On-Demand Audio Broadcast / Podcast

By Bidisha Bagchi

Michigan, USA, Feb 3, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) WBRi had a very special guest today; someone who is known to be a model, a wonderful Bharatnatyam dancer and a superfine National Award winning actress. This beautiful lady who is a powerhouse of talent has acted in various films in the four different south Indian languages and even in Hindi and has now set the Bengali films’ silver screen on fire. She is none other than Padmapriya Janakiraman.

Padmapriya was kind enough to spare a few minutes from her busy schedule and candidly chatted with us just before she left for her shoot.

Aparajita Tumi is her first Bengali film and WBRi asked her about ‘Kuhu’ - the character she played in the film and about the film in general, which by now has already tasted success and is also being critically appreciated by many.

She said that the film was basically about relationships, a story of four people and others who are attached to the lives of these people. ‘Kuhu’ is a very independent, strong headed person with her own share of positives and negatives. What makes her beautiful is the way she grasps life, its surprises and the way she reacts or deals with them.

Padmapriya is a very well known personality in all South Indian films, so how did a Bengali film happen?

Listen to Padmapriya chat with WBRi.

Kolkata, February 1, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) A name to reckon with in the Bangla film industry and a veteran who has left his mark in all the genres of silver screen productions, Dipankar De is simply unstoppable! And, this time he is reappearing before his fans as one amongst the “eclectic mix of cast” in ‘Goray Gondogol’ – penned and directed by Aniket Chattopadhayay.

In a tele-interview with Washington Bangla Radio’s, Arijit Chakrabarty, shares his experience of working in ‘Goray Gondogol’, on what drives him forward and his future projects which includes Srijit Mukherji's 3rd feature film Hemlock Society.

The chit-chat kicked off with greetings to all the Bengalis residing in the US through WBRi. He was pretty excited about his latest work, ‘Goray Gondogol’. It promises pure fun and entertainment to the audiences who wait with baited breath to be bitten by the comic bug! He said that after many days a film has been made in these lines, bringing together a crazy mix of 13-14 characters in all.

Listen to Dipankar De on WBRi.

Kolkata, February 1, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) Aniket Chattopadhyay, who has already tasted box-office success with his first two directorial ventures (‘Chha-E-Chhuti’ and ‘Bye Bye Bangkok’) returns to the studios of WBRi and chats with Arijit Chakraborty about his upcoming movie ‘Goraye Gondogol’ and the next film he has been plannig to direct for some time now.

The conversation kicked off with the interviewer exchanging cordialities with the ace director. When asked how he was doing, Aniket Chattopadhyay showed off his humorous traits by retorting ‘picture release-er aagey jotota bhalo thaka jaay’ (he was as fine as any director could be before the imminent release of a movie!). The director admitted that it was only natural for filmmakers to be nervous about the fate of their movies (for, it is nearly impossible to predict which films will be lapped up or rejected by viewers!). However, Chattopadhyay pointed out that there is a distinct paucity of comedy films in the contemporary Tollywood industry – a factor that would work in favor of his movie. As the director correctly stated, a fun film (or, for that matter, a ‘Feluda’ film!) arrives only once a year and that alone ensures that movie buffs would flock to the theatres to catch such movies. Chattopadhyay revealed that he is not unduly tensed about his film’s release and expressed his belief that ‘Goray Gondogol’ would be universally liked by the audience. In other words, the film would surely create some ‘Goray Gondogol’ at the box-office.

Listen to Aniket-da once again on WBRi.

Kolkata, February 1, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) The name of Reshmi Mitra features prominently among the current crop of young, talented directors who are working at present in the Bengali movie industry. Mitra had earlier directed films like ‘Bhalobasha Zindabad’ (2009) and ‘Piriti Kanthaler Aatha’ (2011). In a candid conversation with interviewer Arijit Chakraborty of WBRi, Mitra talks about her ambitious upcoming Tollywood Kolkata Bengali movie ‘Macho Mostafa’, her work ethics and movie-making techniques and much, much more.

(Picture: From left - Hiran, Reshmi and Puja)

The interview started off on a cordial note, with Reshmi Mitra exchanging pleasantries with the interviewer. The director also explained how wrapped up in work she was, with her next big release, ‘Macho Mustafa’, being in the final stages of post-production. The promotional campaigns for this big-budget commercial flick were also in full flow, as a result of which the director was being forced to frequently shuttle between Kolkata and Chennai. Mitra had been interviewed by WBRi almost a year ago regarding her earlier films and it was indeed pleasant to have her back after a brief hiatus.

Listen to Reshmi talk about Macho Mostafa (Bengali, 2012) starring Hiran and Puja on WBRi.

By Hirak Bhattacharyya

Washington, DC, Jan 28, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) Hirak Bhattacharyya talks to North Indian instrumental Sitar player Chandrachur Bhattacharya in this informal and candid video interview also featuring some live and extempore Sitar performances by the artist.

Hirak had been trying for a while to record this interview, since Chandrachur travels extensively with his Sitar. For the last few months, Chandrachur was traveling with Pandit Birju Maharaj, and before that, he was busy in the UK with his workshops and shows.

Chandrachur grew up extremely modestly, with his parents, two brothers and a sister living in one small room. His parents worked hard and provided for their education and developed their interest in music. His father was deeply involved in music, and studies and music were equally stressed upon by his parents.

Watch the exclusive video interview on WBRi.

