By Souvik Ghosh/IBNS Jul 15, 2023
Kolkata/IBNS: Tollywood superstar Dev, who started off his journey as a producer years ago, received one of the biggest criticisms when he plunged into playing famous Bengali sleuth Byomkesh for the first time in his 17-year career.
Dev plays the iconic role in Birsa Dasgupta directorial Byomkesh o Durgo Rahosyo, which is based on Sharadindu Bandyopadhyays novel Durgo Rahasya.
The teaser of the much anticipated film of the 2023 was launched on Friday.
Speaking at the teaser launch, Dev, in reference to the comparisons being made between him and his contemporaries in playing Byomkesh, bluntly tells his adventure as this onscreen sleuth will be one-time.
Teaser launch event | Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS
Dev said, I am not working on Byomkesh only in a single year. Though I always believe in never say never, I take all the responsibility in saying that this is going to be my first and last Byomkesh.
If someone asks me today, I would say I wont play Byomkesh again unless I get motivated somehow to play it in future. I want to make one Byomkesh which will be remembered by the audience forever.
I am aware of the magnanimity of Byomkesh and Bengalis sentiment associated with the character. I have tried to reach the closest to Byomkesh with my hard work, he added.
Rukmini Maitra (L) and Dev (R) | Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS
Among the contemporaries, Abir Chatterjee, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Jisshu U Sengupta, Anirban Bhattacharya have essayed Byomkesh onscreen across various platforms.
Acting legend Uttam Kumar played Byomkesh in Satyajit Rays Chiriakhana, which was released in 1967.
Durgo Rahasya, the adventure detective novel by Saradindu Bandyopadhyay, was published in 1952.
In this riveting tale, Byomkesh, accompanied by his trusted ally Ajit, finds himself entangled in the investigation of the untimely demise of Professor Ishan Chandra Majumder, believed to be caused by a snake bite.
Dev | Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS
On choosing Durgo Rahasya for his onscreen debut as Byomkesh, Dev said, As per my research work, Durgo Rahasya is the biggest and film worthy novel on Byomkesh.
As an actor, I have a selfishness and hunger of playing a character who was not explored in this manner on the big screens earlier. If it was any other segment of Byomkesh, I might have given a second thought of playing the role.
Devs actress girlfriend Rukmini Maitra plays Satyabati while actor Ambarish Mukherjee is Ajit in the film.
Rukmini Maitra (L) and Dev (R) | Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS
Rukminis casting too has earned criticisms and allegations of nepotism by a section of netizens.
In reply to the criticisms, Rukmini, who has worked with Dev in a number of films, said, It has been a wonderful journey for me. We have faced a barrage of criticisms since the announcement.
Moreover, Satyabatis announcement added further fuel to the debate and criticisms. We, as a team, had hit a rock bottom. So we had no room for any further fear but courage to pull off the project.
Rukmini Maitra | Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS
Byomkesh o Durgo Rahosyo, which is co-produced by Shadow Films and Dev Entertainment Ventures, will be released in theatres on August 11.
(Photos: Avishek Mitra/IBNS)