In a historic breakthrough, Subhrajit Mitra’s Devi Chowdhurani: Bandit Queen of Bengal has become the first Bengali film to be accorded official Indo-UK co-production status by both governments. The film features Prosenjit Chatterjee, Srabanti Chatterjee, Sabyasachi Chakrabarty, Arjun Chakrabarty, Darshana Banik, Bibriti Chatterjee, and Kinjal Nanda and others. It is based on the seminal work of author Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay. This recent collaboration emphasises the cultural and creative ties between India and the UK.

The film is produced by Aparna and Aniruddha Dasgupta of Adited Motion Pictures (USA/India). Soumyajit Majumdar’s LOK Arts Collective (India/UK) is also an integral part of the production. The classic novel by Bankimchandra chronicles the life of India’s first female freedom fighter and is set to feature a mesmerising musical score by Pt Bickram Ghosh. The UK co-producers of this ambitious film project (one of the biggest in Bengali cinema) are HC Films and Moringa Studios. 

Devi Chowdhurani, along with Joyguru – Soumyajit’s film based on the life of acclaimed singer Parvathy Baul, which is an Indo-USA-UK-France co-production – are the first two films from the collaboration slate of Adited Motion Pictures and LOK Arts Collective with a focus on the global reach of Indian cinema. On October 16, 2023, the concepts of both Devi Chowdhurani and the forthcoming musical pan-India Hindi feature film Joyguru were shared by Soumyajit at a reception at the Guildhall. Hosted by Munsur Ali, London City Corporation Chairman of Culture, Heritage, and Libraries, the event was graced by a distinguished assembly of delegates from the Cultural Ministries of both India and the UK. This reception highlighted the significance of such Indo-UK collaborations in strengthening cultural bonds between the two nations. 

The Indian authorities instrumental in this landmark decision include the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, NFDC (National Film Development Corporation), FFO ( Film Facilitation Office), and Invest India, with the British Film Institute (BFI) and DCMS ( Department of Culture, Media and Sports) representing the UK.

The shooting of Devi Chowdhurani is over and is now in the early post-production phase.

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