Grey Matter

Konkona Sen Sharma8217;s in an ochre-and-white dressing gown, diamond mangalsutra glinting in the mid-morning light as she waters lush plan...

Konkona Sen Sharma8217;s in an ochre-and-white dressing gown, diamond mangalsutra glinting in the mid-morning light as she waters lush plants parked at neat intervals on a verandah in Jhowtalla Road, a genteel south Kolkata neighbourhood.

The colours are academic of course, for the consumption of unit hands and the perfectionist director. Rituparno Ghosh8217;s latest film Dosar the other person/ companion is being shot in black-and-white.

8216;8216;It would have been incomplete in colour,8217;8217; says the director. 8216;8216;I8217;ve been wanting to do a black-and-white film for a long time. But I couldn8217;t really experiment with Chokher Bali and Antarmahal, as they were period pieces where colour played a significant role.8221; Dosar, on the other hand, is perfect as a B038;W experiment because, as Ghosh says, the shades give it a totally different interpretation.

The film stars Konkona as a 32-year-old theatre actor married to Prosenjit best known to non-Bengali audiences as Mahendra in Chokher Bali, a corporate high-flier. The twist in this eternal triangle story comes in the form of an accident that claims the other woman.

8216;8216;The story is based on a work of Bengali author Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay, but we were inspired by a real-life incident,8217;8217; says Ghosh.

Interestingly, the proposal of a B038;W film met with no opposition from the producers. 8216;8216;When Rituda said he wanted to shoot the film in black-and-white, my reaction was 8216;fantastic!8217;,8217;8217; says Shubho Shekhar Bhattacharjee, CEO of Planman Motion Pictures, which already has the offbeat Sanjhbatir Roopkathara to its credit. 8216;8216;The theme of marital infidelity may not be new, but shooting in B038;W in 2005 definitely is.8217;8217;

For the cast and crew of the film, the no-colour option revived challenges that had been forgotten for more than a couple of decades. 8216;8216;This is the first time Koko Konkona is working in a black-and-white film and naturally the make-up is quite different,8217;8217; says Rita Dey, a fixture on all Aparna Sen projects for some 30 years.

8216;8216;Koko hates make-up, she usually opts for a very natural look. But here we have to use dark shades so that the tones show. I have a really tough time convincing her, especially with the lipstick!8217;8217;

Story continues below this ad

Abhik Mukherjee8217;s B038;W Best

Charulata: It8217;s a classic. The scene where Charu flits from window to window with opera glasses in her hand is truly memorable
Apur Sansar: I love the scene with two friends walking on the train tracks
Manhattan: Woody Allen8217;s film showcased Manhattan like a poster. All the visuals are brilliant, but I loved one scene where the protagonists are sitting with the Manhattan skyline and the bridge as their backdrop
Uski Roti: Mani Kaul8217;s first film was wonderfully shot
Kagaz Ke Phool and Pyasa: Can8217;t name one without the other. Both the films are absolutely astounding

It8217;s time for the next shot and Ghosh calls out, 8216;8216;Kakon, are you ready?8217;8217; Flush from the success of Bunty Aur Babli, cameraman Abhik Mukherjee checks the position of the camera and then it8217;s time to roll.

8216;8216;I took up the film as an academic pursuit,8217;8217; says Mukherjee, of his eighth Ghosh film. 8216;8216;This is my first B038;W project after my diploma film at FTII. I was so excited when Ritu first suggested it. Shades of grey are far more suitable for this story than colour. I8217;ve basically treated the film as a photographic stylisation and the extreme tones will have a far greater role in telling the tale than colour ever would.8217;8217;

The unit breaks for lunch and Konkona announces, 8216;8216;I8217;ve brought the Doi Begun aubergines in yogurt Ritumama demanded. Every day I get bullied into bringing food from home!8217;8217;

Story continues below this ad

Ritumama, however, is busy rearranging the furniture. As with all his films, the interiors display Ghosh8217;s arty eye: The rooms exhibit a lot of southeast Asian and ethnic Indian influences.

8216;8216;Since there8217;s no colour, I8217;ve used a lot of textures. For instance, in the bedroom, there8217;s a bed crafted from wood, rattan and jute. The cupboard is made of wood and raw silk and most of the prints and artifacts are raw and distinctive, so that they stand out,8217;8217; explains Ghosh.

Mukherjee says after the decision to go B038;W was finalised, he and Ghosh not only planned the entire look of the film, but also tried to get attuned to a B038;W world by scouring tonnes of old photographs and watching numerous films.

8216;8216;It8217;s a stunning medium for a photographer and the romance of black-and-white is absolutely unbeatable,8217;8217; says Mukherjee.

Story continues below this ad

8220;Even today, when I recall this particular scene in Apur Sansar, which had the two friends walking on the train tracks, I get goosebumps. It would have never worked in colour.8217;8217;