Four films to watch this puja

Four Bangladeshi Films Add Variety to the Durga Puja Cinema Line-Up

Bdbusinessdaily.com – Durga Puja celebrations this October have coincided with a busy moment for Bangladeshi cinemas, as four homegrown films bring sharply different stories to audiences. Three titles are already screening, while another is due to arrive on 23 October, giving viewers choices that range from campus nostalgia and family drama to crime, economic rivalry and the pressure of university admission.

The releases reflect several familiar parts of Bangladeshi life through different cinematic lenses. One revisits Rajshahi University during the 1990s, another enters the garment sector’s fabric-scrap business, while the remaining films focus on family tensions and the uncertain path faced by admission candidates. Together, they offer a varied holiday viewing slate for audiences seeking local stories.

Chirkut revisits a 1990s university campus

Directed by Muntashir Akib, Chirkut is set at Rajshahi University in the 1990s and is inspired by a real campus incident. Rather than presenting university life through a contemporary frame, the film looks back at a period shaped by student friendships, romance and the everyday experiences of young people on campus.

Shamol Mawla and Azizun Mim lead the film, with Quazi Nawshaba Ahmed, Sumon Patwary and Mahira Hasan appearing in supporting roles. A large number of Rajshahi University students also took part in the production: the film includes roughly 250 to 300 students from the university.

That extensive student participation gives the story a broad campus setting, while its 1990s backdrop separates it from the university narratives more commonly associated with present-day student life. For viewers interested in youthful relationships and memories of an earlier academic era, Chirkut offers a period-based campus drama.

Cut-Piece explores the garment-scrap trade

Cut-Piece shifts the focus to a far more contemporary and commercially charged environment. Directed and produced by Iffat Jahan Momo for Black Papers Films, the crime drama is built around Bangladesh’s garment-fabric scrap trade, widely known as the jhut business.

The film examines the financial stakes, political influence and competing interests connected to that trade. By choosing the jhut economy as its central setting, it brings a relatively unexplored part of the country’s garment-related business activity into a mainstream narrative format.

Rafah Nanjeba Torsa makes her feature-film debut as Mala, appearing opposite Shifat Amin Shuvo. The cast also includes Imran Ahmed Saudagar, Elina Shammi, Bappi Ashraf and Saiful Kabir.

For audiences looking for a thriller-oriented story during the festival period, Cut-Piece offers a crime-drama premise rooted in power, money and contesting interests rather than a conventional romance or family narrative.

Sneher Bondhon centres on family conflict

Family relationships take centre stage in Sneher Bondhon, directed by Kamruzzaman. The film follows the misunderstandings and emotional pressures that can disrupt harmony within a family, placing reconciliation and personal relationships at the heart of its story.

Joy Chowdhury and Mou Khan star in the film. Kazi Hayat, Shiba Shanu, Saberi Alam, Nader Chowdhury and Rina Khan are also part of the ensemble.

Its emphasis on strained bonds and the possibility of resolving differences makes Sneher Bondhon a social drama aimed at viewers who prefer relationship-based stories. In a holiday line-up that includes a campus tale and a crime film, its domestic focus provides another kind of viewing experience.

Onnopata addresses the admission journey

Set for release on 23 October, Onnopata looks at the intense challenges surrounding university admission in Bangladesh. The film is produced under the banner of SJA Productions and approaches the subject through the perspective of students navigating financial constraints, expectations at home, questions of identity and young love.

The project has a particularly student-driven background. More than 40 students from BUET, CUET, the University of Dhaka and the University of Chittagong were involved in making it. The team financed the production with their own savings and money earned through private tuition work.

Md Shahjahan Anny, a CUET student, directed the film. Shahria Shakil and Prottasha Ghosh play the principal roles.

University admission is an experience that carries major importance for many young Bangladeshis and their families. By placing that pressure at the centre of its narrative, Onnopata brings a recognisable student concern to the screen. Its production history adds another layer: the people behind the film are themselves connected to the student communities represented in the project.

A festive-season choice for different audiences

The four releases do not compete through a single genre or audience profile. Chirkut offers a return to campus life in the 1990s; Cut-Piece enters a high-stakes trade linked to the garment economy; Sneher Bondhon explores emotional family dynamics; and Onnopata follows students confronting the pressures of admission and adulthood.

That range gives moviegoers several ways to spend the Puja holiday at local theatres. Before making plans, audiences should confirm current screening times and seat availability with nearby cinemas, as show schedules can differ by location.