Ekannoborti movie review: Mainak Bhaumik’s family drama is heartfelt but inconsistent

While the premise of, Ekannoborti, is gripping, the final film could have fared better with tighter editing.

3.0/5

Pratishruti Ganguly

Jan 14, 2022

Ekannoborti

Story:

Set against the backdrop of Durga Puja, ,Ekannoborti ,tells the story of a family reuniting at their native
residence in Barasat for the four-day festival. During the stay, the family members are forced to
confront their own insecurities and each other.

Review:

Filmmaker Mainak Bhaumik has always displayed an exceptional understanding of fraught relationships
with his films. Especially those shared by women. In ,Ekannoborti, too, the filmmaker turns his lens
towards women from different generations of a family.

It is, without doubt, heartening to watch women come front and centre of a story, while the menoccupy
the fringes. So ,Ekannoborti, spotlights four women — Malini Chatterjee (Aparajota Adhya), who is
struggling to come to terms with her husband’s infidelity after being married for 25 years. She is the only
daughter of Mrs Banerjee (Alokananda Roy), the octogenarian family matriarch who rents out their
mortgaged family mansion to film director Abhradeep Dutta (Kaushik Sen) to pay off a loan instalment.
Malini has two daughters, Shila (Sauraseni Maitra) and Pinky (Ananya Sen), who are also burdened by
their share of difficulties. Shila is stuck in a loveless relationship she is desperate to make work, and
Pinky suffers from bulimia and a lack of self-esteem.

Much like Rituparno Ghosh’s ,Utsab, ,which also rests on a similar premise, ,Ekannoborti, is an attempt
at studying characters and relationships. There is nothing that happens during the film as such, except it
brings many people, who may have not met in years, face to face.

There are several things that the film gets right. Ananya as Pinky hits it out of the park as a plus-sized,
insecure woman using abrasive, self-deprecating humour as a defence mechanism. Her sense of self-
worth is so low that when a man unabashedly flirts with her, she rebukes him for having a fetish for
hippopotamuses.
She is also envious of her elder sister, assuming she’s had it much easy because of her physical
appearance. Pinky gets the funniest, most acrid comebacks. And it is to Ananya’s credit that she delivers
the dialogues with razor-sharp accuracy.

The relationship between Shila and Pinky is heartfelt for the most part. They namedrop popular brands
and heavily draw references from pop culture, bicker with each other, reminisce about their school days
and support each other silently. There is an easy chemistry between the actors that makes the audience
buy into their bittersweet dynamic.

Malini and Abhradeep’s relationship, on the other hand, is punctuated with flirty silences.

When Abhradeep compliments the colour of Malini’s saree, her eyes brim with tears. Having not felt
desired for years, Malini finds a companion in Abhradip. To him, Malini is not a homemaker, a daughter
or a mother. They have both lost their spouses in different ways, bond over a sense of loneliness.

The rest of the film, unfortunately, leaves much to be desired. There are enough narrative arcs in the
film that could have made ,Ekannoborti ,a brilliant dysfunctional family drama. But it takes so much time
to get to the point that you cannot help but wonder what the sharp editor’s scissors could have done to
the final product.

Despite trying hard to incite important conversations around body positivity, the fluidity of relationships
and what constitutes infidelity, ,Ekannoborti ,is what the interwebz would deem a boomer uncle. The
film underscores the importance of cohabiting as a family with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. While
the coolth is peppered for fun, the film gets too pedantic at times to be effective.

Verdict:

With nuanced stories like ,Schitt’s Creek ,and ,Silver Linings Playbook ,increasing our expectations from
family dramas beyond the broad-stroke ,Hum Saath Saath Hai,-s and ,Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham,-s, it is
difficult to digest the saccharine sweetness of, Ekannoborti ,without a pinch of salt.

Kolkata, June 23, 2021: After the successful box office run of Bengali film Cheeni last year, SVF has
announced another family drama written and directed by Mainak Bhaumik, titled Ekannoborti-51noye,
Ek Onno.

New family drama by Mainak Bhaumik

SVF has proudly released the announcement poster of director Mainak Bhaumik’s film, on its social
media platforms, which has already caught the attention of many Bengali movie loving audience. With
the kind of response garnered from the first look itself, the film is already seen to dig expectations in the
minds of people.

Cast of Mainak Bhaumik’s next

Cheeni

Image: Facebook

What was the best thing about Mainak Bhaumik’s , which released last year? Well, it was the powerful
performance of Aparajita Addhya. Now in Ekannoborti-51noye, Ek Onno, the actress is back again in
another critical role. Mainak also has Saurasheni Maitra playing a prominent character in the film. We all
know how Saurasheni became a household name post her acting in Mainak’s Generation Aami. The
shooting of Ekannoborti-51noye, Ek Onno

Will start from July 8, 2021.

