One of the instances which make the 31st Kolkata International Film Festival very special is that it celebrates the birth centenary of cinematic marvel Ritwik Ghatak which falls on November 4. Not only can today’s generations be able to re-witness the intellect and grandeur of his films, but also one can see films paying a tribute to this genius through their works. The 117-minutes A2, written and directed by Suman Maitra is one film that should not be missed. A2 has been selected for screening in the Bengali Panorama Section.
The movie with its underlying layers of symbolism, is a reminder that cinema continues to be the language of hope, resistance, emotion and resilience. It comprises a cast with emerging actors - Raunak Bhattacharya, Ankita Brahma, Mehuli Sarkar, Shreyasi Roy Banerjee, Debasish Ganguly, Arun Chatterjee, Moumita Paul, Sumi Sen, Soubhagya Mukherjee and Joyita Biswas.
One of Ghatak’s most famous works, Meghe Dhaka Tara is the primary inspiration for A2. The protagonist Neeta, finds her alter-ego in Durga in A2, who tries to recover from a phase of self-denial and exploitation where she becomes a representative of displaced and uprooted women. Durga and Apu, a parallel of Shankar, the modern-day protagonists are visually sublime, idiosyncratically overripe and yet provocatively sensorial. This point to a systemic and layered demoralisation of the human soul in today’s world. Interestingly, not only does the movie pay a tribute to Ghatak, but the names of the protagonists also draw parallel between Satyajit Ray’s brother-sister duo – Apu- Durga from Pather Panchali.
A2 is a conversation, a dialogue which happens between Ghatak’s Calcutta and modern restless Kolkata. It blurs the lines between realism, nostalgia and rebellion into one movie. But the best part is, it draws the same parallels between today’s youth and Ghatak’s days where the crux of his filmmaking rested on pillars like empathy for human struggle and radical storytelling.
A2 will be screened on Nov 10 at Nazrul Tirtha II from 5 pm and on Nov 12 at Rabindra Sadan from 6:30 pm
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