Directed by Aditya Vikram Sengupta
Language: Bengali
A bereaved mother tries to desperately find a new identity, love and independence, but soon realizes that she is not the only scavenger in a city brimming with hunger.
NETPAC Special Mention
Grand Jury Award - Best Feature Film
Best Director, Best Actress
Aditya is a master of mood and visuals. Once Upon a Time in Calcutta has a lovely, lyrical quality to it.
Film Companion
A cinematic poem to contemporary Kolkata; Sengupta loves ‘people,’ but sometimes looks askance at humanity.
Cineuropa
Sengupta draws the viewer slowly but surely into his visual and sonic vortex of quotidian despair and moral deprivation.
The Film Verdict
A raw, unflinching portrait of Calcutta. Perhaps one of the most honest depictions of the city in recent times. Bleak, grim, and morose, with flashes of quiet humor.
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