The Cloud and the Man

Last updated

The Cloud and the Man
Directed by Abhinandan Banerjee
Written by Abhinandan Banerjee
Produced by Bauddhayan Mukherji, Monalisa Mukherji
Starring Chandan Sen, Debesh Roychowdhury, Bratya Basu, Nimai Ghosh
CinematographyAnup Singh
Edited byAbhro Banerjee
Music bySubhajit Mukherjee
Production
company
Little Lamb Films
Running time
97 Minutes
Country India
Language Bengali

The Cloud and the Man (also known as Manikbabur Megh) is a Bengali film directed by debutant director Abhinandan Banerjee and produced by Buaddhayan and Monalisa Mukherji. [1] Actor Chandan Sen who portrayed the title role bagged the Best Actor Award at the 19th Pacific Meridian Film Festival, Russia. [2] [3]

Contents

Cast

Plot

Using monochrome cinematography, The Cloud and the Man is a surreal and philosophical reflection on one recently-bereaved middle aged man and his accidentally complex yet meaningful relationship with a cloud. It is about Manik Babu, who makes friends with a cloud which he feels, keeps following him. [4] In the beginning, he is terrified but with time, he feels a strange bonding with the same cloud which strips him of his utter isolation, his loneliness and his alienation from the world around him. [5] This surreal relation brings out a new Manik in him and propels him into a roller coaster journey of faith, betrayal, belief, and warmth. [6]

Awards and Nominations

It had its world premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [7] where it opened the First Feature competition in Nov 2021. The Indian Premiere was at IFFI, Goa [8] and the North American Premiere took place at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

The film finds place in the coveted list of FIPRESCI India's Top 10 Films of 2021 [9] and has won the NETPAC award for the Best Asian Film at the 27th Kolkata International Film Festival, 2022. [10] It also bagged the Chidananda Dasgupta Award and a citation for a feature film by a debut director for the 2nd year of the Chidananda Dasgupta Centenary Awards. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aparna Sen</span> Indian filmmaker, script writer and actress

Aparna Sen is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actress who is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She has received several accolades as an actress and filmmaker, including nine National Film Awards, five Filmfare Awards East and thirteen Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards. For her contribution in the field of arts, the Government of India honoured her with Padma Shri, the country's fourth highest civilian award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chidananda Dasgupta</span> Indian Bengali filmmaker

Chidananda Das Gupta —family name sometimes spelled 'Dashgupta' and 'Dasgupta'—was an Indian filmmaker, film critic, a film historian and one of the founders of Calcutta Film Society with Satyajit Ray in 1947. He lived and worked in Calcutta and Santiniketan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atanu Ghosh</span> Indian filmmaker

Atanu Ghosh Ghosh is a National-Award-winning Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, author and teacher. His Bengali film Mayurakshi (2017) was awarded the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali. His film Shesh Pata, Angshumaner Chhobi, Mayurakshi, Binisutoy, Abby Sen and Rupkatha Noy, bagged multiple awards.Atanu started his career as a scriptwriter and director for documentary films in 1996. For his work in Aar Ek Bampi, he received the Doordarshan National Award for Best Children's Telefilm.

<i>Paromitar Ek Din</i> 2000 Indian Bengali-language film

Paromitar Ek Din is a 2000 Indian Bengali drama film directed by Aparna Sen.

<i>Autograph</i> (2010 film) 2010 Indian film

Autograph is a 2010 Indian Bengali drama film by debutant director Srijit Mukherji. The movie is a tribute to Satyajit Ray's 1966 film Nayak and yesteryear Bengali actor Uttam Kumar, who portrayed the title role in the film. This was the first collaboration between Srijit Mukherjee and Prosenjit Chatterjee. The movie is being remade in Malayalam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basanta Choudhury</span> Indian actor (1928–2000)

Basanta Choudhury was an Indian actor in Bengali and Hindi films. He worked with directors Asit Sen, Rajen Tarafdar, Ajay Kar and Bijay Bose, often in leading roles. He is a former Sheriff of Kolkata.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nusrat Jahan</span> Indian actress and politician

Nusrat Jahan Ruhi is an Indian actress and politician who predominantly works in Bengali cinema. Beside the acting career, from 2019 to 2024, Jahan has represented as the Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha from Basirhat constituency as a Trinamool Congress candidate. Jahan's screen debut was in Raj Chakraborty's Shotru.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Churni Ganguly</span> Indian Bengali actress

Churni Ganguly is an Indian actress and director who mainly works in Bengali movies and television productions. She received the Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards in 2005 in the best actress category for the movie Waarish, in which she played a single-mother's role. She won two National Film Awards for her directorial ventures Nirbashito and Tarikh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riddhi Sen</span> Indian actor

Riddhi Sen is an Indian film actor who predominantly works in Bengali films along with a few Hindi films. He is the youngest actor in India to receive the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film Nagarkirtan.

