The Golden Fortress

Satyajit Ray is a legendary director and author. His Feluda series is perhaps the most popular and loved detective series in Bengal. Like the books, the movies too were excellent. One of these is "Sonar Kella". It is the story of a boy named Mukul who is supposedly a "Jatiswar". With Dr. Hajra, Mukul goes to Rajasthan, in the hope to identify the Golden Fortress Mukul mentioned frequently. Feluda is appointed by Mukul's father to ensure his safety. There are 2 smart criminals, who followed Mukul in the hope of getting the location of the Golden Fortress and the treasure (which was actually a misunderstanding as it later unfolds). Feluda must save him from them. I tried to keep the summary short. Now coming to the review. The plot is crisp with no unnecessary elements. There is a proper blend of detection, mystery, thrill and humour. The direction is superb and the scenes are well shot and arranged, given the time when this movie was made. Feluda was played brilliantly by Soumitra Chatterjee, and the villain Mandar Bose was also properly portrayed. All the actors acted so naturally, that it blurs the line between reality and fiction. All is all, a complete package of entertainment. Go and watch it on any platform (like Amazon Prime or Jio Cinema). I am sure you will enjoy every minute of it.

Based on Ray's own super-famous sleuth, Feluda. The narrative was changed from a whodunit - the book - to a cat and mouse chase - the film - here. Even though the role was a comic relief, but the scenes of Santhosh Dutta are very much well executed to remember any time. The outdoor of Thar desert is another treat in this movie. And we get a cool Feluda theme music too.

The movie begins in Kolkata and takes it's course through Rajasthan. Feluda is a a private investigator and is appointed by Mukul's father to protect him from the greedy people who want to kidnap him for a supposed treasure. Feluda and Tapesh set out Rajasthan, and in their way meet Lalmohan babu. If they are successful in finding the "Sonar Kella", and nabbing the killers forms the crux of the story. The film is shot beautifully but cinematography is not overdone.The barren landscape forms a great backdrop for the movie. The direction is on point and perfectly synced for a children's film. The acting is superlative .Soumitra Chatterjee as feluda is a casting masterpiece but Santosh Dutta as Jatyau is also on point. Siddartha Chatterjee as topshe and Kushal Chakraborty as mukul are also very good.But the real win of the movie is Kamu Mukherjee as the globe trotter Mandar bose. Many of the scenes are superlative, but two of them really stand out. Jatayu's introductory scene and the scene in the taxi where they talk about camel's diet. These scene are so well timed and bring such a amazing kind of humor, one cannot help but appreciate it's brilliance. The music, including the feluda score is not only amazing but also leaves a deep impression on the viewers mind.Probably it is the most remembered and plagiarized theme composed by Ray. Therefore it is a amazing movie but again it is untranslatable, like Ray's other children's movies.It's strength is it's dialogues and one has to know Bengali to enjoy it completely. Postscript: I have been to Rajasthan long before I could read properly, but my memories distinctly hold a place for the Jaisalmer Fort.I may not remember it's yellow sandstone , but clearly remember my parents and grandparents calling it "Sonar Kella".That is the power of the movie.It was changed the imagination of a entire generation of Bengalis.

This is an Indian Road Trip Movie, from the 1960's. The story is solid, and the pace is appropriate. If you do not understand Bengali, you will definitely miss a lot of the innuendos, and the subtitles will not help you out with their literal translation! The young child is an excellent actor, and I wasn't surprised to see that he is now a very successful actor in Tollywood movies (Bollywood is the Hindi movie industry based in Bombay/Mumbai, Tollywood is the Bengali movie industry, based out of Tollygunj in Kolkata). The cinematography works well, and does present an evocative view of India 40-45 years ago. The DVD print isn't great for the night scenes...that is the only drag on an otherwise excellent movie.