Rituparno Ghosh is a very significant name in the history of Indian cinema. The way he has portrayed gender, sexuality, feminism and the way he has told the stories, is something to learn from. But many of his movies are not much talked about. There are many underrated gems of Rituparno that are equally good and thought-provoking.
‘Utsab’ is one such movie. The movie came out in 2000 and is streaming on Amazon Prime Video now. The movie tells the story of a family during Durga Puja, the biggest festival of Bengalis. Bhagabati, an old woman meets her two middle aged daughters after a long time when they come with their respective families for the Puja. Their intentions, desires, and frustrations reveal slowly throughout the film and it uncovers many layers of the complexities of a middle class family.
Madhabi Mukherjee, the ‘Ray woman’ plays the role of Bhagabati, or the matriarch. Other roles are plays by Mamata Shankar, Prasenjit Chatterjee, Rituparna Sengupta, Pradip Mukherjee, Deepankar De, Arpita Pal and others. The performances are pretty impressive. Madhavi Mukherjee and Mamata Shankar are extraordinary with their expressions. The cinematography is handled by Abhik Mukhopadhyay, who is a true craftsman of his field. The music is given by Debajyoti Mishra.
If you are looking for a movie with a simple story that gives you much food for thought, go with ‘Utsab’. It is available to watch on Prime Video.