Tarun Majumdar’s cinema is wholly Bengali, and he assures authenticity and conveys the nitty-gritty of the culture and language in a way that is difficult to fully comprehend in any other medium.

Here is a look at five of Tarun Majumdar’s Bengali social comedies, a quintessential genre that recurs throughout his body of work.

Still from ‘Balika Badhu’. YouTube

Balika Badhu (1967)

One of Majumdar’s earlier works tackled the grim subject of child marriage, based on Bimal Kar’s novel. At the centre of Balika Badhu is a young girl who’s married off to another adolescent following an ancient custom. While the story of how this too-young-to-be-married couple strike up a friendship had many endearing moments, Majumdar also shed light on how childhood would be sacrificed at the altar of harsh social traditions. This film also introduced Moushumi Chatterjee, as the child bride.

Still from ‘Sriman Prithviraj’. Angel/YouTube

Sriman Prithviraj (1973)

Majumdar returned to one of his favourite themes of misunderstood vagabonds in 1973 with Sriman Prithviraj. It follows the story of Rashik Lal, a young man who is inspired by monk Atish Dipankar Srigyan and the historic ruler of Ajmer Prithviraj Chauhan. Rashik has ambitions of running away from home to travel the world. But he is stopped in his tracks, dragged home and pushed into marriage. It’s a coming-of-age tale, set in the British Raj, that weaves motifs of love, family and nation.

Still from ‘Dadar Kirti’. YouTube

Dadar Kirti (1980)

A romantic comedy with an underlying social message, Dadar Kirti is also one of Majumdar’s most well-known films. Through a lot of comedy and high drama, Majumdar explored how a person who’s perceived to have lower intelligence than ‘normal’ is ridiculed and mistreated by society. The plot is then set for a heartwarming twist when a smart girl (played by Mahua Roy Chowdhury) sees his sensitive side and falls in love with Kedar (Tapas Paul). Dadar Kirti is also much loved for the stellar performances by a bunch of stalwarts, from Anup Kumar and Utpal Dutt to Haradhan Bandopadhyay and Sandhya Roy.

ErosNowPoster of ‘Shahar Theke Dooray’. YouTube

Shahar Theke Dooray (1981)

Majumdar goes back to exploring the issues surfacing in rural Bengal with Shahar Theke Dooray. During the time when Bengal was going through a major cultural overhaul, Majumder’s light-hearted take on infertility formed the crux of the story set in a fictional village. The film revolved around a family that is craving an heir, and highlighted themes such as inequality, societal pressure and corruption. It stars Majumdar’s frequent collaborator Anup Kumar and Sandhya Roy alongside comedic legends such as Bhanu Bandopadhyay and Rabi Ghosh.

Still from ‘Bhalobasa Bhalobasa’. YouTube

Bhalobasa Bhalobasa (1985)

This romantic comedy is a treasure trove for all music lovers. In this film, Majumdar casts his misunderstood vagabond protagonist in a mould that is approved by commercial cinema. Arup, a talented singer and son of famous singer Pratima Devi, stops singing after his mother’s death. He falls in love with Keya but soon learns that Keya’s father has arranged her marriage with the son of a well-known barrister, who is the actual cause of Arup’s misery.