Even as the township reeled under a heatwave, a film unit sweated it out outdoors, shooting what would be for almost all the cast members their first outing on screen. Prayasam, the CG-Block based NGO, which is backed by state-of-the-art studio equipment from Adobe Foundation, is producing a 30-minute film called Ma Tara Express.
“It is loosely based on the Agatha Christie thriller Murder on the Orient Express. The murder of a lower middle class girl called Chhutki is the trigger. Her parents kill themselves after failing to get justice for their slain child,” says Amlan Ganguly, the Prayasam founder who is helming Prayasam Visual Basics team that is making the film while Manish Chowdhury, a Prayasam find from Nazrul Pally, is mainly behind the camera.
The story, he says, unfolds 10 years later when Sukumar, the local leader who is set to become the next local councillor, arranges a bus trip to Tarapith. The passengers are all from the Mahishgot area in Sector V. Some are elderly women, one works as a film extra in Tollygunge, one is a priest... The bus driver Potla is a detective story freak. In free time, he analyses local petty thefts with his helper Santa.
In course of the journey, a passenger asks for a toilet break but Sukumar disagrees. Potla however decides to stop the bus and everyone gets off to stretch their legs.
When the time comes to resume the journey, everyone is back except Sukumar and his henchman Biswanath. Sukumar’s body is then found in a bush. Before calling the police, Potla decides to turn Hercule Poirot, the eccentric Belgian sleuth who had cracked the murder in Christie’s story.
Chetan Mukherjee, a BF Block resident, expectedly has the most lines as Potla. Remembering his dialogues was not much of a challenge for the man who is a member of the theatre group Aborto. “But acting on camera was different. In theatre, we rehearse for two months to pull off a single stage show. Here we have to get the finest of expressions right as the camera comes close up and captures everything. So even if there is scope for retakes, it is a different challenge.”
A tourist bus was hired for the shoot but Chetan did not have to drive it as footage of the drive was managed with long shots. “I had told them from the start that I could not manage a heavy motor vehicle,” he says.
The bus turned out to be the only shelter between outdoor shots in barren New Town where the key confession scene was shot on a deserted road near the Hanuman temple behind Eco Park.
Often while taking a shot, a flight would noisily pass overhead, leading to a cancellation and wait. To protect the cast of largely senior citizens, umbrellas and reflectors would be hastily called for to provide temporary shade. But such was their grit that they soldiered on even through the recent heat wave. “I am not scared of the heat. What’s got to be done has got to be done,” stated Kalikinkar Pal, the oldest cast member at 75, who has memories of acting in historical plays in his village in his childhood when women were not allowed to act with men.
The female members of the cast busy with make-up. Sudeshna Banerjee
Among the women, the senior-most was Chandra Banerjee, 69. A regular with the theatre group Britya and puja shows in BB Block, she had even acted in a jatra. “I was Ghaseiti Begum in Siraj-ud-Daulah. But I had never dreamt of acting in a film. I have told my family to give me the respect due to a film star, so what if it’s a short film,” she smiled. The other women in the unit were certainly giving her that attention. “She is the mastermind of the murder after all,” laughed Sonali Basak, of DB Block.
Basak, who also runs a dance school, says she would have gone into depression had theatre not been there after her husband passed away. “My daughters know that, so they do not stop my adventures,” she said, mopping the sweat off her forehead.
The women had to juggle housework to get away on a Sunday. “I cooked in advance last night,” said Chandrani Mukherjee of DB Block. “She is the criminal’s girlfriend,” says Basak with mock disapproval. “No, no. I am posing to be in love with him to kill him,” she protests.
Chandrani’s neighbour Mou Dubey acts in block stage productions. “All that had stopped due to the pandemic.” Her role justified her sweet tooth. “I own a sweetshop in the film. They took a shot of me in a BJ Block confectionery, instructing how to make sweets. That is the scene where I am handed the poison to add to the sweets,” she smiles.
Ganguly did a workshop with the cast to acquaint them with their characters as also to introduce them to the camera. “It was a big help for us,” said Yojon Das Adhikari of FE Block, who also lives in her PS Ixora apartment in New Town at times. “We shot in a Kestopur church, in some tailoring shops in the neighbourhood, at Bengal Chemical and at a Rajarhat hospital,” she said.
The last spot was where Shukla Mullick of IB Block would be introduced in the film. The lady, who is adept in audio drama, plays an ayah at a hospital. “The slain child’s mother is my friend,” she said.
Most of the actors are Salt Lake residents, with Agnes Verma and her three colleagues being the exceptions. “This is my first shot at acting. I play the girl’s teacher,” Agnes, a Behala resident, said.
The entire cast has become a family, with the women exchanging contacts of tailors to get blouses stitched by and everyone enjoying friendly banter with the film’s documentation officer Mili Roy. Subhasish Mondal of BF Block even got his wife to make patisapta for the entire unit. “She stayed up late last night to make these,” he said, as compliments poured in.
All of them cannot wait to see themselves on the big screen. “We will get to see the film in August while the premiere will happen in December, we have been told,” said 70-year-old Sujit Ghosh of the theatre group Britya who stays in BB Block.