Felt ‘Bagha Jatin’ is the right film to go pan-India: Dev
Directed by Arun Roy, the film will release in Bengali and Hindi on October 20
Bengali actor-producer Dev is all set to woo the pan-Indian audience with his upcoming Durga Puja period film, ‘Bagha Jatin’.
After Jeet, who broke into the pan-India mould with ‘Chengiz’ on Eid, now Bengali superstar Dev has decided to go national with his latest Bengali patriotic film ‘Bagha Jatin’, which opens on October 20.
Sharing the first look of the Hindi version of ‘Bagha Jatin’, where he plays the iconic freedom fighter, Dev said that this is ‘by far the biggest film from his production house’.
“Bagha Jatin is a national hero. After watching the film, we thought this was the perfect product for us to go national. Born Jatindranath Mukhopadhyay, he earned the name Bagha Jatin after killing a tiger with his bare hands. He also played a pivotal role in India’s freedom movement. The film triggers powerful feelings of patriotism and as a producer, I felt we needed to show ‘Bagha Jatin’ to the national audience,” said Dev, who will also be seen as Byomkesh Bakshi in his next Bengali film.
A few weeks ago, Dev released the Hindi version of his 2017 Bengali film ‘Chaamp’ on OTT. Calling it a ‘test drive’, Dev said that he is still learning the ropes of production when it comes to releasing a film nationally. “Releasing the Hindi version of ‘Chaamp’ on OTT was a conscious decision. The Hindi version has been successfully accepted. We wanted to learn the ropes and approach with caution,” he said.
Six years ago, on June 23, Dev ventured into production with ‘Chaamp’, a Bengali film on boxing. So he decided to announce his move into a pan-Indian scenario on that very day.
As of now, Arun Roy’s directorial ‘Bagha Jatin’ will be released on October 20, 2023, in Bengali and Hindi. The actor-producer is yet to decide whether he will release the film in South Indian languages. Dev will also take a call on the Hindi dubbing of ‘Bagha Jatin’. “As of now, the audition is on. It’s too early to comment,” he said.
Also, he makes it clear that not all his films will have a pan-Indian release. “It depends on the story. If we think a story can connect with the national audience, we will release it across India. ‘Bagha Jatin’ is a film that has the potential to win over audiences across the country,” he said.
In the past few years, Dev has been at the top of his game. His track record at the box office as an actor-producer with Bengali films like ‘Sanjhbati’, ‘Tonic’ and ‘Projapoti’ has been impressive. So, let’s see how lady luck favours him as he takes the plunge with his first pan-Indian cinema.
