Stories by Rabindranath Tagore

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Stories by Rabindranath Tagore
Based onStories
by Rabindranath Tagore
Directed by
StarringRadhika Apte
Shreya Narayan
Jannat Zubair Rahmani
Bhanu Uday
Tara Alisha Berry
Sumeet Vyas
Rohan Shah
Country of originIndia
Original languageHindi
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
Production locationMumbai
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time60 minutes
Production companyIshana Movies
Original release
NetworkEpic
Release6 July 2015 (2015-07-06)

Stories by Rabindranath Tagore is a 2015 Indian Hindi television series which aired on the Epic channel.[1] It is directed by Anurag Basu.

Overview[edit]

Set in Bengal of the 1920s, the show is a representation of the classic short stories by the Bengali writer and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. In his literary work, Tagore focused on relationships which were colored by human shortcomings and idiosyncrasies. More often than other fiction of Tagore's era, confident women were the protagonists of his stories, strong in their stead while cocooned in a conservative Indian society.[2] In a culture where adultery, rebellion, sorrow, and death were a taboo, Tagore’s stories were progressive and brought a shift in the mindset of traditional Indian values.[3] All the episodes are available on streaming network Epic On

Episodes[edit]

Story Episodes Title Based on
1 1, 2, 3 Chokher Bali Chokher Bali (Speck in the Eye; 1901 novella)
2 4 Atithi Atithi (The Guest; 1895 short story)
3 5 Maanbhanjan Maanbhanjan (Fury Appeased; 1895 short story)
4 6 Detective Detective (1898 short story)
5 7 Kabuliwala Kabuliwala (1892 short story)
6 8 Punishment Shasti (Punishment; 1893 short story)
7 9, 10 Nastanirh Nastanirh (The Broken Nest; 1901 novella)
8 11 Wafadaar Khokababur Pratyabartan (The Return of Khokababu; 1891 short story)
9 12, 13 Samapti Samapti (The Conclusion; 1893 short story)
10 14 Chutti Chhuti (The Homecoming; 1892–93 short story)
11 15 Tyaag Tyaag (The Renunciation; 1892 short story)
12 16 Waaris Sampatti Samarpan (The Trust Property; 1891–92 short story)
13 17, 18 Two Sisters Dui Bon (Two Sisters; 1933 novel)
14 19 Mrinal ki Chitthi Strir Patra (Wife's letter; 1914 short story)
15 20 Aparichita Aparichita (The Unknown Woman; 1916 short story)
16 21 Kankal Kankal (The Skeleton; 1892 short story)
17 22 The Story of a Muslim Girl Musalmanir Golpo (The Story of a Muslim Woman; 1941 short story)
18 23, 24 Dhai Aakhar Prem Ka Shesh Rokkha (Saved at Last; 1926–1929 drama)
19 25 Monihara Monihara (The Lost Jewels; 1898 short story)
20 26 Dalia Daliya (Dalia, 1892 short story)

Cast[edit]

  • Radhika Apte as Binodini (Episode – Chokher Bali)
  • Bhanu Uday as Mahendra (Episode- Chokher Bali)[4] and Shashank (Episode- Two Sisters)
  • Tara Alisha Berry as Ashalata (Episode- Chokher Bali)
  • Sumeet Vyas as Bihari (Episode- Chokher Bali)[5]
  • Rohan Shah as Tarapado (Episode- Atithi)
  • Ditipriya Roy as Charu (Episode- Atithi)
  • Amrita Puri as Charulata (Episode- Broken Nest)[6]
  • Rahul Bagga as Amol (Episode- Broken Nest)
  • Joy Sengupta as Raicharan (Episode- Wafadaar)
  • Chandan Anand as Upen (Episode – Punishment)
  • Savita Prabhune as Apoorba's mother (Episode – Samapti)
  • Jannat Zubair Rahmani as Bindu (Episode – Mrinal Ki Chitthi)
  • Amrita Bagchi as Mrinal (Episode – Mrinal Ki Chitthi)
  • Anupriya Goenka as Mrignoyonee (Episode kankaal)
  • Abigail Jain as Kalyani (Episode – Aparichita)
  • Shubhangi Atre Poorey as Kamla (Episode – The Story of a Muslim Girl)[7]
  • Shriya Sharma as Ameena (Episode – Dalia)
  • Kiran Srinivas as Dalia/King Budh (Episode – Dalia)
  • Shreya Narayan as Sharmi (Episode – Two Sisters)
  • Jayshree Venkatramanan as Urmi (Episode – Two Sisters)
  • Amitabh Bhattacharjee as Chandra Da (Episode – Dhai Akshar Prem Ka)
  • Sainee Raj as Indumati (Episode – Dhai Akshar Prem Ka)
  • Sudarshan Patil as Binod (Episode – Dhai Akshar Prem Ka)
  • Vaibhav Raj Gupta as Godai (Episode – Dhai Akshar Prem Ka)
  • Sudipti Parmar as Kamal (Episode – Dhai Akshar Prem Ka)
  • Praveena Deshpande as Annapoorna chachi (Episode – Chokher Bali)
  • Kranti Prakash Jha as Bhupati (Episode – The Broken Nest) and Anupam (Episode - Aparachita)
  • Ronjini Chakraborty as Giribala (Episode – Fury Appeased)
  • Abhishek Tewari as Apoorva (Episode – Samapti)
  • Purvi Mundada as Monimala (Episode – Monimala)
  • Chitrangada Satarupa as Mrinmayee

Background and production[edit]

