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What the golden era of Bengali cinema has left us is an inheritance of endless possibilities. If today, the films of Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Ritwick Ghatak, Buddhadeb Dasgupta or Tapan Sinha are part of our consciousness, then it is due to their ability to enlighten the “dark rooms of our souls” and offer us an outlook – to live and let live. These cinematic works with rich history and heritage continue to influence our discourse and consciousness. The ‘essential humanism’ of these master filmmakers has lived on through time and space. It’s a treasure trove of cult classics but then there is a certain section of films that are criminally underrated.

In this new series of #DirectorsCut, ETimes talks about the relatively lesser-known and yet brilliant films by iconic directors that were overshadowed by their more popular filmworks. In the second episode, we will discuss Mrinal Sen’s one of the most criminally underrated films ‘Antareen’ (1993).

Emptiness and loneliness are recurring themes

Based on one of the most remarkable stories ‘Badshahat Ka Khatimah’ by Sadat Hasan Manto, Mrinal Sen’s ‘Antareen’ (Confined) is a detailed psychological study of two trapped souls who fail to build a substantial emotional connection.

However, unlike his other political films Mrinal Sen made in the 60s and 70s, ‘Antareen’ is somewhat apolitical. It focuses more on the inner turmoils of individuals. The narrative follows a struggling writer stuck in an old-world Calcutta mansion who is in search of any kind of inspiration for his upcoming novel but nothing is working out for him. The struggling writer (played by Anjan Dutt) one day gets an interesting phone call from a woman (Dimple Kapadia) who seems to be looking for someone to just talk to. As the conversation goes on the writer soon realizes that the woman over the telephone might be confined in her mundane life and has been away from society for quite some time.

Now, they slowly try to bridge the gap and it channels creative energy for the writer and he now understands in order to come out of his writer’s block he should utilize the emotions behind the woman’s experiences for the sake of his new novel. Interestingly, Mrinal Sen shows the old world mansion where the writer lives might have a life of its own heritage and history. Perhaps, the colonial past that’s attached to it affects the mind of those who stay there.

Transformation in Mrinal Sen’s worldview!

If you consider the aspect of characterization, the mansion which gives us a feeling of a haunted house has been used as a metaphor for the psychological state and emptiness inside the writer and the woman as well. As for the various forms, the master storyteller opted for several Brechtian techniques like using direct camera for the construction of a surreal narrative being imagined by the writer’s words.

Again, the brief encounter on a train platform during the closing moments is actually manifested by the writer himself and the woman using their imaginary connection. However, in reality, the distance between them even when they get close emotionally clearly shows such an encounter is nothing but an empty illusion just like their broken gaze. The woman trying to momentarily escape from her unbearable loneliness has also been beautifully captured just like the pathos of the writer.

Emptiness and loneliness have been a constantly recurring theme you would see in Mrinal Sen’s rich oeuvre of cult films. But, no other film shows this striking existential despair as deeply as ‘Antareen’. We have to mention Sashi Anand’s name as well. This cinematic gem has been beautifully shot by Sashi Anand, who also is the music director and he did a remarkable job delivering a haunting and melancholic background score. It gives ‘Antareen’ a terrific depth.

A film far ahead of its time

Independent filmmaker Tathagata Ghosh explains why
‘Antareen’ is one of his favourite Mrinal Sen films and why this film was far ahead of its time when it got released. “This film is a masterclass of how to create drama just by using two complicated and layered characters and making them talk to each other. And that too without even making the two characters meet each other even for once till the very end. So technically you cannot even call it a ‘chamber room’ drama and this for me, sets the film apart. Yes, it is a dialogue-driven film but it breaks genre conventions throughout. The ‘voice’ of the characters creates a hallucinatory feel and entraps you into their lonely world. Sen also showed how to powerfully use mis-en-scene.

Through production design, we get to know so much about the characters. Even though the house where Anjan Dutt’s character was staying was old and huge, you still feel strange claustrophobia. It feels like the entrapped ghosts of the house have cast a spell on you and the only way of escape is through the telephone. In today’s time and age, when we are glued to our phone screens and feel validated by the ‘likes’ of our posts on social media, ‘Antareen’ feels so relevant. Even after having many friends and followers on social media, we are still so lonely. We feel trapped in spite of being free. And now since we are stuck indoors for so long because of the covid-19 pandemic, ‘Antareen’ feels even more haunting. It was a film far ahead of its time.”