The flavour of Kolkata

The flavour of Kolkata
The city is known for its old alleys. One such is shot by Atanu Pal.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Kasha Mangsho goes national!

Read some weeks back in The Telegraph that a couple of enterprising Bengalis have teamed up to bring back the 'Golbari' brand of 'Kasha Mangsho', a hot favourite Bengali preparation, in a grand way and with wide reach. Last year as Golbari at Shyam Bazar junction faced an unceremonious closure, its bunch of loyals was aghast. To their united cheer, the famed dish, served with ghee-smeared rotis (Another Golbari special that looks like a cross between roti and paratha) will come back in the upcoming eatery Koshe Kasha..

Koshe Kasha is set to debut in Sandhya Tara, the rooftop food court at Star Theatre this 15th August. It will be followed by more in the city and a national rollout. And if that fares well, an international rollout is there in the ambitious plan.

I remembered the Telegraph report as I read a nice post about the chain in the Kolkata blog KolkataMusing yesterday. Visit it for further details.


Watch out this space for an update.

Friday, July 20, 2007

The 'Bong Connection' Wave


The Bong Connection seems to have made the desired connect with Bongs and non-Bongs (Incl. Bongs-at-heart) of the city. Everywhere young folks are talking of checking it out, and interestingly they include those who don't watch movies frequently. The movie has completed two weeks starting with a terrific opening at multiplexes. In the current week- the third- all plexes are running two shows incl. one at prime slot. And this is happening after taking on the mights of biggies like Harry Potter (released last week) and Partner starring Salman and Govinda (Released today).

The not-so-flattering reviews on news channels notwithstanding (Anandabazar Patrika, the leading Bengali daily of the city published a flattering review) it has evoked strong liking from the young, as evident on the film's community on Orkut, named after the title. One of the most noticeable messages is that they want to watch exactly this kind of new-age flick. The producer's scrapbook is full of congratulatory scraps.

Looks like Kolkata has finally got its new-age flick that it can watch over and over again and recommend to others. Anjan Dutta finally has a winner after the debut dud Bada Din. He can forget that painful wait before the release of Bong Connection now. As a double bonanza for him and his fans, his long-in-the-cans second film Bow Barracks Forever hits the screens later this month.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

A celeb-studded affair







While I was looking for the way to the entrance of the building which was the venue of Bangla Telefilm Club's (BTC) third screening on Sunday 8 July, I saw celebrities pouring in thick- Rishi Kaushik (Looking dashing as on screen- small or big, in a body-fit black tee and jeans), Aparajita Ghosh Das, Barun Chanda (Whose claim to fame is the hero of Ray's Seemabaddha) and Rajatava Dutta.

Inside volunteering members were busing enrolling new members. A good number of patrons became members. A leaflet briefing BTC and its partners were being circulated. I spotted more from the television industry among those present and stepping in- director duo Sudeshna Roy-Abhijit Guha, director Tathagata Banerjee (The other half of this duo Anindya Ghosh came a little later), actor Nitya Ganguly and singer-actor Monali Thakur. Rana Basu Thakur, a senior marketing pro in Reliance Mobile, also known for his creative pursuits which includes Coolkatha.com was present too. He is also part of BTC's creative committee.In the brief introduction by the official spokesperson Tanmoy (Being a RJ on the move he merits the job almost by default) the new supporters of BTC- The Seagull Foundation for the Arts, Eisenstein Cine Club (One of Kolkata's oldest film clubs) and OurDreamz Cine-Works and the new blog partner Kolkata Curry (In the age of media partners possibly for the first time someone went a step ahead and thought of a blog partner) were acknowledged and the creative committee of BTC was announced. The commitee boasts of well-known names like Kaushik Ganguly and Raja Sen, besides Anindo Bandopadhyay, Atanu Ghosh, Anindya Ghosh, and Rana Basu Thakur. Post a short film called Ek Din by Sudipta Banerjee, the screening of the day's telefilm, Daho, a comic thriller by Anindya Banerjee started. It was aired on Zee Bangla.

The telefilm was enjoyed by many, as evident by members with full-blown praise in the post-screening interactive session attended by director Anindo Bandopadhyay, cast members Rajatava, Nitya Ganguly, script-writer Anuja Chattopadhyay, assistant director Deboleena Dutta ( Better known as an actor) and cinematographer PB Chaki. Barun Chanda broke the ice by enquiring about the twist at the end of the tele. He encouraged Anindo to look for greener pasture in big screen as he believed the director was qualified for it. Anindo shared how the idea of the tele was born in an adda (Chat session) at a tea stall outside a studio. Rajatava spoke about his interpretation of the character played by him.

The visitors' book recorded many entries full of appreciation at the end. Looking forward to the fourth outing of BTC in a grander manner.
Pictures above: 1.Rajatava Dutta and PB Chaki, 2. Aparajita Ghosh Das and Rishi Kaushik, 3. From left- Anindya Banerjee and Anuja Chattopadhyay, and from right- Deboleena Dutta and PB Chaki in the interactive session, 4. Barun Chanda.

Saturday, July 07, 2007

Bangla Telefilm Club's third screening

Bangla Telefilm Club (Popularly known as BTC) is going to hold its first major screening tomorrow at Bengal Creations, A Cultural Hub at 18A Park Street, Stephen Court, 3rd Floor, Kolkata 17 (The building which houses Peter Cat). A full house of 100-plus invitees are expected. The telefilm will be projected on screen, unlike the last two shows on video. The huge demand for seats in its screenings on and after the second screening on June 10 prompted Arin and other active BTC members to look for a spacious place for future screenings.

Meanwhile BTC has become a members-only club with nominal membership fees (Details in its website), which was a necessity due to funds required for the screenings and other establishment costs. So far it has more life members on board than those who opted for quarterly or annual memberships.

The telefilm that will be screened tomorrow is Daho by Anindo Bandopadhyay, aired on Zee Bangla. Have a look at an web album with its stills here.

Those who are keen to check out the third screening are welcome, subject to spot-registration as member at the venue before the show.