“Shooting In Benaras Was A Memorable Experience”- Shubhro S Das On Working In Avijatrik
Shubhro S Das began his acting journey with director Ranjan Ghosh’s film Ahaa Re in 2019. The actor will now be seen in Subhrajit Mitra’s much-acclaimed Bengali film Avijatrik: The Wanderlust of Apu. The film shows the journey of Apu and his son Kajol. Subhro will be seen playing the role of Bimalendu, the younger brother of Leela (Arpita Chatterjee). He is also a long-lost friend of Apu. The Kolkata Mail correspondent Priyanka Dutta caught up with the talented actor on his experience of working in Avijatrik. Excerpts..
The film is eyeing for release. What are your feelings now?
Shubhro S Das- I am very excited at the moment. I can feel butterflies, rats in my stomach right now out of the sheer excitement.
Tell us about the journey of becoming a part of Avijatrik.
Shubhro S Das- It began on 26th October 2019 when I was first shot at Manicktalla. The director very clearly explained to me what to do in the scene. How much should I shout or how to say the dialogues- all were clearly pointed out by the director during the first day of the shoot.
Can you share some memorable experiences of shooting the film?
Shubhro S Das- Shooting in Benaras was quite a memorable experience for me. We saw different ghats after the shoot was over and how people were quiet when we passed the ghats. Going to the hotel and again shooting at different places in Benaras all have been memorable.
Can you tell us about the character that you will play in the film?
Shubhro S Das- I will be seen as Bimalendu who is the younger brother of Lela and also a long-lost friend of Apu. He is a student leader from a renowned university. Despite hailing from a Zamindari family, he has dedicated his life to serving the nation as a freedom fighter. The character has not yet been revealed. Let’s see how the audience reacts to my character in the film.
The film was shown at KIFF. How was the feedback from the audience?
Shubhro S Das– The feedback at KIFF was amazing and something which none of us had imagined. The feedback was positive and that has given us the hope that the film will be well received by the audience once it releases. It has also been well appreciated at the other film festivals abroad.
You play a freedom fighter in the film. How much research did you put in for the character?
Shubhro S Das- We all know more or less about the freedom fighters and about their contributions to the freedom movement. As a result, I did not have to toil hard in researching about the role. However, I did some research about the contributions of the Indian army during the freedom movement and that was there at the back of my head when I was portraying Bimalendu.
What are your upcoming projects?
Shubhro S Das- Mahananda, Mahishasura Mardini is my upcoming project. There are a few other projects that are in the initial stages. I will let you know once it is finalized. There is a Hindi movie in the pipeline too.
What will you tell the audience?
Shubhro S Das- I will ask the audience to go to the halls and watch this film. They will not be disappointed. We all have worked very hard and there is an amazing cast that can be seen in the different roles. Please come to the halls and support our endeavor.
Avijatrik is releasing on 3rd December.