By Atanu Roy Kolkata, March 17 (Representative) Eminent Bengali film director Kaushik Ganguly, known for his depiction of marginalised people and exploring various aspects of sexuality, believes an artist without social responsibility can never become significant or relevant in any art form. The multiple award-winning filmmaker-scriptwriter-actor says the portrayal of the marginalised in his movies is based on a first-hand understanding of life and people in towns and villages. Ganguly’s ‘Ushnatar Janye’ (telefilm) dwells on a lesbian relationship, ‘Arekti Premer Golpo’ dissects transgender identity while ‘Nagarkirtan’ is an LGBTQ movie. “I spent my childhood with my grandparents in an area almost like a village. I got an opportunity to see the town and village life concurrently. That’s how I got a chance to see two kinds of people. So, I never had to rely on imitation when it came to filming their stories. I have been able to do that from my understanding. And above all, I like to tell stories of marginalised people,” Ganguly told UNI in an interview. Making his directorial debut with ‘Waarish’ (2004), Ganguly has over the years made around 20 films. A few of his most notable creations are ‘Laptop’ (National Award for Best Background Music in 2011), ‘Shabdo’ (National Award for Best Bengali Film in 2012) and ‘Chotoder Chobi’ (National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues in 2015).
Other movies which got him rave reviews include ‘Bishorjan’ (National Film Awards for Best Feature Film in Bengali in 2017) and ‘Nagarkirtan’ (National Film Award – Special Jury Award for feature film in 2018). Critics have sparred through the ages on the need for a connect between social responsibility and art, but Ganguly is in no two minds. “A filmmaker should be socially responsible two thousand times. Otherwise, he or she should quit the arena or run away from the art,” he said. “Where there is no social responsibility, there is no art. Those who do not have any social responsibility and only eyes money or those who only target the box office by creating a project, are insignificant and irrelevant in the domain of cinema or any other art form,” he maintained. Referring to ‘Nagarkirtan’, Ganguly recalled he used to keep a ten rupee-note in his pocket for a long time while making the movie. ‘If any third gender people asked for money at the traffic signal, I used to give them the money. I have given it for many years. After getting acquainted with them, they asked me to tell their stories in films. After ‘Nagarkirtan’ happened, they have seen the film. They have seen ‘Arekti Premer Golpo’ too”. Now Ganguly is eagerly looking forward to the release of Dhrubo Bandyopadhyay-directed web series ‘Tiktiki’, where he is one of the main actors. It is releasing on the OTT platform hoichoi on Friday. Based on the famous play ‘Tiktiki’ which featured Soumitra Chatterjee as the protagonist, Ganguly will be seen in the lead role, that was portrayed by Chatterjee in the play. But he felt the web series should not be correlated with Chatterjee’s ‘Tiktiki’. “In today’s context, the play certainly has no relevance. The play was very relevant at that time. Now adultery has become legalised.
So there is no burden on adultery today. Now a strange chessboard-like playing field has been created. This web series is made in the backdrop of such a playing field”, he said. Asked about the possibility of the audience comparing him with the legendary actor, Ganguly said: “The moment I stand on the screen, I know that the god-like physique of Soumitra Babu will not sit on me at all. My impression is so different that this character will change immediately. So people will not have that recall factor for sure”. Ganguly, who has played important roles in a number of his films, said he has not been able to make money out of acting in his directorial ventures. “To date, I’ve played so many pivotal characters in my films but I haven’t taken a single penny as remuneration as an actor. Nobody knows the fact. Everything I did, I have done for free. While it is worth millions of rupees, which is what I charge other directors. But I have never taken money for my films so far. ‘But I will take it from now onwards. If the producers say that I have to do any role, then they have to pay for that actor”, said Ganguly, an alumnus of Narendrapur Ramakrishna Mission. However, the 53-year-old versatile man seemed disappointed with the quality of work television is delivering. “Television failed to stay at a place of dignity and aristocracy that we left behind. The income of television has increased, its scope has expanded but the values have shifted a lot, but not in a good direction”, he said.