After the release of ‘Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar’ trailer, netizens took to social media to point out a number of similarities between the Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Netflix series with Srijit Mukherji’s 2015 Bengali film, Rajkahini. The critically acclaimed and commercially successful Bengali film revolved around the lives of women living in a brothel situated on the India-Bangladesh border and was set against the backdrop of the Bengal Partition. Its Hindi remake Begum Jaan starred Vidya Balan and had the Indian independence struggle in the backdrop.
In an exclusive chat with News18 Showsha, Rituparna Sengupta, who headlined Rajkahini, reacts to these comparisons and tells us, “I saw a lot of people drawing comparisons between Heeramandi and Rajkahini and these similarities are quite obvious. The stories are almost similar. The backdrop of the revolution and the freedom struggle is the same in both. Those who’ve found similarities have watched Rajkahini and remember what we did in the film.”
Rituparna, however, believes that there’s one thread that differentiates Rajkahini and the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial. “Heeramandi is obviously more commercial in its treatment. We wanted to make our film more magnanimous. Bhansali has his own style of presenting things and he’s unparalleled when it comes to that. We didn’t have that splendour or grandeur but still tried to make the best out of what we had. All of us, girls, gave it our all to infuse life to the characters we played,” she points out.
According to the National Award winner, her film sowed a seed that went on to inspire Bhansali in a big way and that has left her thrilled. “With Rajkahini, regional cinema emerged at a bigger level. That emergence was significant enough to challenge other films as well. When Gangubai Kathiawadi was made, I could see a few shots similar to Rajkahini. I could see some of my postures in Alia (Bhatt). Rajkahini definitely inspired many other films when it comes to the subject of brothel life. It can be treated as a research material. It definitely set an example for a series like Heeramandi,” she asserts.
Following the release of Heeramandi, Rituparna reveals that many of her fans reached out to her and stated that they wished to see her in the historical drama series. Does she feel the same way? “I missed myself in Heeramandi. I was wondering how wonderful it would be if Bhansali had cast me for one of the roles. I wish I catch his attention enough to be his subject someday. I can only hope that he sees my work and calls me to be a part of his films,” she says.
Lauding Bhansali’s vision, the actor, who will soon be seen in Good Morning Sunshine alongside Revathi, continues, “I’ve watched most episodes of Heeramandi. Bhansali’s work is spectacular. It dazzles your eyes. The costumes, the dialogues, the production value are so grand and are at a different level, altogether. He’s one of the most regarded directors. I’m really dying to work with him.”
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