‘To create my own detective was a dream’

As someone who grew up as a lover of detective stories, Anjan Dutt always wanted to create his own detective. Now, at the ‘fag end of his life’, he tells ‘Millennium Post’, he has found his detective in Subrata Sharma played by Suprobhat Das. ‘The Bong Connection’ director, who made his first Byomkesh Bakshi film with Abir Chatterjee in 2010, finds the Bengali detectives on screen lack wit, humour, and adult issues. Before he starts shooting his film on Mrinal Sen from March 16, who discovered him in ‘Chalchitra’, Dutt opens up on family dramas, American thrillers, and more.

Your quest for whodunit continues.

I grew up with detective stories. When I was in St. Paul’s School in Darjeeling, I started reading adult detective stories, especially American thrillers. When I came to Kolkata, there used to be a lot of paperback lending libraries on Elliot Road and Ripon Street. They had interesting writing and showed a world that was real. I have read a lot of British detectives like Sherlock Holmes, and Agatha Christie also. Honestly, the way Nick Carter excited me, Agatha Christie didn’t excite me that much. Agatha Christie is plot-driven and detection-oriented. But it was Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe and Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade who interested me more. They were small-time guys, who had petty jobs. This fun of pitting a small-time detective against the big world fascinated me. In fact, I learned Bengali by reading all the books of great Bengali authors’ detective stories. I got introduced to Premendra Mitra, Samaresh Basu, Samaresh Majumdar, or Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay through their detective stories. However, their detective stories didn’t appeal to me so much except for Byomkesh. As someone who grew up as a lover of detective stories, this was my dream that towards the fag end of my life, I create my own detective.

Your new detective, Subrata Sharma made his debut with the web series ‘Danny Detective Inc’. So, what made you think of bringing the next instalment of the franchise to the big screen?

I always thought of bringing the franchise to the big screen. In the first story, I wanted to test the character and how it gels with the audience. The franchise has to be with me, Suprobhat, and Subrata Sharma. My films are about the various cases Detective Danny’s agency handles. Before the series, I wrote three books on Subrata Sharma. We shot ‘Revolver Rohosyo’ mostly in lower Darjeeling… the gritty, grimy Darjeeling.

You wanted to create your franchise with Byomkesh Bakshi too.

In 2008, I went around and spent a lot of money trying to procure the rights of Byomkesh because that’s the only adult story I found available in Bengali. I didn’t want to write. I thought of making a franchise based on the writings of a different author. In 2008, when I took the rights to six stories of Byomkesh, I wanted to cast a newcomer. Abir (Chatterjee) stepped into it and I was convinced of him. The franchise worked. Then Abir left to play Feluda, and we tried with Jisshu (Sengupta). Soon, everyone started doing Byomkesh Bakshi. So, I didn’t want to join the race.

Today, we have Byomkesh in films and web series. Why is everyone after Byomkesh Bakshi?

It is pure business. Here’s an iconic character that people identify with. Post my Byomkesh Bakshi films, the producers realized this is a safe bet. In the same way, everyone is making Feluda. He is also a safe bet. The producers know even if it’s a poorly made film the audiences will step into the theatres for Feluda and Byomkesh. I doubt whether people are doing it for their love of detective stories. I have not seen that reflected on the screen. I think Anirban Bhattacharya and Suprobhat’s take on Byomkesh Bakshi and Ajit respectively was good. I thought it was trying to capture the spirit of Sharadindu babu.

You have been trusting Suprobhat for a long time now.

I am always interested in finding good actors and I have found even. When I saw Suprobhat, I saw talent. I wanted to use him in various ways in other films like ‘Aami Asbo Phirey’, ‘Finally Bhalobasha’, ‘Shaheber Cutlet’ and then cast him as a franchise character before he developed any baggage. When I started writing the story of ‘Danny Detective Inc’, I imagined how Suprobhat would react to a situation. Suprobhat is also a loner, and my detective hasn’t settled down in life either. Before the film, we even got his sketched photograph printed on the cover of the book.

You played a school teacher in Shiboprosad Mukherjee and Nandita Roy’s family drama ‘Haami 2’. In 2012, you also directed your family drama ‘Dutta Vs Dutta’. Do you think Bengalis have too much liking for thrillers and family dramas?

‘Dutta Vs Dutta’ failed due to a lack of distribution and exhibition. If a film isn’t distributed properly, it won’t reach the target audience. Distributors and exhibitors in Tollywood, I believe, are stuck in time. Most producers here are stuck in a time capsule. Rituparno Ghosh did family dramas and successfully made them. ‘The Bong Connection’ happened in 2006 when nobody could think of a Bengali film with NRIs. But my producers believed in it. The same was the case with ‘Madly Bangalee’, ‘Chalo Let’s Go’ and ‘Ranjana Ami Ar Asbona’. A handful of distributors and producers took a risk and that worked. Cinema is finally gambling. None can say what works, and what doesn’t. The person who will gamble with a lot of thought and trust can win the game. Formula cinema will not work for a long time. It is important to give drama and melodrama but the question is how mellow will it be.

Even if I talk about detective films, we are a little behind in Bengal. Danny Detective wants to be contemporary. Most of our detective films lack wit, humour, and adult issues. Everything is goody-goody. I mean to say, detective films have also become like family dramas here. A detective is also a family man with a wife, brother, or nephew. Detectives are not making mistakes and they are not falling in love. Detectives aren’t fun anymore. Here, Subrata Sharma makes a difference. I have tried to make the franchise interesting. My detective makes mistakes, falls in love, and gets betrayed. My detective doesn’t come from American thrillers. My detective comes from the same roads, gullies, and lanes from where Haripada, Samson, Mary Anne, Ranjana, Jeremy’s ghost, and Bela Bose came. My detective is a loser. My detective has the spirit of my songs. In fact, my detective is a reflection of my songs. 

Costume: Anushree Malhotra

Location: Soul: The Sky Lounge

Makeup & hair (Anjan Dutt, Suprobhat Das): Samitabha Das, Pradeep Sarkar

Makeup & hair (Tnushree Chakraborty): Shadvika Debsharma

Photography: Prakash Pain