'Mad_e In Bangladesh': Spirited but flawed With his unconventional style of filmmaking, Mostafa Sarwar Farooki has carved a niche for himself, specifically among the young audience. He shot to fame with his TV plays including the hugely popular mega-serial Ekannoborti and the film Bachelor-the circle.
Farooki's latest production Mad_e In Bangladesh is running in theatres now. Produced by Impress Telefilm Ltd and presented by banglalink, the film recently premiered at Balaka movie theatre.
The film is supposedly a satire on the current upheaval in the political scene, dealing with anomalies in civil administration, law enforcing system and frustration of the youth, along the way. Publicity brochures read: "If anyone from Mars wants to know Bangladesh, this film can be a good guide."
The story follows an apparently passive young man, Khorshed (Zahid Hassan), who comes to Dhaka from a rural area looking for a job and a better life. He gets to stay with an uncle who literally robs him of every Taka he has. A beautiful, flirtatious woman next door (Rozi Siddiqui) is like a breath of fresh air in this hellhole.
A scene from Mad_e In Bangladesh
Khorshed is soon seen walking into a government bungalow, threatening an unsuspecting DC (Tarik Anam) of Ratanpur and his PA (Shahiduzzaman Selim) that he is armed with a bomb (in a briefcase) and is not afraid to detonate it. Holding the government officers at gunpoint, he asks them to call up influential individuals of the region, including the SP (Masud Ali Khan) and ASP (Hasan Masood), leader of a youth organisation (Marjuk Russel), a leading cultural activist (Fazlur Rahman Babu), political leaders belonging to rival parties (Jayanto Chattyopadhyay and Saleh Ahmed) and educationists (Amirul Huq Chowdhury and Tania Ahmed). After they all arrive, thinking they've been called upon to attend a meeting with the DC, Khorshed makes his intentions clear. He reads out an eight-point demand and wants the parliament to pass new legislation putting an end to corruption.
Farooki applies a method that is not unheard of: put a group of seasoned actors together in a chaotic situation and let the drama unfold. However, this formula needs a convincing background. The film does not explain why a docile Khorshed takes a drastic measure like arming himself, holding a group of people as hostages.
Farooki supposedly does not prefer theatrical elements or melodrama. The film's brochure and website read: "His (Farooki's) way of filming is closer to that of documentary. He prefers to work with non-professional actors and highly depends on improvisation and candid shooting..."
The film however contradicts this idea as it relies heavily on professional actors skilled in theatrics like Zahid Hassan, Shahiduzzaman Selim, Tarik Anam, Masud Ali Khan, Jayanto Chattopadhyay, Amirul Huq Chowdhury and Fazlur Rahman Babu. Certain scenes work only because these actors have the capability to engage the audience. Actors who lack that experience like Marjuk Russel, Tinni and other newcomers, seem to stutter and waste footage.
The film loses total credibility when this intense, noisy drama is being played out in the DC's bungalow and a handful of nonchalant police are seen meandering around. Familiar locations in Chittagong dubbed as places in a fictional "Ratanpur", are difficult to digest.
Mad-e In Bangladesh makes a good effort to address the maddening socio-political state of Bangladesh but falls short due to its noticeable flaws.
'Mad_e In Bangladesh': Spirited but flawed 
Linear Mode
