I think that this kind of feedback is very important to the whole team.

Ditipriya, how would you compare your performance in Bodhon with earlier roles? How would you rate yourself?

Ditipriya: The main difference is that in a role like Rani Rashmoni, I was the person who would protest on behalf of others. Here, Raka Sen raises her voice in support of me and inspires me to fight for justice. As far as rating myself is concerned, I would wait some more and finally go with the opinion of my fans and my friends, because to me they are the ultimate judge of my acting abilities. You see, all my roles are equally dear to me and it is very difficult for me to evaluate my own performance.

Ditipriya, what kind of impact did this role have on you as an actor and as a person?

Ditipriya: This role has made me aware of the shocking truth that rapes are very common in our society. Only a handful get reported because victims and their families are scared of the stigma associated with rape. The victim is made to feel guilty and fear of social ostracisation or shaming prevents them from raising their voice against the crime or the criminal. While playing Shinjini, I realised the continued suffering that any rape victim has to go through, much after the actual act of violence. This role made me feel an empathy towards all victims of sexual violence and I sincerely hope the laws of our country are made much stricter so that crimes against women are not committed.

Sandipta, do you think this kind of story needs to be told again and again?

Sandipta: Absolutely. Although we claim to be modern and progressive, our country’s statistics and records tell a completely different story. A lot of work remains to be done to make people understand the injustices and inequalities still prevailing in society. So we need to talk about these issues on a regular basis. The more we tell stories like these, the more we will be able to reach out to people’s hearts and hopefully bring about a positive change in society, albeit in a small way.

Sandipta, are you looking forward to Season 2?

Sandipta: (Laughs) I can tell you that the audience is very interested about it already. Since Season 1 has been left open-ended, it is natural that there is an expectation of a follow-up. But frankly, I have no idea about it at the moment, though given a chance, I would definitely love to work with this team all over again.

Pictures: B. Halder

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