The show launched on 6 July 2015 on The EPIC Channel. In ‘Stories By Rabindranath Tagore’, Anurag Basu chose to translate the stories in his own way. He handpicked different stories like Chokher Bali, Charulata, Kabuliwala, Detective, Samapti, Chutti, etc. and created a unique background score for them. The show devoted two or three episodes to each novel, while short stories were narrated in a single episode. The director chose a unique way for these stories to unfold – each story was linked with the next in an intrinsic manner and the narration was blended with translations of Tagore's songs. The show covered over 14 stories in 26 episodes, each episode duration being 60 minutes.[8] Bringing Tagore's stories to life is the acclaimed Indian film director, Anurag Basu who is renowned for his distinctive stories and visual story-telling in films.[9] Basu began his career as an assistant director in television serials. He directed television shows belonging to various genres and went on to make films that received immense audience and critical appreciation, establishing himself as a successful Indian film director. After a long hiatus from television, Basu made a comeback to television with Stories by Rabindranath Tagore.[10][11]

The show is set in old Kolkata. Basu produced a colossal set, and also filmed on location and used authentic costumes. Basu's wife, Tani Basu, led the creative development of the show to delve deeper into cultural references and political and social manifestations. Original music score and Tagore's Bengali songs were re-created to further enhance the appeal of the show. Indian singers like Arijit Singh, Shaan and Shalmali Kholgade lent their voices for these melodious soundtracks. [12][13][14]

The EPIC Channel developed a marketing campaign ‘Epic at 10’ to fortify the show's time-slot. A mnemonic was established to signify the show's airing slot of 10 pm. Innovative marketing initiatives were taken to create awareness such as Twitter Alarm, Epic at 10 contest on social media, Live Twitter chats with Anurag Basu, special screenings for the media, and so on.[15]

Reception[edit]

Deccan Herald – "Basu's direction of Stories from Rabindranath Tagore is especially charming in its portrayal of the Bengali milieu of those times. From the clothes worn by the protagonists (especially the women in their puff-sleeved, lace-trimmed blouses and the saris worn the Bengali way) to the period furniture and the locales, everything is picture-perfect, as is the casual dropping of Bengali words."[1]

DNA- "What makes the serial is the lighting, so canny that it becomes both narrator and character. In an amber chiaroscuro of a bygone era it details a range of moods from the stark to the tender. Basu has achieved a fine balance between the populist and the elite."[16]

Business Standard – "While most of us have read Tagore, to see iconic stories such as Kabuliwala come to life is a different pleasure altogether. Moreover, the women in Tagore's stories are not scheming vessels of family politics. There is diversity of representation and each story is nuanced with many shades of grey. Basu has said in an interview that he was so tired of watching women on Indian TV that he jumped at the chance of adapting Tagore."

The Indian Express praised the show in the article, "Tagore's stories have a strange sense of gender equality: Anurag Basu"[17] and spoke about Anurag Basu's brilliance and the genre-defying format of the show.

Awards and nominations[edit]

Ceremony Date Category Recipient Result
16th Indian Television Academy Awards 13 November 2016 Best Mini Series (Jury) Ishana Movies Won[18]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Kumar, Melanie P. (30 August 2015). "An 'epic' discovery". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 18 February 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2016.
  2. ^ For a feminist overview of such protagonists, see Nikhat Hoque (20 February 2019): https://feminisminindia.com/2019/02/20/progressive-women-stories-by-rabindranath-tagore/ Archived 13 August 2020 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Anurag Basu to helm 'Stories by Rabindranath Tagore' for Epic". Indian Television. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original on 1 January 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  4. ^ "Bhanu Uday in Anurag Basu's Chokher Bali – Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
  5. ^ "I don't see myself doing television serials: Sumeet Vyas". Hindustan Times. 23 October 2016. Archived from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  6. ^ "Always wanted to adopt Rabindranath Tagore's stories for TV: Anurag Basu". 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  7. ^ "Shubhangi Atre, Sunil Sinha and Ajay Rohila in 'Stories by Rabindranath Tagore' – Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 31 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  8. ^ "The EPIC Channel unveils first look of 'Stories by Rabindranath Tagore' directed by Anurag Basu=Telly Chakkar". 8 May 2015. Archived from the original on 26 October 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  9. ^ "You HAVE To Check Out Anurag Basu's Depiction Of These 5 EPIC Tagore Stories!". Miss Malini. 13 July 2015. Archived from the original on 16 October 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  10. ^ "Epic Channel launches new show 'Stories By Rabindranath Tagore'". Times of India. 26 January 2015. Archived from the original on 30 July 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  11. ^ "STORIES BY RABINDRANATH TAGORE". Times of India TV. 12 June 2016. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  12. ^ "Anurag Basu: Always Wanted to Adapt Rabindranath Tagore's Stories For TV". NDTV Movies. 9 May 2015. Archived from the original on 13 September 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  13. ^ "Shaan sings for 'Stories by Rabindranath Tagore'". 28 July 2015. Archived from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  14. ^ "Arijit Singh sings for Anurag Basu's TV show – Times of India ►". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 5 September 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
  15. ^ "Grey Group India's Epic@10 wins two gold at Pro Max awards". Indian Television.com. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  16. ^ "Telescope: A question for TV". Indian Express. 14 January 2015. Archived from the original on 17 January 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  17. ^ "Tagore's stories have a strange sense of gender equality: Anurag Basu". The Indian Express. 3 July 2015. Archived from the original on 22 October 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  18. ^ Service, Indo-Asian News (14 November 2016). "Indian Television Academy Awards 2016: Second Season of Anil Kapoor's show 24 wins big". India.com. Archived from the original on 19 August 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2019.

External links[edit]

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