Siblings Saif Ali Khan, Soha Ali Khan and Saba Pataudi attended the screening of their mother Sharmila Tagore’s latest film Puratawn at MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2024 on October 21.
“To be able to celebrate my mother on the eve of her 80th doing what she loves doing as she has done her whole life – is a privilege and a memory to be cherished,” wrote Soha on Thursday, sharing pictures from the film’s premiere on Instagram.
The pictures also feature director Suman Ghosh and Sharmila’s co-stars, Indraneil Sengupta and Rituparna Sengupta. In addition to starring in the film, Rituparna has produced it under her home banner Bhavna Aaj O Kal.
Soha’s husband Kunal Kemmu also accompanied the Pataudi family to the event.
Marking Sharmila’s return to Bengali cinema after a 14-year hiatus, Puratawn revolves around an elderly woman battling memory loss. In the film, Ritika (Rituparna) and her husband (Indraneil) visit her ancestral home in West Bengal to celebrate her mother’s (Sharmila) 80th birthday. However, the celebration is clouded by a painful revelation – her mother’s cognitive decline. This forces Ritika to confront the heartbreaking reality of her mother’s fading memories.
Ravi Kiran Ayyagari serves as the director of photography for Puratawn with Angelica Monica Bhowmick serving as the associate director. Filmmaker Aditya Vikram Sengupta serves as the editor, with sound design by Dipankar Jojo Chaki and music by Alokananda Dasgupta. Tanmoy Chakraborty, who collaborated with Ghosh on Kabuliwala, leads the production design.
Sharmila Tagore expressed her excitement at returning to Bengali cinema during a session after the film’s screening at MAMI. “Doing a Bengali film after so many years, to speak the language again, to perform in one’s own mother tongue – that was the reason why I said yes to this film,” she said.
The veteran actress’s recent work includes the 2023 Disney+ Hotstar original Gulmohar, which bagged the National Award for best Hindi feature film in August.