Thursday, January 20, 2011

Subimal Misra: Shot @ Underground


Subimal Misra: Shot @ Underground was planned as a film focused on the maverick anti-establishment author and his works. It was the first audio-visual project we took up, me, Snigdhendu and Sriparna, even before the formation of Little Fish Eat Big Fish. Arupratan Ghosh was talked into playing a character which was later portrayed by Abhishek Bhattacharya (Codename: Mahesh Chowdhury). Another character was played by Sumit Dey. Souva Chattopadhyay contributed to the film financially. It was a 25 minutes' short film. The incomplete version that is available now misses two major sequences that were included in the original script. We planned a Subimal on Subimal sequence that needed chroma keying. But the author was never ready to get out of his house and if you've ever been there you know of course it is impossible to set even a baby light inside his room! So, we had to reject that idea. Not only that, we had to drop the whole film due to lack of cooperation from the authors' end.


It went on like this, at first, when we approached Mr. Misra for the film he was overwhelmed and said "Although I have total faith in you people and your works or enthusiasm for activism I'd like to be a part of it. Please consider to share your ideas with me from time to time." It was just after the publication of Byas Khasra Sankhya. He was totally mesmerized with the cut-up Subimal Misra Jumpcut aka Asole Eti Subimal Misrer Golpo Hoe Uthte Parto. Then as the time passed by we realized that he expects nothing more than a biographical documentary from us and we were never ready produce a crap like that. We had our ideas more developed with the time and then his supervision started. You see, everytime we had to send a copy of the rush and a copy of the thing we had edited out of that. He used to say "I must know whether I have or haven't said something that doesn't quite goes with my image on the camera." We didn't object. We wanted the film to materialize but it was frustrating. He started behaving like a producer, shouting on the phone "How the hell can you edit the raw footage without my permission". It was not all his fault. There were some guys from Bangladesh, South India and Gujrat who kept on poking him on these issues. Subimal spoke of them several times without mentioning their names. Then Mr. Dhiman Dasgupta entered the scene. All we wanted was a voiceover from him but he kept on insisting that we should show him first on the screen, establish his identity and then we can use the voiceover through out the film till the end. And at the end we must show him again during the last part of his piece. We told him that we are not planning a documentary. He replied "You are only a child. You don't have enough knowledge about films. That's how films are made, you can't go beyond that!" The author himself by this time wanted a 'total view' of the 'thing we are going to make'! I sent him a letter via post. It consisted the whole screenplay and my take on the same. After a week Subimal replied to Snigdhendu on the phone
"
I couldn't make a sense out of that!
"

There were no cards left for us to play! We sent the whole thing and he, in turn, refused to cooperate! We don't like to work under conditions, we had to stall the project right there. We were busy with other productions too. LFEBF, the forum, was more than a year older and it was the time for the first release Five No Budget Films (2010). After that, we tried to convince the author once or twice over the phone but showed no ultra-enthusiasm. Subimal was rigid at his point. He wanted us to put even his mother in the film!

He never understood, or understood but was never ready to grant that he was not important at all for the film. It was his works, statements that we wanted to play with.

Where he lived in childhood or what school he attended was not of our interest.

In the month of September, 2010 Mr. Nilotpal Roy called Snigdhendu and suggested that we should stop the campaign and announce if we are not going to complete the film. In response I made a post on the blog.

And that was the end.


This January, I came to know via Youtube feed that someone called Basab Mukherjee has made a three and a half hour long 'Biographical Documentary' on Subimal Misra. Moreover, Dhiman Dasgupta and Nilotpal Roy are also featured in it with considerably good screen time! We congratulate them and express our sincere thankfulness to the spirit of the good work. We never wanted to make an ad film for the anti-establishment author, that was 'our fault'. In fact, if we could complete the film we'd have considered this title too -- Asole Eti Subimal Misrer Bigyapon Hoe Uthte Parto. Not only Mr. Dasgupta and Mr. Roy, we'd like to thank Harper Collins Publishers India Ltd too for publishing Subimal's works. Now, we have no reasons left to repent or regret. Yes, Mr. Misra is the maverick anti-establishment author from Bengal and according to his theory Ananda Bazar Publication is an institution but Harper Collins Publishers India Ltd is diffrent and not the same!

So, friends we've learnt a lot from the author. He was not, but his works were important to us.

Long live the anti-establishment!
Long live Subimal Misra!
Harper Collins Zindabaad!

