Roushni Sarkar
Kolkata, 10 Feb 2018 18:48 IST
With decent performances from the star cast and a gripping script, the film manages to keep the audience glued to their seats.
Anindya Bikash Dutta’s Nilacholey Kiriti, based on Dr Nihar Ranjan Gupta’s novel, Basanta Rajani, is a crime thriller that attempts to unravel the darkest corners of human psychology and failed relationships.
With decent performances by the star cast and a gripping script by Padmanabha Dasgupta, the film manages to keep the audience glued to their seats till the end.
Shot in various locations of Orissa, the film begins with detective Kiriti Roy (Indraneil Sengupta) exploring the numerous attractions of Puri with his wife, Krishna (Arunima Ghosh), on their honeymoon. They come across Kiriti’s old neighbor, Kali Sarkar (Abhishek Chatterjee), a businessman from Kolkata after a dance show at the Navrang Theatre.
The very next day, Kiriti, inevitably, is informed of a murder close to the beach. Incidentally, Kali Sarkar goes missing around the same time.
The mystery begins to intensify as the police discover that both the victim and Kali had taken accommodation at Hotel Blue View.
Kiriti cannot stay from the crime scene for long since the owner of the hotel, Mrs Runa Sanyal (Rituparna Sengupta) comes into the picture. The plot, thereafter, continues to take several twists, as more characters related to Runa Sanyal and Kali Sarkar enter the story. While the questions of money and property remain at the centre, the complex relationships between the relatives give Kiriti a tough time in figuring out the motive of the crime.
During the climax, as Kiriti tries to unravel the knots of this mystery by tapping on the ugly side of human psychology.
In the end, it is clear that greed, selfish interests and the lack of care and proper guidance during their childhood reduces the characters to their animalistic avatars. However, this exposition does not evoke any sympathy for any of the characters or their circumstances. Therefore, the end of the plot takes away the essence of a pure crime thriller. At the same time, it does not offer a catharsis for the tragic moments that the audience is exposed to.
Indraneil Sengupta’s performace as Kiriti is natural and detailed, as demanded by the script. With no scope for drama, he brings out the intelligence and observatory power of a detective through his performance.
Arunima Ghosh brings out the irritation of a wife whose husband is busy with his work even during their honeymoon. Further, she perfectly brings out the subtle change when the moment to play the perfect partner to her detective husband comes up.
Perhaps more drama could be added to the character of the mysterious Runa Sanyal, played by Rituparna Sengupta. Although she doesn’t have much screen space, her flat performance at some crucial moments takes away the intensity of the plot.
Samadarshi Dutta does justice to the character of Subrata, who assists Kiriti on the case, and Shantilal Mukherjee as Harit Sanyal also etches out the withdrawn nature of a betrayed husband perfectly.
Suchandra Vaaniya, who plays Leena, stays true to her character as much as possible while playing her brief part. The actor who plays the part of Radha plays a crucial role. His performance is as full of surprise as is his appearance during the climax.
Debajyoti Mishra utilises the traditional folk and classical music of Orissa optimally, magnifying the moments of darkness and suspense. Through the music arrangement, he evokes a sense of catastrophe in the different landmarks of Orissa known for their religious significance and age-old cultural practices.
Harendra Singh’s cinematography sways through the alleys of Puri and Ramrajpur with ease. The success of the moments of suspense and anticipation is very much a product of his thoughtful camerawork.
Although they are not many, the action sequence between Kiriti and Radha does come as a surprise and adds to the pace of the plot.
The film lacks theatrical elements that could make a crime thriller of such complexities more engaging. Following the layers of twists, the exposition of declining human relationships somewhere takes away the thrill from the climax.