The fictitious sleuthing duo of Holmes and Watson created by Sir Conan Doyle, have inspired numerous other detective duos including Agatha Christie’s Peirot and Hastings. Another detective duo inspired by Holmes and Watson are ‘truth-seeker’ Byomkesh Bakshi and Ajit Kumar Banerjee, his loyal friend and sidekick. The duo was a creation of the Bengali writer Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay.

The sleuthing achievements of Byomkesh are narrated from the perspective of Ajit. Unlike other older sleuths, Byomkesh is a young intelligent man in his early to mid twenties. In some movies, he is also married, another characteristic that differentiates him from Holmes or Peirot.

In this post, we will look at two adaptations of a Byomkesh Bakshi novel Chiriyakhana (The Menagerie).

The first was released in 1967. The second came almost exactly 50 years later.

Chiriyakhana (1967)

Chiriyakana is a classic WhoDunIt directed by one of the best Bengali directors of all time, perhaps one of the greatest directors of all time, Satyajit Ray. Known for his unique story telling and long shots, Ray brings in all his talents to this movie.

Uttam Kumar as Byomkesh Bakshi puts in a brilliant performance as the calm, deductive Bakshi. The story begins when a rich philanthropist Nishanath Sen pays a visit to Byomkesh and Ajit. He hires Byomkesh to trace an old Bengali movie and find details about an actress, Sunayana in the movie.

Sen has created a Commune for ex convicts who stay and work on this property. Sen claims that his motivation is that he is remorseful for handing out the death penalty to several individuals who were tried in his court. He also suspects that Sunayana may be hiding in his commune

Byomkesh meets with a former movie maker who is an expert in movies. The expert informs Byomkesh that Sunayana has been absconding, ever since she was indicted for the murder of the the producer of the movie in question.

Disguised as a Japanese with a penchant for taking photos, Byomkesh comes to the commune and meets all of its members. Ajit accompanies him as his assistant. In each interaction, Byomkesh takes a photo of each of the individuals on the commune.

A few days later, Byomkesh receives a call from Sen when that latter requests that he return to the commune without his disguise. The conversation is cut off when an unknown assailant strikes Sen with a blunt object, killing him.

The stage is set for Bakshi to return to the commune and find the killer. Each individual on the commune is a suspect with a hidden motive. Among them is Sen’s much younger widow, a doctor, Sen’s nephew, a professor and a few others. The climax is just as one expects where Byomkesh calls a meeting of all the suspects and finally spots the killer. He also unravels the mystery of the missing actress.

This is a slow burner, typical of Satyajit Ray’s movies. It is a must see for those who like Whodunits. While Ray thought that this was his worst movie, it was well received by critics and won him the best director award at the 15th National film awards. Uttam Kumar received the best actor award for his performance.

Byomkesh O Chiriyakhana (2016)

This version of Chiriyakana was released in 2016. Jissu Sengupta and Saswatha Chatterjee play Byomkesh and Ajit respectively. The movie is directed by Anjan Dutt who also puts in a cameo appearance in it. While Jissu makes a compelling sleuth intensely focused on the crime, he is often overshadowed by Chatterjee’s personality in many scenes.

The plot of this version is similar to the older film but with small variations. For instance, when Byomkesh and Ajit come to visit the commune, it is Ajit who disguises himself as a Islamic newspaperman and Byomkesh, his assistant.

In the older movie, Byomkesh is a bachelor, while in this one, he is married. In fact, his wife’s analysis leads Byomkesh towards the clue that unravels the mystery.

I loved the lighter moment in the movie, at the end where the movie takes a dig at the older movie, when it is suggested that Uttam Kumar must play Bakshi in the adaptation of the story.

The movie even takes a dig at itself, when Bakshi thinks that the movie will not get past the censors because of a kiss at the end of the movie. (The kiss is not in the older movie.)

The entire ensemble cast also enhances the movie with great performances. As one would expect from contemporary movies, this version is fast paced, with slick camera work. The color tones are just right, making this movie a great visual treat. The murder scene right at the beginning of the movie, engages the audience, right away. This movie is definitely worth watching. Most modern audiences are likely to prefer this version of the Whodunit.