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Hemlock Society is an Indian Bengali romantic dark comedy released on 22 June 2012, directed by Srijit Mukherji, who is also the director of Autograph and Baishe Srabon. The film's cast consists of Parambrata Chatterjee, Koel Mallick, and Soumitra Chatterjee.[1] The name is inspired by the erstwhile Hemlock Society, a society which was based in Santa Monica, US. The primary missions of this society included providing information to dying persons and supporting legislation permitting physician-assisted suicide. The movie was remade in Marathi in 2015 as Welcome Zindagi.[2][3] A box-office success.
| Hemlock Society | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Poster | |
| Directed by | Srijit Mukherji |
| Written by | Srijit Mukherji |
| Produced by | Shrikant Mohta Mahendra Soni |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Soumik Halder |
| Edited by | Bodhaditya Banerjee. Saikat Sengupta |
| Music by | Anupam Roy Indraadip Dasgupta |
Release date |
|
Running time | 141 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Bengali |
| Box office | 6.5 cr(50 days) |
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Meghna is a woman who experiences emotional distress following personal losses, including her mother's death and rejection by her fiancé. In search of an escape, she seeks sleeping pills from her doctor father to end her life. However, she is approached by Ananda Kar, the founder of the Hemlock Society, an organization that offers training on various methods of suicide. Ananda persuades Meghna to attend a three-day workshop at the society, which operates from a film studio and features instructors specializing in different suicide techniques.
During her time at the workshop, Meghna meets other participants and experiences a series of events that alter her perception of life. Over the course of the training, she begins to appreciate the value of life and empathizes with the struggles of others. On the final day, Meghna confesses her desire to live and admits that she has developed feelings for Ananda. Ananda reveals that he suffers from lymphocytopenia, a condition that leaves him with only two years to live. This revelation reinforces Meghna's newfound understanding of life’s importance.
Meghna leaves the Hemlock Society and returns to her father, having undergone a transformation in her outlook. Six months later, she reconciles with Ananda, who is hospitalized following a blood transfusion. The film ends on a satirical note, with Meghna's former fiancé, now despondent, becoming a participant at the Hemlock Society.
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- Koel Mallick as Meghna Sarkar
- Parambrata Chatterjee as Ananda Kar
- Roopa Ganguly as Niharika Basu (Meghna's Step Mother)
- Deepankar De as Dr. Chittaranjan Basu (Meghna's Father)
- Reeta Basu as Meghna's Mother
- Silajit Majumder as Siddhartha Roy, the Singer
- Saheb Chatterjee as Shantanu
- Anindita Bose as Shreya
- Biswajit Chakraborty as Police Officer
- Soumitra Chatterjee as Colonel Samaresh Bagchi (guest appearance)
- Sabitri Chatterjee as Jhulon Gupto (guest appearance)
- Sabyasachi Chakrabarty as Dhomoni Ghosh (guest appearance)
- Srijit Mukherji as Doyal Khashnobish (guest appearance)
- Bratya Basu as Raktim Ganguly (guest appearance)
- Barun Chanda as Trenlet Biswas (guest appearance)
- Raj Chakraborty as Setu Venkataraman (guest appearance)
- Indranath Mukherjee as the effeminate history professor
- Akshay Kapoor as Invigilator/ Sign Language Interpreter
- Reetabrata Ghosh as Gun case
- Sudeshna Roy as Shikha Dhor (guest appearance)
- Sohag Sen as Miss Cella Neous (guest appearance)
- Priyanka Sarkar as Hiya (guest appearance)
- Jeet in a (special appearance)
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| Hemlock Society | |
|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | |
| Released | 2 September 2018 |
| Recorded | 2011 |
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack |
| Length | 29:59 |
| Language | Bengali |
| Label | SVF Music |
| Official audio | |
| Hemlock Society on YouTube | |
The soundtrack is composed Anupam Roy and Indraadip Dasgupta. All the lyrics are written by Anupam Roy.
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Amar Mawte (Female)" | Lopamudra Mitra | 5:30 |
| 2. | "Ekhon Anek Raat" | Anupam Roy | 3:46 |
| 3. | "Ei To Ami Chai" | Shreya Ghoshal & Anupam Roy | 4:30 |
| 4. | "Jawl Phoring" | Silajit Majumder | 3:28 |
| 5. | "Amar Mawte (Male)" | Rupankar Bagchi | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Phiriye Dewar Gaan" | Rupam Islam | 5:52 |
| 7. | "Hemlock Society Theme" | Composed by Indrajit Dasgupta | 3:28 |
| Total length: | 29:59 | ||
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The film received generally positive reviews by critics. Parambrata Chatterjee's performance was critically applauded, as was Koel Mullik's. It has received 21 awards till now. Srijit Mukherji and Koel Mallick got the Shoilojanando Mukherjee Memorial Awards for Direction and Acting respectively. Parambrata Chatterjee received the Anandalok Award for Best Actor, while Anupam Roy got the Anandalok Award for the Best Song (Ekhon Onek Raat). At the Mirchi Music Awards 2013, it got the Best Album and Best Song (Ekhon Onek Raat) in the Listener's Choice category as well as the Best Male Playback for Rupankar Bagchi for Aamar Mawte. At the 13th Telecine Awards, it got Parambrata Chatterjee the Special Jury Award for acting, and Anupam Roy, the Best Lyricist Award. It also got the Best Movie Poster at the Srijon Shawmman 2013. At the Bengal Youth Awards 2013, Srijit Mukherji and Anupam Roy got the Best Director and the Best Music Director Awards respectively. Anupam Roy also got the Best Male Playback for Ekhon Onek Raat in the ETV Shongeet Shawmman 2013. It also got the prestigious BFJA award, the oldest film award in India, for Best Actress, Best Actor (Jury's choice), Best Male Playback, Best Female Playback (Female) and Best Art Direction. It also fetched the Zee Banglar Gourab Samman for Anupam Roy for Best Lyricist and Male Playback for Ekhon Onek Raat and Best Actress for Koel Mullick.[4][5]
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Umesh Ghadge, who has previously worked as an associate director on films like Dhoom and Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, remade the film as Welcome Zindagi in Marathi. Urmila Matondkar had been approached for Koel's role, and Atul Kulkarni, was offered Parambrata's role, however he turned down the project despite taking an immense liking to the script.[6] The titular roles are finally being played by Amruta Khanvilkar and Swapnil Joshi.
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