Byomkesh Bakshi - Film and Television Adaptations

Film and Television Adaptations

For more details on this topic, see Byomkesh Bakshi (2010 film).

1. Chiriyakhana a.k.a. The Zoo (1967) directed by Satyajit Ray and produced by Harendranath Bhattacharjya of Star Productions was the first screen adaptation of the sleuth's cases. Uttam Kumar had played the role of Byomkesh Bakshi while Shailen Mukherjee played the character of Ajit. The film boasted an ensemble cast of contemporary actors. Uttam Kumar, playing Bakshi, and director Satyajit Ray won a National Award.
2. Shajarur Kanta (1974) directed by actress-turned-director Manju Dey and produced by Star Productions was the second film of the Bakshi series. Satindra Bhattacharya replaced Uttam Kumar as Bakshi while Shailen Mukherjee reprised his role as Ajit.
3. In the early 80s Kolkata Doordarshan produced several episodes of Byomkesh Bakshi where Ajoy Ganguly acted as Byomkesh.
4. Byomkesh Bakshi (1993) directed by Basu Chatterjee was the critically acclaimed television adaptation of the series. Actor Rajit Kapur played the role of Byomkesh Bakshi, for which he was highly praised. Ajit was played by K.K. Raina and Satyaboti was played by Sukanya Kulkarni who was the first actress to play the character. The series lasted for 33 episodes.
5. Byomkesh Bakshi (2004) directed by Swapan Ghoshal was the second television adaptation of the series also aired on Doordarshan. Actor Sudip Mukherjee debuted with the role of Byomkesh Bakshi. Debdut Ghosh played the role of Ajit . Satyaboti was played by Maitreyi Mitra.
6. Byomkesh (2007) directed by Swapan Ghosal who also directed the previous series for Doordarshan that time he collaborated with Tara Muzik (a private Bengali T. V. channel). Actor Saptarshi Roy has played Bakshi while Ajit and Satyaboti were played by two other lesser-known actors.
7. Byomkesh Bakshi was the first installment of another Byomkesh-film-trilogy directed by singer-songwriter-actor-director Anjan Dutt and produced by R P Techvision Pvt Ltd. The film was released on 13 August 2010. This movie was scheduled be followed by the other two film-adaptations of Chitrochor and Kohen Kobi Kalidas. The second film adaption is titled "Abar Byomkesh". Like several films of Dutta, this trilogy is also expected to be enacted by some young and relatively lesser-known actors. In the first film, Abir Chatterjee plays Bakshi while Ushoshi Chakrabarty plays Satyboti. The character of Ajit is played by the veteran actor Saswata Chatterjee. The three of them are going to reprise their roles in the second film. Coincidentally, Chatterjee also played the role of Topse - the juvenile assistant of another Bengali private investigator, Feluda (played by Sabyasachi Chakrabarty) in Baksho Rahashya (film) in 1996 and a T.V. miniseries Feluda 30 (1997–2001).