R E V I E W – S H O R T F I L M
Sultanul Arefeen
Prem Puran (প্রেম পুরাণ) or “Myth of Love” is a stroke of simplicity in delving deep into the origin of ‘love’ and extracting the raw sentiments revolving around it.
Inspired by The Gift of the Magi by O’Henry, Raincoat by Rituparno Ghosh, and Bhanga Chora by Zahir Raihan, the film coalesced magnificently for the audiences to explore all the possible cinematic angles it has to offer.
With the cast and crew and their well-rounded compatibility, this thirty-five minutes journey will lead you to the root of your ethics and make you want to question your ethics, and to some extent, the relevance of the whole thing.
Zahid Gogon’s previous films, A Book Behind the Shoes and Ekti Mrityu = Tin Bigha Jomi — were political takes on a third-world country; however, Prem Puran takes on a different turn. The story takes place in Dhaka and Pabna, characterising the lives of Shanu (Samia Othoi) & amp; Tajul (Ashok Bepari) and their conscientious struggle in swimming the waves of their tragic realities.
https://youtu.be/0efmNZwTmG0
However, it is unrealistic that a man with a first-class first Economics major will leave the city and settle into his hometown; pull a rickshaw at midnight, while his wife cooks for a mess, for a living. It looks unreal, but it also sounds overdramatic that their egoism was prioritised before individual emotionalism. It doesn’t add up.
The use of ‘sinister-y’ themes for the film transforms the entire production into an enthralling literature channel. Controversial issues e.g. poverty, negligence in rural development — are discussed more or less.
Delivered dialogues, such as “Dhaka theke ashchen? Okhankar khobor ki ajkal? Manush bhalobashte shikheche?” by the teacher on the ‘railway’ scene sounded as if he were referring to the urban relationships inferior. This is pretty much similar to the often-seen practice of disdaining dates in restaurants, modern-day relationship, and over-romanticising cheap dates while the couple would be wearing punjabi and saree.
What can be said, as for the cinematography?
Well, Kamrul Hasan Khosru did a marvellous job in shooting the entire film in such way that it remains both minimalistic and rich, in an odd sort of way. It is a paradoxical take on the simplicity of a genuine relationship between two lovers. Therefore, the title Prem Puran is self-explanatory.
Smashing the stereotypical relational obligations and luxuries, Prem Puran depicts the lifestyle of two poverty-stricken individuals in a third world country, with their dignity and morality, even though it’s more of a fictionally fabricated one. Sure, this film’s production lacks the budget, but more than that, it lacks the materials of realism. The only way to relate to Prem Puran is looking at a cobweb that hasn’t enough stickiness for a fly to get stuck.
If I were to rate it out of 5, I’d give it a solid 2.5. But it would have been no less than 3, only if it just had a reliability factor in it.
What’s your take?
Arefeen loves vegetable puns so much that he would like to make a beleafable statement right now. Tell him he did it at [email protected]