- Anamitra Roy

7 comments:

  1. priya Anamitra,

    tomaader uddeshya sat o prashangshaneeya. ei satataar janya haatataali. kintu bojhaabujhi te bhul chuk theke Jaachchhe anek. Harper Collins jindaabaad -Taa khub haasyakar shonaalo. aar anti-establishment er dhaaraNaaTaao.

    bangali anek kichhur mata "establish" eba`m "anti-establishment" - duTo dhaaraNaai saaheber paa cheTe peyechhe. eta bachhar pareo taa chhaarhaate paarachhe naa. little fish eat big fish o ekaTaa establishment, jadi "establishment" kaake bale satyii bujhe thaako. Kaurab o establishment. establishment haoaaTaa kono samasyaa noi. Subimal o eta bachhar par ekaTi establishment. taar ajasra fan aachhe, following aachhe. ei Taa taake kichhu xamataa dey boiki. Establishment taar xamataake kibhaabe apabyaabahaar kare taai diye taar charitrer bichaar haoaa uchit.

    Harper Collins ABP-r cheye anek anek barha, anek beshi powerful ekaTi establishment. Just Subimal er lekhaa taaraa chhepechhe balei taaraa establishment noy egulo shishusulabh dhaaraNaa. aagaamee march maase Harper Collins bhaaratiye kabider ekaTaa barha sankalan ber karachhe. The Harper Collins Book of Indian Poetry in English. sekhaane aamaar kichhu kabitaa aachhe. sei kabitaar mUl baa`mlaa version kono borho banglaa prakaashanee chhaapaben naa athacha HP chhaapachhe -nijeraa aamantraN jaaniye. esab gulo pramaaN kare Je harper collins anek du`nde eba`m progressive publisher, ABP-r mata backward publisher nay, kintu duToi establishment.

    Please bring on a little more maturity and try to understand politics from a broader perspective.

    bests

    Aryanil

    ReplyDelete
  2. Aryanil da,
    Apnaar response er jonno dhonnobaad. Harper Collins Zindabaad ta satire orthe. Oi dhoroner agmarka protisthan birodhitay amio biswasi noi, r jara biswasi tara adhikangshoi doklabaj. Nijeder e fnaki dichchhe nijera.

    Ha, protisthaner choritro diei take bujhte hobe. Ebong Subimal Misra naamok protisthan ti ke ami bujhchhi ei vabe je--- Ekdol chhelemeye tar chintavabna, kothabarta, lekha likhi te akrishto hoe take nie kaj korte cheyechhilo nijeder moto kore. Ebong bohu samosyar modhyei tara koreo jachchhilo kaj ta. Taka poysa dhar kore, 3 te jela periegie shoot kore, emon ki jakhon porjapto cigarette kenar o poysa thakto na.

    Tarpor bhadrolok nijei tader sathe asahojogita suru korlen jehetu Chhobi ti tnar abhipreto documentary-r dike jachchhilo na motei. Ebong Bhadroloker sathe sur melalo tara, jara kina Documentary hole on camera lomba chaora baktobbo rakhar sujog peto, ebong jader ke amra either puchhini or sahajyo cheyechhilam, guidance noy. Ebong Subimal emon ki erom kothao bolen "Ami ki kore janbo, amar mrityur por tomra jodi star ananda ke footage bikri kore dao!"

    Apni je kotha guli likhechhen, tar konotar songei amader kono birodh nei ebong amrao serokom e biswas kori. Kintu moja holo je subimal seta biswas korten na konodin e. Sandip Kumar tnar chhobi tule Copyright:Sandip Kumar keno likhecche, kenoi ba se chhobi Wikipedia te upload kora hoechhe, Hiran Mitra-r drawing ti ke na kore --- esob nie to uni konodin jhamela korte chharen ni!

    It's not a question of maturity or perspective, it's a question of faith on the next generation. Be it Subimal or anyone else, one should not under estimate upcoming truthful artists who work outside the mainstream without any material benefit and under a bunch of limitations. The reader too should consider the occurrence a bit more attentively before commenting on a certain statement.

    We,personally or as a forum, have nothing against HP. Established media houses have featured stories on us. We are an establishment. I think it's a miscommunication just because of the distance between West Bengal and USA. If you were here with us, surely, you won't have posted these words known to every independent artist of the new generation.

    Thanks again


    Regards

    Anamitra

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anamitra

    Subimaldar asahaJogitaar byaapaaraTaa khub khub dukkher. ei Je abasheshhe o`nr ekaTaa readership toiri hachchhe, eta taruN o`nr janya etaTaa karate chaan, eiTaa uni bujhate paarale bhaalo hata. tabe Jaaraa saaraajeeban ekarokhaa chhilen, taader madhye ei ekgu`nyemi kichhuTaa raye Jaabe.

