Kolkata Cocktail is a moving saga of three women with diverse backgrounds who happen to be childhood friends and rediscover their soul in the City of Joy, Kolkata. Through their reunion, they find their poetic vision of life, where the city is alive and throbbing in all its pathos, it’s beauty and it’s vigour. Kolkata has often been described as a feminine entity, and in the poetic representation depicted by these three ladies, the city expresses itself in different hues and shades.
This unique poetry film of 23 minutes, released under the banner of Widescreen Films and Music, premiered in front of a full house on Friday 20th December 2019 in the Satyajit Ray Auditorium, ICCR Kolkata. The Regional Director of ICCR Kolkata, Mr. Gautam De mentioned it as a one-of-its-own kind of a film saying, “We have a holistic attitude at ICCR to share the heritage and culture of Kolkata with the world and this film is definitely a big step in that direction, being so unique in its treatment and presentation.”
Kolkata Cocktail is a complete ‘poetry film’, where poems and short stories penned independently by these three childhood friends amalgamate to form a unique bondage and thought-provoking tour-de-force of Kolkata. Kolkata, often referred to as the beautiful woman, the ‘Tilotomma’, has been the muse and inspiration behind these short stories and poems.
The three women are:
Prakriti:
Kolkata, the quintessential city of joy is the throne of the ‘poetry and quirks’, the city where Prakriti, the diasporic poet and academic now living in USA finds herself as a ‘rusted yellow’, reconnecting with her old friends Pragya and Paroma. In a desperate bid to escape from the city years back, little did she know that she would return threadbare, surrendering, consumed by the essence of Kolkata.
Pragya:
Pragya is the quintessential Kolkata girl, who was hurtled into the fast-paced contemporary world by the twists and turns of her life. She has had to adapt and move forward, all the while being “tethered” to her roots. In doing so, Pragya finds her freedom and “choses” to fly above constrictions
Paroma:
A representative of the upper –middle- class Kolkata, Paroma, tries to maintain the joint family system by sacrificing her own dreams. Poetry, Prakriti and Pragya remain in her life as her only solace. She goes out searching the nooks and corners of her beloved city Kolkata, trying to rediscover herself. Kolkata rejuvenates her to take a new flight towards a new destination.
Shuvayu Bhattacharjee, the director and music composer of Kolkata Cocktail, has woven an enticing saga onscreen with his original score, infusing different genres of music with a greater aim to connect the story with all the Kolkata diaspora living across the globe. The entire script is narrated through the poetic verses clubbed with various mesmerizing shots around Kolkata, including Kumortuli, Shyambazar, Esplanade, Maidan, Prinsep Ghat and also New Town, the new face of Kolkata. “It is an out-and-out experimental film, with the objective to portray the ever-changing city and its inherent nostalgia through the voice of my three protagonists,” he explained.
Ipsita Ganguli, Lopa Banerjee and Gopa Bhattacharjee, the three poets and storytellers who have co-produced and acted the roles of Pragya, Prakriti and Paroma, have archived their poetry and vision in a very simple and elegant manner.
The trio has plans of showcasing this short poetry film to significant and meaningful literary and artistic forums in India and also in USA, to connect with the diaspora audience and also with Kolkata lovers across the globe.
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