Director Sam Bhattacharjee’s debut film, Barun Rai and The House On The Cliff released officially on Eros Now app. The Kolkata Mail correspondent caught up with the director on his debut film. Excerpts..

Tell us about the story of Barun Rai and the house on the cliff.

Sam Bhattacharjee- Barun Rai is an internationally renowned parapsychologist. He’s called in to solve crimes with a paranormal element. In The House on the Cliff, he must work out what’s causing a spate of deaths in the sleepy English village – Corvid’s Head.

How did you come up with this story?

Sam Bhattacharjee- A combined passion for crime fiction and horror films, helped me come up with the idea of an original angle on a detective story. My brilliant writer Sara helped me flesh it out.

What are the challenges you faced during shooting the film?

Sam Bhattacharjee- We shot many of the scenes in English and Hindi, which was time-consuming, and required a lot of discipline in the editing suite, but was well worth the extra effort.

After producing hit films, why did you turn towards direction? Was it a long-cherished dream?

Sam Bhattacharjee- I’ve always known that directing was what I wanted to do ultimately. I had a vision for how I wanted the film to look, and it was important to me that I communicated it; not just to the actors, but also the crew.

You and the lead actors, Nyra and Priyanshu are Bengalis. So how much fun did you have on the sets? Did you talk in Bengali on the sets?

Sam Bhattacharjee- We had moments of tremendous fun, and yes, fatafati! It was nice to speak Bengali on set.

How was the shooting experience as you shot during the ongoing pandemic?

Sam Bhattacharjee- It was frustrating at times, as you can imagine, but the whole crew had Covid production certification and we were careful to stick to the rules.

The film was released on Eros Now app. Was it your decision before releasing your debut film digitally? Or did you take the decision seeing the current condition in mind?

Sam Bhattacharjee- Many productions our studio has worked on have had a release with Eros Now and achieved great things. We’re very happy to be partnered with them.

What kind of films will you like to make in the future?

Sam Bhattacharjee- I’m shooting a couple of dramas and a documentary at the moment, but I think you can expect an original comedy film from us in the not too distant future.

What is your expectation from the film, now that is releasing in India?

Sam Bhattacharjee- I’m expecting the audience to enjoy the thrill and intrigue of the story, as well as be impressed by the visual elements. Do it Creative is a decent name in Indian VFX and we threw all we had at Barun Rai! We hope you like it!

We hope that the audience liked the debut film by Sam and he continues to make more interesting films in the future.