Sabyasachi Chakraborty's re-selection as iconic Bengali detective Feluda may not have been welcomed by some and the actor said he himself had never hankered for a second call but could not reject director Sandip Ray's request.
Sabyasachi, who is now 60, had started essaying the role of Feluda, the fictional sleuth created by Satyajit Ray, in television series directed by the maestro's son Sandip during mid-1990s. He has done five Feluda films for the same director in the big screen between 2003 and 2011. "I admit I presently do not have the look as that of Feluda. But if Babuda (Sandip) wanted me to come back, what can I do! It is on his request and I tried to look younger," Sabyasachi told PTI on the sidelines of Apeejay Bangla Sahitya Utsob 2016.
Sandip had taken much younger Abir Chatterjee for his last Feluda film "Badsahi Angti" in 2014, but came back to Sabyasachi again for his next, "Double Feluda", to be released this December.
He said he himself had suggested Abir's name to Sandip as new Feluda and feels the young actor's portrayal of the sleuth was perfect in "Badsahi Angti". "However, the director and many others were of the view that the same person doing both Feluda and Byomkesh Bakshi won't be accepted by the audience," he said.
Filmmaker Arindam Sil has made two back-to back films on Byomkesh featuring Abir in the lead role. "As Babuda did not find any suitable replacement immediately, I was requested to step in," said Sabyasachi.
Veteran actor Soumitra Chatterjee, who had donned the detective's hat in the two Feluda films directed Satyajit Ray himself in the 1970s, recently was quoted as saying in a media interview that he did not like the idea of Sabyasachi becoming the agile, young sleuth again.
"If I am accepted as Feluda again this time, may be I will go for one more film (as Feluda). I had to look younger in 'Double Feluda' and that was a challenge," Sabyasachi said.