    natun prajanma ke misunderstand karaar byaapaar nei kintu. taruNaraa Jaa`nraa aamaake chenen, sakalei balate paaraben aami taader interest o kaajer kataTaa pratinidhitba karaar cheshhTaa kari. kintu "establishment/anti-establishment" ityaadi dhaaraNaagulo satyii badlaano darakaar. maane updated haoaa jaruree. natun shabdabandha o dhaaraNaar madhye diye. Jaai hok, aami Jaa balate chaaichhi taar saathe tomaader mat mele eTaa jene khub bhaalo laagalo. USA te Harper Collins er ECCO naame ekaTaa imprint aachhe Jaaraa edesher alternative saahityer guruder bai chhaapen - like Ashbery, Bernstein ityaadi. anya keu-i chhaape naa. aabaar Harper Collins Harry Potter-o chhaape. eder byaabasaar prasaar, buddhimattaa o pragatisheelataa saanghaatik. shekhabaar mata to baTei. aabaar eTaao Thik, aamaar bahu maarkin kabi bandhu ei dharaNer prakaashaneeke sheshhaparJyanta experimental literature-er paripanthi mane karen. They have their own reasons, Jaar anekaTaai hayato satyi. So there are these complexities and lets honor that.

    Subimalda sambandhe aaro ekaTaa tathya di. edeshe, USA te aami antata 20 jan naanaa bayaser maanushhake meet karechhi Jaaraa ekhan aar ata kichhu saahitya parhen naa, kono naam dhaam jaanen naa kintu Subimaldaa ke chenen eba`m taa'nr lekhaar kathaa balen. bai kho`njen. ekaTi Bangladeshi chhele, eman bhayankar fan Je taake Subimaldaar phone number aami jogaarh kare di eba`m chheleTi Subimaldaake niyamita phone karato. Onaar bai USA-r prakaashanee theke chhaapaate chaaito. eman aaro bahu taruN. adbhut! eba`m daaruN!

    aar "pratishhThaan" shabdaTaa bhule Jaaoaa Jaak, keman?

    Aryanil

    ReplyDelete
  4. :)
    Agmaarka Pratisthan Birodhita-r obituary tao likhe fela dorkar siggiri...dekhi, hoyto ei boimela-r por por e.

    Apni kobe aschhen deshe?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Priyo anamitro

    Apnar kache chotto kichu proshno ache , apni kiser
    jonno dukhkhito ? subimaler upor je kaaj ta apni korar chesta korechilen seta sesh obodhi sothik hoye othe ni bole? naki onar uskanimulok boktobbo ke sothik byabohar kore bitorke asa jai ni bole?
    apnara to ki korchen tao onake jananni ebong bostuto oi joy harpar collins er modhdhe ki sei hotasai besi kore fute othe ni?
    ami sahitto er theke onek dure thaki , ek prantik pathok o noi , tobe apnader moto mononjibi manus ra jate ek ekaki manusher sara jibondhore pathchola goladhdhokoron kore nirlipto bhatgumer amege bosen ar dordam koren tar modhdhe atmoprotisthar tara ektu bujhte paren je kichu nirbod ekhono ache sei jonnoi subimaler opor ekta biroktikor toththochitor koshra korechi.
    Ei kajer modhdhe ami sobaike rakhte chai ,jara
    onake skholit mone koren tader , jara onake pothikrik mone koren tader o , ebong te gyatosarei.
    Asole amio hoyto apnader motoi atmoprotishta chaichi , bitorker modhdhe diye sohoje samne asar nirbobd bhabe,
    samne dekha hole bhalo bhabe kotha hoto

    ReplyDelete
  6. Priyo Basab,
    Chhobi ta amar, Sriparna-r ebong Snigdhendu-r milito vabe porikolpito ebong nirmito. Apni kebolmatro amar kachhhei keno jante chailen bolun to?

    Jai hok, dukkher bishoy ta boli. Kolkata shahore kono ek 23rd May 'AYLA' name ekta jhor esechhilo. To sedin amra ei chhobi tar kajei byasto chhilam. Sudhu sedin e noy, jhorjhonjha-r 23,24 o 25 tarikh. Tarpor 26 tarikh Jadavpur Biswabidyaloye gie dekhlam ekta bohu purono bishalakay asathwa gaachh ulte pore achhe. Jhore upre gechhilo gaachh ta, shikhor gulo dekha jachchhilo...R shikorer thik niche chhilo ekta bishal boro void, hna kore takie akasher dike....

    Ei vabe mohiruho paton chakkhush korle kar na dukkho hoy bolun?

    Atmoprotistha ba atmoporichiti prosonge boli, ami motei serokom keu keta noi. Amay jara filmmaker hisabe chene tara chinechhe 'Jean-Luc Godard had No Script' naame ekta chhobir sutre.


    Punoray, ei muuhurte dekha korar somoy nei.Bhinrajye jachchi Documentary-r kaje. Hna,kotha hole bbhalo llagbe nischoi, r dekhao hoe jabe ekdin, emonntai asha...

    Iti,
    Anamitra

    ReplyDelete

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