And why Vidya briefly was associated with the biopic on the Sen matriarch
Subhash K Jha (DNA; June 14, 2015)

Raima Sen is all set to play her grandmother Suchitra Sen in Bengali director Abhijit Choudhury’s Nayika. Jisshu Sengupta, who played Deepika Padukone’s best friend in Piku will play Bengali matinee idol Uttam Kumar and the film will attempt to explore the relationship between the charismatic pair that worked together in 30-odd films.

Vidya Balan recently went on record that she was approached for the project and declined it saying Raima would be the right choice to play Suchitra, physically and emotionally.

Says Raima, “The project has been in the pipeline for two years. I was the original choice because of my obvious connect to the character. But the dates kept getting postponed. Then I was asked in January to shoot for it. I couldn’t shoot for it at that time as my dates were blocked for Ishq Kabhi Kariyo Na with Prateik. Meanwhile, I heard Vidya was doing it and then I heard she wasn’t.”

Raima has returned to the project and shooting is expected to commence soon.

Playing Uttam
Jisshu is excited about playing Bengal’s biggest star. He adds, “No one knows the true nature of Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen’s friendship. They were not just terrific co-stars they were also very close friends. Uttam Kumar was the only person from the film industry who could call her by her real name, Roma. Theirs was a very complex, very deep bonding. To play Uttam Kumar is a big honour for me.”

Jisshu’s mother-in-law actress Anjana Bhowmick has worked with Uttam Kumar. Jisshu intends to take tips from her on how to play the matinee idol. He says, “I will consult my mother-in-law on the kind of clothes he wore, the way he spoke, etc. But I won’t imitate him. No way! He has a very strong screen image. I’d look caricatural trying to behave like him. My director and have decided that I won’t imitate him and will try to reach his soul, and not his physicality.”

The actress also explains why she refused to be part of Suchitra Sen biopic
Nayandeep Rakshit (DNA; June 11, 2015)


She avers, “I don’t know where this Benazir Bhutto biopic story has come from. I was not even offered the film. How would I even refuse something I have not been offered?” What about Suchitra Sen? She confirms, “I was approached for the biopic, but I chose not to do it.” She feels that if the film was being made in Bengali, it should have cast one of her grand daughters and she might have said yes to the project had it been made as a Hindi film. “It was a Bengali film. At least, if it was a Hindi film, it was still okay that I looked completely different from her. But for a Bengali film, I just thought when there is a Raima Sen, it didn’t make any sense for me to do it. Though I would have loved to play her and the script was very good, Raima looks so much like her grandmom Suchitra Sen and I thought it will look more credible,” she explained.

She does really want to play someone on screen, though. “Indira Gandhi. I just find her to be so charismatic, powerful and yet so mysterious. You don’t know about the person Indira Gandhi. So it would be a great biopic to star in.”

Rachana Dubey (MUMBAI MIRROR; May 6, 2014)

Come August, and Raima Sen will step into her grandmother Suchitra Sen’s shoes for a biopic on the legendary Bengali actress who passed away on January 17 at the age of 82.

The film which is likely to be made in Hindi and Bengali, will recreate the diva’s heydays in Tollywood and her eventual withdrawal from the public eye.

Director Abhijit Chaudhuri has cast Jishu Sengupta as yesteryear’s Bengali superstar and Suchitra’s frequent collaborator, Uttam Kumar in the film tentatively titled Nayika. The biopic has been in the pipeline for over a year, and Madam Sen was briefed about the project before her death.

Raima, who is currently in Bankura campaigning for her mother, actress Moon Moon Sen, says, “The film has many flashbacks. I’m terrified at the thought of playing my dida (grandmother) on screen because I will have to enact iconic scenes from some of her earliest and most popular films. After the elections are over, I have to watch these films so I don’t go wrong or her fans will never forgive me.”

She adds that they are yet to take a call on whether the film will be a bilingual or be dubbed. “Abhijit has spoken to me but we’re yet to arrive at a decision because I just haven’t had the time to mull on it. I would like as many people as possible to watch this film but it should also work logistically. We can always release it with subtitles,” says the actress.