Recently, I went to the theatre to watch the Assamese film Calendar which has been receiving good footfalls since its release on February 16, 2018. The film has been made under the banner of Enajori Talkies. The script of the film has been penned by Himjyoti Talukdar, Santanu Roumuriya and Jhulan Krishna Mahanta and donning the director’s cap is Himjyoti Talukdar.
The cinematography of the film – which has received seven awards in Prag Cine Awards North East 2018 in various categories – has been done by Dikhit Das. Jhulan Krishna Mahanta edited the film and the music has been lent by the popular singer of Assam Tarali Sarma. The film boasts of a stellar cast – Arun Nath, Moloya Goswami, Gunjan Bhardwaj and Rimjhim Deka.
The publicity of the film has been a very “neat job” if one goes by the posters which have been made in a very “professional” manner – something amiss in the posters of Assamese films, otherwise. The teasers and trailer of the film was also very “appealing and creative to the core”. The makers of the film have used the social media space in an “intelligent manner” resulting in people deciding to visit the theatres to watch the flick. The makers were successful in involving the common people to promote the film.
The script of the film has been beautifully written – a simple storyline and minimum characters. In most Assamese films that I have watched, the script is usually a “very poorly handled job with no sync between the story and the script, the dialogues and the scenes and overdose of melodrama and special effects”.
The high point of the film is that the main protagonists have been allowed to build and shape up their character in a “free flowing manner”. Though the film offered less scope for melodrama, but in some of the scenes the veteran actor Moloya Goswami tended to “overact”. Overall, the acting of the entire main cast was “flawless”.
The lead actor Arun Nath has stolen the show with his stellar performance. The script gave him ample opportunity to demonstrate his acting prowess and he justified the same. His acting was so very natural and flawless that it seemed a camera was following a person “unaware going about his day-to-day activities”.
As far as the story is concerned, it is “very predictable”. Some metaphors like an old scooter of the main hero, the radio, etc., have been shown to bring in the “middle class feel” Besides, as representatives of the present generation, it was expected that the writers would drive home the message of old age homes in a more realistic manner.
As one walks out of the theatre after watching the film, inmates of old age homes garner our sympathy which should not have been the case. Though Moloya Goswami holds a different viewpoint on life, but she could not do much justice to her role.
A few comic lines by Arun Nath also failed to establish the genre of Calendar. As far as the songs are concerned, the songs of the film do not go with the flow of the movie and does not meet the demand of the script. The same applies for the background score too.
All said and done, Calendar comes as a breath of fresh air in the otherwise run-of-the-mill kind of Assamese movies which hit the screens these days and it is also a film which has been very well received by the people of Assam.
Sujata Hati Baruah is an Assistant Professor at Puthimari College. She can be reached at: [email protected]