Partho Ghosh back with Rehmat Ali

Why remake Ghulam-E-Mustafa in Bengali?

There was no particular reason. This was my own film. It had an emotional subject with a big message. I felt this was a positive subject to make a film on. Moreover, since Ghulam-E-Mustafa was in Hindi, many might not have watched the film. That’s why the remake.

Have you made many changes to the original script?

Yes, there’ve been lots of changes. The basic matter is changed. We’ve focused on the problems in West Bengal, the land issues. The contemporary position in the state has been incorporated into Rehmat Ali. But we’ve maintained the hard-hitting feeling of Ghulam-E-Mustafa.

These days candyfloss romances are the in-thing. Can a hard-hitting film work?

Yes, there is a trend towards young, romantic films these days. Tobe, bhalo boi hole bhaloi lagbe (But then, if  a film is good, it will work).

What brings you back to Bengali cinema?

Nothing really. It just happened out of the blue. Even the last time, when I made Sindur Khela in 2000, it happened suddenly. But back then we faced some trouble with the distributors. The negative experience kept me away.

Now, on returning to Tollywood after nearly a decade, do you see any changes?

There are lots of changes. For one thing, marketing is completely different now. Earlier on, films released in only about 14 or 15 theatres to begin with. After running there for a few weeks, they would release in theatres in the suburbs. Then, a month later, they would release in other halls in the interiors. This part-by-part release process could sometimes go on for as long as six months. But now things are different. These days, Bengali films release in all theatres at one go. In fact, Rehmat Ali will be releasing in as many as 150 theatres together.

What apart from Rehmat Ali lies ahead?

There’s a thriller, Signature starring Shilpa Shetty, Milind Soman and Esha Koppikar. There’s the somewhat offbeat Ek Second Jo Zindagi Badal De starring my old favourites Manisha Koirala and Jackie Shroff. And there’s a comedy starring Govinda, called Love Partner.


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