By Bidisha Bagchi

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Michigan, USA, Jan 28, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) You can call him the Shahenshah, the Samrat or the King of the Bengali film industry. We, the lovers of Bengali cinema wait eagerly for a film release from this great star, who undoubtedly is the numero uno, Mr Prosenjit Chatterjee - dear beloved Bumba-da to all Bengali film-lovers

Listen to Prosenjit in a candid audio chat with Bidisha Bagchi on WBRi via our exclusive on-demand audio broadcast service.

Washington, DC, Jan 15, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) SUPRIYO DUTTA was born to Shri Tapas Dutta and Smt. Soma Dutta in a Bengali family. His vocal music training started from the very early age of five years solely on the interest of his mother. At the age of fourteen he started training with Shri Bidhan Mitra which changed his attitude towards life and developed in Supriyo a keen interest in Indian Classical Music.

Later Supriyo was guided and trained by Late Pandit Ramkrishna Bose of Indore Gharana as a National scholar in HindustaniVocal Classical Music. Supriyo has already performed in various reputed concerts in India and abroad. He has graduated with a Master's degree in Arts as the Gold Medalist (1st class -1st ) from Rabindra Bharati University in his field of Vocal Classical Music( Kheyal ).

Supriyo is groomed not only as a performer in Hindustani vocal classical music but also as an established teacher on this field. He is training students not only in vocal music but also in various different musical instruments where he is teaching to play proper Hindustani Classical Music. He is even attached to an institution where he is training almost 1000 students & holds workshop classes whenever he is touring abroad for performances.

His versatility not only ends in Pure Classical Music but also in Semi - Classicals like Thumri, Bhajan, Raagpradhan, etc. He has given a number of such performances onstage as well as in television channels; also performed as a playback singer in a couple of Title Music under reputed Music Directors.  In recent times he is also working on the idea of blending rock/jazz/funky western grooves with hard core Indian Classical Music. These performances are receiving overwhelmed responses from audience and media in recent times .

Read all about Supriyo and listen to his performances of Hindustani Classical ragas in the complete WBRi feature.

Washington, DC, Jan 12, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) As a girl who had been in the headlines much before her real tryst with acting, albeit due to her school refusing her a seat in the higher secondary for participating in a regional beauty pageant, Sampurna Lahiri has showed just the right amount of grit and determination to follow her dreams. And here she is anticipating the release of her first Bengali movie, no less than Aniket Chattopadhaya's 3rd feature film ‘Goraye Gondogol’.

In an up close with Sampurna, Washington Bangla Radio representative Arijit Chakrabarty strikes up an interesting conversation the with the actress regarding her dreams, her first movie experience and her forthcoming films.

The interview took off with an enthused exchange of New Year pleasantries after which Sampurna got down to talk about her life as a child who grew up with theatre in the air. On being asked what made her walk into a career in acting and eventually in films, pat came her reply that her father, Niladri Lahiri was a noted thespian so, naturally, she had dramatics running in her blood. Moreover, to become an actress was a childhood dream that she had always nurtured. 
Charting her course into films, Sampurna recounted how she first got into modeling after her madhyamik exams and then ‘Tare Ami Chokhe Dekhini’ happened. The latter was a serial aired on Star Jalsha that made her a household name. It was after this that she was spotted by Kaustav Roy who offered to cast her in his next production called ‘Goray Gondogol’.

Sampurna’s first big movie break is slated to be released soon. It is but obvious to be on cloud nine for someone who has always dreamed of being a star. However, the young actress admits that the hoardings of the movie, now put up all over the city, puts her on the jittery mode. With a load of expectations on her shoulders, Sampurna concedes that she’s still a bit starry eyed too.

Listen to Sampurna and watch the trailer of Goraye Gondogol on WBRi.

Washington, DC, Jan 10, 2012 (Washington Bangla Radio) Arijit Chakraborty chats with Rahul (the screen-name of Arunoday Banerjee), one of the most talented (and busy!) young actors of Tollywood, in this exclusive WBRi audio interview.

More popularly known as ‘Rahul’ in the movie circuits, the man is one of the faces of the changing times (for the better, that is!) that the Bengali film industry is witnessing. In an exclusive telephonic interview with Arijit Chakrabarty, ‘Rahul’ talks about his theatre background, his upcoming project ‘Goray Gondogol’, his personal ambitions and much, much more.

Guest: Rahul, Kolkata, India
Host: Arijit Chakraborty, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Article: Penning Creations, Kolkata, India
Audio Recording, Editing: Supratim Sanyal, Washington DC, USA

Calcutta, Dec 20, 2011 (Washington Bangla Radio / Penning Creations) Noted Indian theater actor-director and head of the Kolkata-based internationally renowned Nandikar drama troupe Rudraprasad Sengupta shares some of his thoughts behind the 2011 Nandikar's National Theater Festival - the 28th consecutive year the landmark event in Indian theater is being successfully organized.

Sengupta emphasizes the ability of theater to break the boundaries of language and cultures constricting mankind to specific chunks of civilization, and shares with us how one of the best plays he has had an opportunity to watch was in Poland in the Polish language, which he could follow in spite of knowing only a couple of words of the language.

Speaking during the inauguration of the 28th edition of the Nandikar National Theatre Festival (full report here), the man who took Nandikar from a theater group to a social institution for theater spoke about how the art of theater doesn’t just need revival for its aesthetic beauty but also its power as a social tool.

Listen to Sengupta online via WBRi on-demand radio broadcast service.