Built on the idea of portraying familial bond in a light-hearted context, the film tells the story of a family
which used to function as one at some point of time but got disintegrated into isolated units over the
course of time.

Saurasheni-Maitra-ut

Saurasheni Maitra

Image: Cinestaan

During the household Durga Puja of Banerjee family, the members get reunited after a long time. As the
Puja festivities ensue, the once empty and silent Banerjee home becomes filled with festive chaos
amidst the family and the boisterous bunch of outsiders. With its various elements of emotions,
Ekannoborti-51noye, Ek Onno strives to be an unparalleled family watch.

All about family

Mainak said, “Ekannoborti is a film that celebrates the joint family at a time where people are scattered
all over the place and is centred around the barir Puja which is slowly becoming extinct. It’s a happy
funny sad sweet drama that hopes to remind us Bengalis of our true family spirit of positivity during
such depressing times. This film serves as a quick reminder that Puja is all about the family.”

Also read: Meet the charismatic Bengali actors ruling OTT platforms

Positive about the new film, co-founder and director of SVF, Mahendra Soni went on to say, “When it
comes to Mainak Bhaumik’s films, the audience always expects the best and so do we. We proudly
announce this film to be one of the very special upcoming productions of SVF. The film will revive the
old charm of joint families and enthusiasm around the ‘Bonedi’ bari Durga pujo celebration. The
announcement poster has already grabbed attention and we are extremely glad to see the response.”

By Anindita Acharya

https://www.cinestaan.com/reviews/ekannoborti-46481

https://m.indulgexpress.com/galleries/parties/2021/nov/05/in-pics-the-glam-factor-was-high-at-
ekannobortis-music-launch-1453.amp

https://www.anandabazar.com/entertainment/review-of-movie-ekannoborti-directed-by-mainak-
bhaumik/cid/1315141

https://www.telegraphindia.com/my-kolkata/people/aparajita-adhya-on-playing-a-mom/cid/1839089

https://www.telegraphindia.com/my-kolkata/people/aparajita-adhya-on-playing-a-mom/cid/1839089

https://www.anandabazar.com/entertainment/review-of-mainak-bhaumiks-new-film-ekannoborti-
dgtl/cid/1314670

https://youtu.be/SKczjHhj3tg

https://m.timesofindia.com/entertainment/bengali/movies/photo-features/all-time-great-bengali-films-
that-boosted-woman-empowerment/photostory/63817336.cms

Mainak Bhaumik’s “Ekannoborti” is a rushed hodgepodge of Rituparno Ghosh’s Dosar, Utsab and
Bariwali that is flat on every level possible. Enough attempts, in fact over the top attempts have been
made to tickle the emotions of the audience with Bengali television’s soap-like melodrama. Even bigger
deja vu is that the husband is straight out of a disaster of a show called “Sreemoyee” which had had its
run contributing to enough memes to keep yourself happy on a rather gloomy day.

Shree Venkatesh Films (SVF) has announced a theatrical movie slate for the coming months as cinemas
limp to normalcy across states though several, including West Bengal, are yet to issue reopening permits

1 min read . 29 Jun 2021

Lata Jha

The titles include Mukhosh directed by Birsa Dasgupta slated for 13 August 2021, Golondaaj by Dhrubo
Banerjee on 10 October, Ekannoborti by Mainak Bhaumik on 3 November, Kakababur Protyaborton by
Srijit Mukherji on 24 December and X=Prem, also by Mukherji on 4 February 2022
NEW DELHI: Bengali film production house Shree Venkatesh Films (SVF) has announced a theatrical
movie slate for the coming months as cinemas limp to normalcy across states though several, including
West Bengal, are yet to issue reopening permits.

The titles include Mukhosh directed by Birsa Dasgupta slated for 13 August 2021, Golondaaj by Dhrubo
Banerjee on 10 October, Ekannoborti by Mainak Bhaumik on 3 November, Kakababur Protyaborton by
Srijit Mukherji on 24 December and X=Prem, also by Mukherji on 4 February 2022.

The two lockdowns, coupled with consumers remaining wary of returning to cinemas and outdoor
entertainment avenues, in general, has spelt doom for the film exhibition business that contracted by
67% in FY21 alone according to a KPMG report. However, as restrictions ease now, things are looking up
for studios and theatres.

The Bollywood and southern markets too seem hopeful about theatrical releases. After Akshay Kumar’s
Bellbottom that announced a release for 27 July, Mohanlal’s Malayalam film Marakkar: Arabikkadalinte
Simham has confirmed an Independence Day weekend release on 12 August, with an exclusive three-
week period granted to it by the Film Exhibitors’ United Organisation of Kerala (FEUOK) and the Kerala
Film Producers’ Association (KFPA) which means no other Malayalam film will be released during that
period.