Uttam Kumar starrer comes in new avatar

Kolkata: Exploring the dark and mysterious tinsel world in trail of a missing diva director Bappaditya Bandyopadhyay`s `Nayika Sangbad` sharing the name of the late 60s` classic Uttam-starrer, is more a realistic take of showbiz.

"We share the title but here ends the similarities with the classic Nayika Sangbad of 1967 having Uttam Kumar and Anjana Bhowmick in lead roles. It is all about discovering the two sides of a popular figure, who has a larger than life public image with virtues extolled in the eyes of fans and some others in the fraternity," Bappaditya, the Elar Char Adhyay maker, told PTI about the film here. "The discovery comes on the trail of the quest for the `nayika` (heronie) who suddenly goes missing one day and alludes how perceptions change about celebrities from person to person," Bappaditya, who had earlier made a film on the desolation of a superstar`s life at peak in Houseful, explained. "`Nayika Sangbad` is my story, derived from my understanding of the people I had seen and interacted with so far but it is not arthouse film, it is an entertainer also with an item number but with a subject, about which the audience can see reflection in their own lives," Bappaditya said. "And my screen `Nayika`, played by Arunima, bears no resemblance with Anjana`s character stranded in a small town and facing hilarious situations in the classic typical Bengali comic caper," he said. "`Nayika Sangbad` is more women-centric characterwise. And it is more a mystery saga, with the characters talking about the missing person," Bappaditya said. With Mumtaj Sorcar and Locket Chatterje sharing screen space with Arunima as the `jatra` star and star-colleague in the film industry respectively, Nayika Sangbad can be dubbed another woman-centric film having the so-called protagonist, Bappaditya said adding that the film produced by Manab Chowdhury will be released on September 27. PTI