Internationally acclaimed Bangla film Mayar Jonjal is set to arrive on OTT platform Chorki, giving audiences a chance to watch the Bangladesh-India joint production.
The film will premiere on Chorki at midnight on 23 September, effectively 24 September. It marks popular actress Aupee Karim’s return to the big screen after 19 years. It was also her second film and first joint-production project.
Directed by acclaimed West Bengal filmmaker Indranil Roychowdhury, known for Phoring, Ekti Bangali Bhooter Goppo and Bhalobashar Shohor, the film was produced by Bangladeshi producer Josim Ahmed. It draws from two short stories by celebrated writer Manik Bandopadhyay, Bishakto Prem and Subala.
Speaking about returning to cinema after nearly two decades, Aupee Karim said she could not work regularly in films because of her studies and later professional commitments. She agreed to Mayar Jonjal because of director Indranil Roychowdhury.
She had enjoyed his Phoring and Bhalobashar Shohor, particularly Jaya Ahsan’s performance in the latter, which renewed her interest in acting. Ritwick Chakraborty’s involvement in the film and the natural quality of the story and characters also attracted her to the project.
Aupee plays Soma, while popular Kolkata actor Ritwick Chakraborty plays her husband Chandan, or Chandu, in Mayar Jonjal. The cast also includes Bangladesh’s Shohel Mondol, along with Paran Bandopadhyay, Bratya Basu, Chandreyee Ghosh and Saoli Chattopadhyay from Kolkata.
The film follows two parallel stories centred on Soma and Chand, two people pushed to the margins of society as they search for ways to survive amid life’s harsh realities. It explores emotion, reality and the more unforgiving sides of everyday life.
Speaking about his character Chandu, Ritwick Chakraborty said the character is rarely seen in mainstream cinema. Nor are people like him necessarily encountered every day. Mayar Jonjal, however, closely examines his world and explores the social, economic and psychological problems faced by the class he belongs to.
Indranil Roychowdhury has described Mayar Jonjal as a story set against the difficult realities of urban life. It follows several people struggling with poverty, unemployment, fragile relationships and moral compromises. As their lives become intertwined, love, disappointment and the struggle to survive force them into difficult choices, revealing emotions and social complexities hidden beneath everyday life.
Josim Ahmed and Roychowdhury have known each other for years and share a friendship built around their love for cinema. They began the project with a desire to take Bangla cinema to the international stage and, through Mayar Jonjal, achieved part of that ambition.
The film had its world premiere at the 23rd Shanghai International Film Festival in 2020 and received a nomination in the Asian New Talent Award section. It was also officially selected for the Moscow International Film Festival that year, where it had its European premiere. It later won the Jury Award for Feature Film at the 21st Asiatica Film Festival in Italy and the Best South Asian Feature Film award at the Arthouse Asia Film Festival in Kolkata.
In 2022, it competed in the Asian Film Competition section of the Dhaka International Film Festival and won the Best Screenplay award.
The film also enjoyed major success at the 2024 Filmfare Awards Bangla, winning seven awards. These included Critics’ Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Sound Design, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Newcomer Actor.
Indranil Roychowdhury and Sugata Sinha won Best Screenplay, Sumit Ghosh won Best Editing, Subhadeep Sengupta won Best Sound Design, Indranil Mukherjee won Best Cinematography and Ritarupa Bhattacharya won Best Costume Design. Sohel Mondol won Best Newcomer Actor. Mayar Jonjal also shared the Critics’ Best Film award.
The film opened in cinemas across Bangladesh and West Bengal on 24 February 2023. Aupee Karim’s return to the big screen and her pairing with Ritwick Chakraborty generated considerable curiosity among audiences and critics. After its theatrical release, the film earned praise in both Bengals for its performances and filmmaking.
Now, those who missed Mayar Jonjal in cinemas or want to revisit it can watch the film on Chorki wherever they are.