Pijush Ganguly was a noted Bengali film, television and theater actor. In 2005 he received the Bengal Film Journalists' Association Award for the Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in Mahulbanir Sereng.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chandan Sen</span> Indian actor

Chandan Sen is an Indian Bengali-language stage, television and film actor, playwright and director.

<i>Apur Panchali</i> 2014 Bengali biopical drama film by Kaushik Ganguly

Apur Panchali is a 2013 Bengali film directed by Kaushik Ganguly and produced by Shree Venkatesh Films. It is based on the life of Subir Banerjee, the actor who played Apu in Pather Panchali (1955), the first film of Satyajit Ray's Apu trilogy. Director Kaushik Ganguly won the award of best director for Apur Panchali in the 44th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in November 2013. The director mentioned in an interview that he found similarities between certain parts of the life of Subir Banerjee and the iconic character Apu. The film uses several minutes of footage from Pather Panchali in its narrative.

<i>Chaka</i> (film) 2000 Indian film

Chaka is a 2000 Indian Bengali drama film written and directed by Nepaldev Bhattacharjee. The screenplay was written by Prashanta Bhattacharjee. The film revolves around the life of two 1971 immigrants. It delineates the struggle of a marginalized jobless labourer and his wife, and the adversities they undergo. The plot is invariably imbued with communist postulations. The music of the film was composed by Kalyan Sen Barat, with lyrics penned by Pulak Banerjee and Nachiketa. The chief assistant director of the film is Madhuchhanda Sengupta. It stars Mithun Chakraborty and Debashree Roy in the lead.

<i>Abyakto</i> 2018 Indian film

Abyakto (transl. Unsaid) is a 2020 Indian Bengali-language drama film directed by Arjunn Dutta, starring Arpita Chatterjee, Adil Hussain, Anubhav Kanjilal, Anirban Ghosh, Lily Chakravarty and Kheya Chattopadhyay. While the film was showcased in various festivals from 2018, the theatrical release was on 31 January 2020. Abyakto received critical acclaim.

Subir Sen was an Indian playback singer who sang modern songs in Bengali and Hindi. He was also one of the artists of Rabindra Sangeet.

<i>Amodini</i> 1994 Indian film

Amodini is a 1994 Indian Bengali-language romantic drama film directed by Chidananda Dasgupta and starring Pijush Ganguly and Rachna Banerjee. The film was screened at the Indian Panorama section of the International Film Festival of India on 11 January 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">29th Kolkata International Film Festival</span> 2023 Indian film festival

The 29th Kolkata International Film Festival began on 5 December 2023 at Netaji Indoor Stadium, in Kolkata, India. A 1963 romantic comedy Bengali film Deya Neya by Sunil Bannerjee opened the festival, which screened 219 films from 39 countries. Spain and Australia were country of focus in this edition of the festival. The opening ceremony was attended by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Shatrughan Sinha, Mahesh Bhatt and cricketer Sourav Ganguly among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abhinandan Banerjee</span> Indian film director and screenwriter

Abhinandan Banerjee is an Indian film director, scriptwriter, author, essayist, magazine editor, publisher, illustrator, painter and graphic designer. His debut feature The Cloud and the Man, which premiered at the 25th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, 2021 won the NETPAC award for Best Asian Film, at the 27th Kolkata International Film Festival.

References

  1. "Loneliness is almost like a pandemic now, my film has its origin in the curse of loneliness on us: Director of IFFI 52 Film "Manikbabur Megh"". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  2. "Manikbabur Megh: Actor Chandan Sen wins the Best Actor Award at a Russian film festival". OTTPlay. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  3. সংবাদদাতা, নিজস্ব. "মেঘের সঙ্গে প্রেম, আন্তর্জাতিক মঞ্চে চমক নতুন বাংলা ছবি 'মানিকবাবুর মেঘ'". www.anandabazar.com (in Bengali). Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  4. "Manik Babur Megh - SRFSB". 24 August 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  5. "The Cloud & The Man (Manikbabur Megh) - film review". DMovies. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  6. A.K, Arun (24 October 2022). "The Story of a Man's Friendship With a Cloud". Hyperallergic. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  7. "The Cloud & the Man". poff.ee. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  8. "Kolkata-based director's debut film to be screened at Edinburgh Film Festival". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  9. "FIPRESCI-India announces Grand-Prix-2021" . Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  10. "Winners of 2021 - Kolkata International Film Festival". kiff.in. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  11. Journal, North East Film (24 November 2022). "Film Review: Abhinandan Banerjee's Manik Babur Megh: Winner of the Chidananda Dasgupta Centenary Award for the Best Debut Feature Film". North East Film Journal. Retrieved 29 November 2023.