Tota Roy Choudhury is back as Bengal's beloved sleuth in 'Feludar Goyendagiri 2: Bhuswargo Bhoyonkawr'
He is back to use his ' mogojastro' yet again to solve a crime, and this time the location is 'Heaven on Earth'. Tota Roy Choudhury has been winning hearts for decades with his remarkable performances in Chokher Bali, Ahalya, Kahaani 2 , Helicopter Eela and very recently Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani; but he will be forever remembered as Feluda, taking the audience for a ride along with him, each time he encounters a mystery.
As 'Feludar Goyendagiri 2: Bhuswargo Bhoyonkawr' directed by Srijit Mukherji starring him, alongside Anirban Chakrabarti and Kalpan Mitra starts streaming on hoichoi today, indulge gets into a candid chat with him.
Excerpts:
How was it reprising the role of Feluda again, more so since this is Srijit's last installment for the web?
When we were shooting for this we weren't aware that this will be his last Feluda. Of course he had mentioned in passing that this will be the last Feluda but I thought maybe its just a declaration in passing kind of a thing. I didn't really expect it to be final.
So, when we were shooting it was exhilarating as it happens when we shoot for Feluda. The team that we have, 'the four musketeers' that we call ourselves, Srijit, Anirban, Kalpan and myself, I was really enjoying the process. When he mentioned Ii was a little disappointed but then thought when it releases he would probably change his mind and we would be able to make him change his mind. Now that he has announced it, I'm in denial; bit of a shock.
But having said that I also understand him. The kind of investment which is required to make a Feluda is immense. Our producers have gone out of their way and given us a budget. Even that is appearing to be less. That amount of money cannot be recovered only by streaming on OTT. It has to release on the big-screen. I can understand financially it is not feasible to make another Feluda. With Bhuswargo Bhoyonkawr we have given a scale which was hitherto not seen in Bengali OTT. Now the next one has to top it all, all of the seasons and specially this one. So, we need an even bigger budget which is not financially feasible.
Could you give us some anecdotes from the shooting?
We have anecdotes galore. Its always fun when you are shooting outdoors and at a place like Kashmir. We were shooting in three cities - Srinagar, Sonmarg and Pahalgam, a lot of travel, new places, experiences. Kashmir is incredibly beautiful. The food is good. It was very cold and chilly. Calcutta was 30 degrees and when we reached Sonmarg it was -8. We didn't have time to acclimatise. But then when doing Feluda, we don't feel the discomfort. Its the excitement.
But yes, there was this incident where we were riding on a bike with a side car and Kalpan being the naughtiest of the lot, singing ' Yeh Dosti hum Nahi Todenge' . It was that Sholay kind of a bike. Then we were shooting inside a shikara on the Dal Lake and we were there for 4-5 hours and it was like fantastic. That was very beautiful. It was very fun and it makes it doubly sad that if Srijit cant do it, its an immense loss for all of us.
Do you like to travel?
Yes every year I make sure that I travel at least twice.
Is there a trait of Feluda that you wish you had in real life?
Yes. That discipline. I started reading Feluda when I was 7 years old after I got a gift on my birthday. It was Badshahi Angti. After I read that I became an ardent reader of Feluda. Of course at that age you tend to get influenced which I did. His love for physical fitness, his discipline, his straight-forwardness and the whole spirit of following his heart.
You have Feluda and Chaalchitro releasing together. Is that making you excited?
Very excited! This has never happened to me as an actor in my career that on the same day I am having two releases. But a little sad as well because both of your best works are coming on the same day. In an ideal world I would like it to be spaced apart but then these are things which are not in an actor's hands.
What kind of role would you like to explore in the future?
Any role which is part of a very good script, a good director directing it and a very dependable and solid production house supporting it. I have realised this that individually a role means nothing unless it is supported by the factors that I have just mentioned. A lot of people underestimate the role of a production company. You can make a very good film but if its not released well, not marketed well, not supported well, then nobody will get to see it or have anything positive to say about it because they haven't had the chance to watch it in the first place.
How has the camaraderie of ' the four musketeers grown over the years?
Initially we were all a little guard. Initially as in the first meeting. But then I realised I have to be with Anirban and Kalpan. We shot two seasons simultaneously so it was around 30 days of shooting. I realised I have to be familiar with the two characters and also be emotionally attached.
We got together informally at my home. We didn't discuss anything about the project , we just ate Shinagra , makha sandesh and tea . We spoke about a lot of things and that how the ice was broken. When we went to shoot, we were quite fond of each other and slowly the bond grew.
Srijit, the way he treated us and the characters, developed the bond even faster. On the sets we were inseparable like college friends - eating, laughing, drinking coffee, going out after shoot.