Mountains of the Moon (2013)

From 1989(when I was born) till 21st December, 2013, I had not seen a single Bengali movie ever. There were 2 reasons for it: 1st- I am not very fluent in the Bengali language, and 2nd- A domino effect of the reason 1 led to the fact that I never took interest in Bengali movies. So when one fine day I saw the poster of "Chander Pahar", it really made me notice it. Soon then I went online and saw the trailer, and by the time the trailer ended, I was sure that this was it. This was the movie that I had to see no matter what. Staying close to a cinema theatre was a blessing for me, as I could easily witness the craze that precedes a movie playing there. Every time a Dev movie- Rangbaaz,Romeo, Khokha 420 etc used to play in the cinema, the first day looked like a celebration with flowers adorning movie and Dev posters,whistles, drums being played, people dancing on the movie songs etc. etc. So it came as a surprise to me when on Dec, 20th I saw the cinema hall being slightly calm even though a large crowd being present there.It made me realize that this movie was different, the tone was different. After the 1st day 1st show got over, I heard people saying "Ki koreche Devda, onek bhalo", "O re baba byesh chhobi", "Darun hoyeche", "Aabar aashbo" etc. And I was convinced that yes this movie was different. So all decided I purchased the ticket on 21st Dec at Inox Southcity and settled in my seat hoping that the movie is a treat to me. It was an absolute pleasure watching "Chander Pahar", exploring the virgin land, the wildness of Africa, and all shot in the most articulate manner making the standard of Bengali Cinema comparable to international cinema. The cinematography and the direction were remarkable and that was evident all throughout the movie. The director has done full justice to the story of "Chander Pahar". Dev's portrayal of "Shankar" was unimaginable; the character looked so real and true to the core. I can't be more correct when I say that no one else could have done it. Shankar's dream of making it big, his adventurous mind when in Africa, his emotions when losing a dear friend and his struggle to find the way and live etc. was enacted so marvelously that often in the theatre I could see myself empathize with Shankar. Not for a moment in the 2 hr 30mins did I see Dev(the superstar) there, I could only see the pain, the agony, the passion of Shankar and his adventure, his misadventure and his victory. Shankar won in the reel, Dev won in the real. I read in Wikipedia about how difficult and life-threatening was this movie to shoot. Whether it was the encounter with the African lion, or "lighting" the black-mamba, running away from the wild elephants, or the mountain trek and rock climbing, Dev has done everything with aplomb. I had always heard people say that his movies guarantee entertainment and are often termed as "paisa-vasool", but this was much more than that. It was an experience, an experience that every cine-goer wishes for, an experience that lingers on the mind, days after having seen the movie. For me this was an Experience. For him this movie is a big achievement, and am sure the appreciation and applauds are converging his way from all the corners. I can very well say that Bengali Cinema has a new fan now. Congratulations to the entire team on the success! As the saying goes "Always aim high, Push your limits and Never stop believing", the team did that.

After the brilliant Meghey Dhaka Tara, director Kamaleshwar Mukherjee has pulled off another masterpiece. At this point in time, I regard him as the best current Bengali director, a couple of notches above Srijit Mukherjee.I know this is not a fashionable opinion I hold. I almost did not watch this movie after reading some reviews on certain Bengali movie websites. I realize now that I should not have taken those reviews seriously, since they reflected a typically strange attitude - that Dev cannot act. First of all, I think Dev acted wonderfully in this movie. Second, this movie is not only about Dev - that would make it more like a 3rd class Hindi movie which has no substance but the cheap pull of its leading man. That would be a insult to a director of Mukherjee's calibre.I don't want to reveal too much about this movie - so I wont go into details. I would request people to watch this movie - and make up their own minds. Let me put it simply, without revealing too much. I will compare it to 2 recent movies which received better reviews - Satyanweshi by Rituparno Ghosh and Mishar Rahashyo by Srijit. In both those movies, I fell asleep at various points - especially in the turgid effort by Srijit with its high faluting moralizing and lack of pace and punch. In this movie, I was drawn to the action from start to end - the pace never slackened, the next event never became apparent, and the story never dulled.Proloy was another great movie made recently - but this is the best Bengali movie of 2013.

Many of us love watching adventure films, but very few good ones remain in memory.when Adventure combines with the Wild , the Thrill of watching the movie goes up.I am a Bengali person who has read Bibhutibhusan's Novels and other popular adventure stories by Author's around the world.I read "Chander Pahar" when i was in middle school and felt the story captivating . when i heard that a movie was being made in 2012 ,i felt that its a very difficult task to present on-screen.But when the show began i understood that i need not to worry, because it starts with thrilling action sequences and never bores you at all.I also watch Hollywood films and clearly understand the difference in quality but leaving that aside all that matters is how you present a story in front of viewers.Most theaters and multiplexes are going house-full because people wish to taste the thrill , which has been neatly delivered by Director Kamaleswar Mukherjee.The cast of this film seemed to be carved out of the Novel itself . The film also delivers a good morale and describes a long journey without boring the audience.Both the Bengali cast and foreign cast are perfect and the cinematography is spectacular.If you have not watched it yet because you liked "Dhoom 3" , then i advise to watch this to change your mind and experience the thrill "Chander Pahar" delivers

'Chander Pahar' is arguably the most awaited films in recent times. It is produced by the biggest house, stars Dev, based on a widely popular novel and directed by Kamaleshwar Mukherjee. Definitely, it has all the elements to become an instant epic.But to be honest it miserably fails. Let me clarify my point. The central theme of the novel is all about unprecedented wanderlust. The protagonist risks his life in hunt of a mythical treasure... in an unknown Africa. After succeeding in breaking the myth, Shankar refuses to take treasure. The story is all about the journey of Shankar and his wanderlust which surpasses human greed.The film adaptation dilutes this central theme and emphasizes the subplots of survival stunts. The protagonist turns in to a sadist who risks and hunts for pleasure. The story about an extraordinary journey of life transforms into an average stunt-dependent action/adventure flick.The director also appears to believe the audience gullible. He incorporates idiotic strategy of using unnecessary voiceovers throughout the film to explain simplistic incidents, which is indeed annoying.Apart from all these short comings 'Chander Pahar' is a path breaking film in mainstream Bangla Cinema. This film breaks the myth of big budget Bangla Film implies 'remake of South Indian masala flick.' For sure this will be influential for mainstream Bangla Cinema.