Monpura

Monpura (Bengali: মনপুরা), is a 2009 Bangladeshi Bengali film, directed by Giasuddin Selim. It is considered one of the greatest Bangladeshi films ever made[by whom?] and has become a cult-classic over the years due to lead's performance and the music album.

A romantic tragedy film set in rural Bangladesh, Monpura stars Chanchal Chowdhury and Farhana Mili in leading roles. The other supporting actors were Mamunur Rashid and Fazlur Rahman Babu. The soundtrack of the film was composed by Shayan Chowdhury Arnob.

With the film being Selim's large-screen debut and the contemporary-folk soundtrack being released to widespread recognition ahead of screenings, Monpura received large amounts of media hype and publicity leading up to its release. A record number of box collections were sold in the first week of release, and the accompanying soundtrack album became one of the most popular in the country. Monpura is the highest-grossing Bangladeshi film of 2009 and the 23rd highest-grossing film of all time. The film was critically acclaimed, especially for the cast's performance and cinematography. Monpura won five awards at the 34th Bangladesh National Film Awards, beating out the competition in the categories of Best Film, Best Actor, Best Actor in a Negative Role, Best Female Playback Singer, and Best Screenplay, and became the first only film in the 21st century to do so.

The film was remade into Indian Bengali in 2010 as Achin Pakhi, which was directed by Anjan Das.

Plot

Shonai is a man-servant in the house of Gazi, a rich man. The son of Gazi, Halim, is mentally unstable, and he murders a woman who worked in that house. But Gazi insists Shonai take the responsibility of the murder instead of Halim, and leaves him alone in an island named "Monpura", where he falls in love with Pori, the daughter of a fisherman. Gazi, seeing Pori one day, intends to marry his son, Halim, with her, although he pledged to Shonai that he would propose Pori's father for Shonai's marriage. At first, her father did not accept the proposal, for he did not want to let her daughter marry a maniac. But when Gazi wanted to give his property to Pori, he accepted the proposal. When Shonai discovers Gazi's plot, he went to Pori's house to meet her father. But her father insults him for wanting to marry her being a poor with no land or property. Then Pori & Shonai decided to flee on the next night. Just when Shonai was about to leave for Pori, he got caught by the police for the murder case. Pori waited all night that went in vein. Subsequently, Pori was married to Halim, against her will. She was very unhappy with Halim as he's a maniac. One day her chachi and father came to visit her, and chachi gave her hope. So Pori was waiting for Shonai. Shonai also wanted to be free to meet her. Upon realizing that Pori cannot get over Shonai, wife of Gazi said that Shonai would be executed on Friday at 12:01 am so that Pori might forget Shonai. However, Shonai was proven innocent and was released on Saturday, although Pori, who thought that he will be executed on Friday, killed herself by drinking poison at midnight that day. After Shonai arrives the next morning, he finds out and feels devastated by Pori's death.

Cast

• Chanchal Chowdhury as Shonai, a fisherman who lives on Monpura Island. He has a little house there, talks with animals, and falls in love with Pori. He is also a fast swimmer.
• Farhana Mili as Pori, daughter of another fisherman. She falls in love with Shonai Mia but her father forced her to marry Shonai's bosses mentally insane son out of greed.
• Fazlur Rahman Babu as Pori's Father, another fisherman
• Mamunur Rashid as Gazi
• Shirin Alam as Gazi's wife
• Monir Khan Shimul as Gazi's insane son

Production

Development

Monpura made a huge media hype before its release. "A heart breaking story," as called by popular actor and director Afzal Hossain, its unusual songs and rural setting set the background of an artistic romance film. Monpura, unlike many other popular Bangla films, uses the rural settings of Bangladesh, something Selim says audiences have a strong attachment to.

But the picturisation, the setting of the island named Monpura is what has made the movie unique. Moreover, it is not only a love story; there is a hidden satire in it.

— Jackie Kabir, Star Weekend Magazine

Shooting

Shooting for the film started in June 2007 and took place in various locations, including remote areas of Bogra, Kushtia and Dhaka. The shooting unit faced problems due to Bangladesh's rainy season and demands to shoot through such weather; several outdoor sequences were shot in the rain.

Reception

Monpura initially released in four theaters in Dhaka and Rajshahi before quickly opening in theaters in Chittagong, Mymensingh, Bogra, Rangpur, and Sirajganj.

Within three weeks of its release, Monpura broke the 45-year record of ticket sales in the Dhaka box office with over 50,000 tickets sold, surpassing the first Bangla language film made in Bangladesh, Mukh O Mukhosh (1956).

On 22 May 2009, Monpura completed its 100 days of glory in the box office. Star Cineplex and Bolaka (Bolaka-1 & Bolaka-2), the busiest theaters in the capital, ran this film for 100 days consecutively. After 100 days, the movie kept running in about 50 theaters across the country.

The film ran at Star Cineplex for nine months, Bolaka for six months, and Monihar for eight weeks. Theaters in Pabna, Khulna, and other districts in Bangladesh ran the film for six to seven weeks. Outside Bangladesh, the film was first released in Sydney on 8 August 2009, followed by other cities including New York City, Toronto, Montreal, and Brussels.

Remake

West Bengal filmmaker Anjan Das made the Indian Bengali film, Achin Pakhi (2010), based on Monpura.

Awards

National Film Awards

Monpura won in five categories at the National Film Awards, including Best Film.

• Winner Best Film: Anjan Chowdhury Pintu
• Winner Best Actor: Chanchal Chowdhury (Shared with Ferdous for Gongajatra)
• Winner Best Villain Character: Mamunur Rashid
• Winner Best Screenplay: Giasuddin Selim
• Winner Best Singer: Chondona Mazumder and Kazi Krishnokoli Islam

Meril-Prothom Alo Awards

• Winner Best Film Actor: Mamunur Rashid

Music

Bangla films rarely come under the spotlight for their music. It was thought that the music from Monpura was collected from Bangladeshi folk music, but almost all are original songs. The album has been noted for its depth, creative thought, and trend-breaking effort.

"Shonai Hai Haire," written by director Giasuddin Selim, tells the story of a daughter's death, whose funeral is attended by her father and father-in-law. "Aage Jodi Jantam," lyrics and music by Krishnokoli Islam, also tells the story of a broken heart - leaving the house of a girl and her life of regret. "Shonar Moyna Pakhi," lyrics and music by Osman Khan and sung by Arnob, expresses the desire to see a loved one at any cost, even if it comes before one's death. The album was released in August 2008 by Laser Vision.

Track

সহকারি সঙ্গীত পরিচালক: অদিত। (Assistant Music Director: Odit.) বাঁশী: জালাল। ঢোল: নজরুল। সন্তুর: স্বপন।(Flute: Jalal. Dhol: Nazrul. Sontur: Swopon) দোতারা: শরীফ, গৌরব। (Dotara: Shorif, Gourob)

Recorded: at Bengal Studio.

AudioCD Cover Photography: Tanvir

Music arranged & composed for songs by Arnob

Script, Dialogue and Direction : Gias Uddin Selim

Cinematography: Kamrul Hasan Khosru

Edit & Music Direction : Iqbal A. Kabir Joel

External links

• at IMDb
• at the