Filmmaker Rohan Ghose tells web series Mukti is by far his most challenging project 

Working in Mumbai's advertising world has definitely had a huge role in making what filmmaker Rohan Ghose is today. A suave conversationalist, Ghose kept many lucrative projects at bay after the successes of his film Sherni and shorts Brown and White, only to tell a nationalist story in his mother tongue. "Though things are budget-wise and logistically much easier in Mumbai, I love working in Bengali content since it has the most discerning audience in the country," tells Ghose, whose first Bengali web series, Mukti, a period drama set in the Independence era, just released on ZEE5 this republic Day.

"Right from the word go I wanted to make a nationalistic content and not a jingoistic one, so what sets Mukti apart from other patriotic content, old or new, is that it's technically a story of a protagonist who is as normal as it gets. I wanted to capture the servile sort of spinelessness of a salaried Bengali, who eventually finds the fire within him. He is the balancing point between two other characters and realizes that it's not extremism or peaceful movement alone that brought freedom, but it was an amalgamation of both. Through this man we tried to show a common man eventually standing up for his rights and attaining freedom or mukti," tells Ghose.

To keep it authentic, he brought on board his friend and historian Trinanjan Chakraborty, who initially brought the concept to him in 2020. Ghose knew that it required a certain grandeur and scale and was initially a little wary of the budget for the same. But when Zee showed interest in his vision, the ball was set rolling.

Finalising the cast for Mukti has been one massive jigsaw puzzle for Ghose. When it came to casting for Dibakar in Mukti, it was always Arjun Chakraborty in his mind. "Arjun has a sweetness but he also has a rather angry look at times and I knew that eyes as expressive as his would fit into the role of Dibakar who is predominantly reckless but extremely passionate," he adds.

Ghose feels that with more quality filmmakers getting aware of and exploring the OTT platforms as a medium, there has been a huge uplift of content, both nationally and regionally. "Unlike cinema, where we get about two hours to wrap up a story, in series, we can delve a lot deeper into the characters and draw their arcs much better, telling many stories in one," he explains.

Currently busy with the promotions of Mukti, Ghose will soon start work on his upcoming projects. "There are a couple of offers for national portals and a Hindi film that might go on floors sometime at end of this year. There's also a Bengali film I’ve written and talks are on for that too," he resigns.

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