A set of doctors from Medical College Kolkata were on a mission…to portray their noble profession correctly on celluloid. The doctors from the famed institute, around 100 of them from 50 different batches, decided to make a film, Pratyabartan The Homecoming, where they portrayed the life inside a medical college just the way they encountered it, no pretensions.
The doctors felt films like Saptapadi, Hate Bazare, Agnishwar, Sagarika, Doctor G, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. never projected the medical profession the right way, they were either made to look like clowns or shown in a negative light.
The eldest doctor to act in the film is Dr Mamtaz Sanghamita, 81, a former MP, and the youngest is 23 years old. State MLA Nirmal Majhi has also acted in the film.
Dr Suddhasatawya Chatterjee, director of the feature film, said: “None of the films were convincing in terms of portraying doctors on screen, there has always been a mismatch with reality.
The shooting for the film commenced in 2024, on the 190th anniversary of Medical College. The Medical College Kolkata was established in 1835 and is Asia’s oldest medical college. The main concept is by Dr Abhik Ghosh, an ENT surgeon and the story is by Dr Chinmay Nath, an orthopaedist. Dr Siwalik Bannerjee from the UK has done the music.
Though many of the doctors have acted for the first time, a few of them acted during their student days at the college’s theatre group.
Dr Chatterjee, a rheumatology medicine specialist has directed two short films apart from acting in a couple of films.
Though all the doctor-actors are well settled in their profession, Pratyabartan The Homecoming was crowd funded. “None of the actors have charged anything,” said the director. The film is set to complete 25 days at city theatres.
The story is a reflection of 3 Idiots. “There are six friends, who come to attend the 190th reunion of their college. They reflect on the times when they were students, their emotions, struggles and lot more. There are glimpses of hostel life. But, the climax of the film is bound to surprise you,” said Dr Chatterjee.
The film was completed in February 2024 but plans to release it by Durga Puja that year had to be postponed due to the tragic RG Kar incident. “Many of us were part of the protest movement. We decided against its release,” said the director.
Now, the makers are planning a sequel to the film with the story is being written.