A cinematic 2023 for the industry

This year marked the importation of Hindi movies once again in the country under the SAFTA agreement, which has been a long-standing demand of cinema hall owners.

Like the rest of the world, Bangladesh's cultural and entertainment scene saw a lot of exciting events throughout the year, and enthusiasts across the country were kept occupied by everything that the nation's superstars, artists, and cultural mediums had to offer. The landscape of films in Bangladesh, as a result, observed and celebrated 2023 as one of the most eventful years in memory.

Not only did the year witness the jovial return and continuity of audiences in theatres, it also welcomed a handful of local and foreign films - most notably, the Bollywood blockbusters.

This year marked the importation of Hindi movies once again in the country under the SAFTA agreement, which has been a long-standing demand of cinema hall owners. 

The demand was fulfilled with the arrival of Shah Rukh Khan starrer Bollywood blockbuster film Pathaan in May this year, followed by his other history-making film Jawan which marked the same-day release for a Bollywood film in the country’s multiplexes and single screens.

Among other films, Salman Khan starrer Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan failed to entertain local audiences while Ranbir Kapoor’s career-best commercial film Animal and Shah Rukh Khan’s latest film, Rajkumar Hirani-made Dunki performed moderately in terms of captivating the moviegoers.

The industry was surrounded by talks, opinions, controversies and incidents throughout the year, marking it a special year for the industry - but leaving stakeholders with unfulfilled hopes but significant objectives.

From Mujib - the much-anticipated biopic of the Father of the Nation, to the industry’s long-crowned king Shakib Khan’s mega-blockbuster Priyotoma and television’s seasoned actor Afran Nisho’s silver screen debut Surongo - the film industry in Bangladesh welcomed a total of 51 films, with some achieving economic success and others failing in terms of attracting the moviegoers.

However, a long-standing frustration remained once again the recurring theme in Dhallywood this year, which is the dependency on Eid-based film releases. Festive seasons are understandably the most awaited moments for the filmmakers and hall owners, but other films which were scheduled throughout the year failed to grab a large chunk of the audiences in theatres.

This year, a total of eight films got released across a hundred movie theatres including single-screens and multiplexes on Eid-ul-Fitr, including the Shakib Khan starrer Leader Amie Bangladesh, Ananta Jalil’s Kill Him, Jaaz Multimedia’s Jinn and Paap, alongside four other films - Shotru, Local, Adam and Prem Pritir Bandhan.

On the other hand, audience demand for quality films in Eid ul Azha were fulfilled with five movies - Priyotoma, Surongo, Prohelika, Lal Shari and Casino.

The Eid releases this year include Shakib Khan starrer Leader Amie Bangladesh’and Priyotoma - the latter of which spellbound the viewers with a never-seen-before look of the superstar, and the much-anticipated Raihan Rafi-Afran Nisho-Chorki film Surongo captivated the audiences during the Eid festivities.

Aside from Eid, there have been some other films which were able to keep the interest and conversations going and also entertained the moviegoers. The major player in this category was undoubtedly the Shyam Benegal-directed Bangabandhu biopic Mujib-The Making of a Nation with Arifin Shuvoo’s valiant portrayal as the Father of the Nation.

Proving the doubters wrong, Shuvoo stunned the audiences and critics with his stellar performances alongside seasoned co-artists Nusrat Imrose Tisha, Tauquir Ahmed, Chanchal Chowdhury, Fazlur Rahman Babu and others. 

The storyline portrayed Bangabandhu as not only the unsung hero and leader of the nation but also a caring family man who was brilliantly portrayed by Shuvoo, ultimately stunning the moviegoers. Speaking of the actor, his other much-anticipated film Black War, the sequel to the popular action film Mission Extreme, also received appraisals from the audiences.

Several other big releases marked the debuts of renowned actors as filmmakers, including Hridi Huq’s much-acclaimed film 1971: Shei Shob Din and veteran Aruna Biswas’s Jatra-themed movie Ashomvob. 

The much-anticipated ABM Sumon-starrer Masud Rana spy thriller film MR-9: Do or Die and seasoned filmmaker Dipankar Dipan’s ‘Antarjal’ starring Siam Ahmed-Bidya Sinha Mim in the lead roles, which was claimed to be the first Bangladeshi thriller film made on cyber war, also tried to capture the attention of the moviegoers.

Two prominent Bangladeshi actresses, Jaya Ahsan and Azmeri Haque Badhan, solidified their lasting impressions in Bollywood this year. 

Badhan’s acting in the Vishal Bhardwaj-directed Netflix film Khufiya received critical acclamations from both audiences and critics in India and Bangladesh. Jaya Ahsan, who continued her successful track record in West Bengal’s film industry with Srijit Mukherji’s Dawshom Awbotar this year, also made her successful debut in Bollywood with OTT platform ZEE-5’s film ‘Kadak Singh’ alongside popular actor Pankaj Tripathi.

Alongside the accomplishments, several marquee incidents happened throughout the year in the film industry, engaging the rumour mils while occupying the viewers and readers. 

The separation of Sariful Razz and Pori Moni, the year-long catfight between Apu Biswas and Bubly, the dispute between television actress Tanjin Tisha and media journalists, and the infamous fallout of the Celebrity Cricket League - these incidents made most of the headlines. 

Additionally, the candidacy of actor Ferdous Ahmed, actress Mahiya Mahi and others in the 12th national election was also a significant part of this year’s entertainment arena.

With a handful of promised releases including the Chorki-SVF-Alpha ventured Redoan Rony’s directorial return Domm, Raihan Rafi-Shakib Khan’s maiden collaboration Toofan, Ananta Jalil-starrer Operation Jackpot, Giasuddin Selim’s historical vision of Kajol Rekha and Shakib Khan’s international ventures such as Dard and Rajkumar - 2024 is undoubtedly going to be a prominent year for Bangladeshi films.