Introduction –
Ray ( 2021 ) is a tribute to the undisputed king of cinema, and an acknowledged auteur Satyajit Ray. Celebrating the centenary year of the master Netflix released an anthology of four films based on his short stories – Forget Me Not, Hungama Hai Kyon Barpa, Spotlight and of course Beherupiya which incidentally is what we are reviewing in this post.
Out of the above mentioned four films, Srijit Mukherjee has to his credit the honor of making two – Forget Me Not with Ali Fazal and Behrupiya with Kay Kay Menon. An accomplished and renowned filmmaker himself, he says these works are reinterpretations of the original stories. However, we feel, at least where Beherupiya is concerned, Srijit’s version is a highly distorted tale. He has transformed an intriguing subject into a complex piece of art which surprisingly ends on a dark note. After comparing it with the original story we believe that the theme has been reinvented.
Synopsis –
Indrashish Shah ( Kay Kay Menon ), a make-up artist is a perfect example of a failure, a character who is subjected to regular humiliation by people around him – from the stage actress Debashree ( Bidita Bag ) who admonishes him for misunderstanding her friendliness to frequent showdowns at the workplace, especially with Suresh Sharma, his boss ( Rajesh Sharma ). Even his landlord and the neighbors consider him as an insignificant individual.
Life changes for Indrashish Shah
Things change when his grandmother dies. She was once the most sought after makeup artist who provided not just cosmetic kits to Hollywood biggies but she was also a talented lady who combined the science of prosthetics with facial composition to build new characters from the scratch. She leaves a large amount of money and a book called “Behrupiya” which contains all the tricks of the trade. Now that Indrashish is financially independent, he spends time on enhancing his makeup skills further. He refers his grandmother’s vintage hand book. And very soon he realizes he can change himself into different characters. What excites him further is that even his close friends and colleagues fail to recognize him which prompts him to narrate Mirza Ghalib’s famous quote – “Dhool Chehre Pe Thi Aur Hum Ainaa Saaf Karte Rahe”
The ill-gotten power nurtures the devil inside him
Indrashish feels he is greater than God and to prove the point he retaliates, taking revenge from people who’d humiliated / rejected him in the past. His actions and retributions remain a secret. It is this elusiveness, this creative identity manipulation that continues to boost his ego, till one day he hears about a peer baba ( Dibyendu Bhattacharya ) who can read a person’s face and therefore the life events. The devil in him rises again, this time he is confronting a true God’s messenger, and wants to win at all costs.
Watch Ray to know the fate of Indrashish and the rest of twists – some borrowed from the original work while a majority of them are completely new.
Analysis –
Srijit Mukherjee has used the theme well, especially the beginning and then cleverly deviated from the original narrative, turning it into a tussle between the good and the bad, between power, lust and humility. The sheen of dark and tense genres somehow dilutes Satyajit Ray’s distinct, soft and easy story reading experience. Moreover, the climax ruins the entire charm altogether.
( Spoiler ) The eventual destruction of Indrashish does provide a logical end but it nonetheless leaves behind a trail questions and loose ends. The settings are lavish, the props eloquent and the shots creative, beautifully supplemented with old Kolkata charm such as tram, classic buildings, colorful window panes and vintage eateries. Direction is top notch although screenplay lacked depth, especially dialogs which seemed to hang onto old Urdu Shayari, faux philosophy and beaten down clichés to stay afloat.
2021 Srijit Mukherjee Satyajit Ray 52 Minutes Netflix