The Reincarnate (2014) User Reviews

A Beautiful Musical Journey Centuries Apart

[sgupta001-817-774557 · 8/10 · 30 March 2014]

When I started watching Jaatishwar, it did not strike me. It appeared dull, without any strong story line and probably a disappointment. Things started changing when Rohit (the lovelorn Gujrati guy who by now had left Kolkata to study Portuguese Colonial history in Humbolt Univeristy - my my !!) meets Kushal who recalls himself as Hensman Anthony reborn (and he indeed is)!

Little is known about Anthony Firingi who was born a Portuguese and adopted colonial Bengal as his home. He earned quite a bit of popularity as a poet and singer in the Bengali language during the early 19th Century. I don't know how much historically correct the account of the life of Anthony Firingi shown in the movie is, but the brilliance with which the stories of two different times are intertwined in the story telling is highly commendable. Especially the way the Kobi-r Lodai (Poet Duel) between Anthony and Bhola Moira mixes with a contemporary rock concert is memorable.

Overall the movie takes you through a journey of ages together, a journey of passion, poetry, devotion, music, love, desires and forgiveness. The music by Kabir Suman is probably the biggest strength which presents two different times in perfect harmony and melody. Sir, you simply rock!

"A wonderfully done fusion of the lifestyles from past and present, from history to fiction."

[alekhyadas · 8/10 · 21 January 2014]

Jaatishwar is a Bengali musical romantic drama. The plot mainly environs around the life of Hensman Anthony, a Bengali language folk poet. As the story traffics forward we get to know about the life stories of the other characters which were somewhat related to Anthony Firingee. There are many twists and turns in the story which I won't reveal for keeping the mysteries intact. I must say I am completely in love with the narration style of the entire flick with the magnificent melodies in between. Simply a prodigious director can depict the two periods running in parallel, the past and the present to pull the resemblances in between which makes the audience go awestruck.

Acting: This flick is actually the one of the best performances of Prosenjit Chatterjee. He conveys such a power-packed act in both the roles especially the character of Kushal Hazra is simply outstanding. No will dare to take a role in which individuals will start compare him for laying himself in Uttam Kumar's shoes. Jishu Sengupta has done a respectable job. Even I adored Swastika Mukherjee's role. Talking about the other credited casts we have Abir Chatterjee, Rahul Arunoday Banerjee, Mamata Shankar who are really good in their roles. I loved Ananya Chatterjee as Joggeshwari, it is short and stunning.

Direction: As I said before only a great director can portray such a wonderful narration. Though some scenes are a bit slow still it will not affect the entire film for sure. He has taken the best cast and best man for music and added his own ingredient and made it into a musical masterpiece. Srijit Mukherji's best after Baishe Srabon,for me.

Music: one word, Outstanding! It's a Kabir Suman show. Even the BGM by Indraadip Das Gupta adds a new feel to the movie.

Cinematography and Editing: Soumik Halder and Bodhaditya Banerjee - Sadhu Sadhu !!!

Verdict: I am really sad to see the empty seats of theaters. Please go watch #Jaatishwar. A must watch for all Bengalis, especially those who thinks it's a curse or do not feel proud for being the same. 4/5

A musical to remember for long time to come

[sibsankar91 · 7/10 · 2 May 2014]

It is a nice fusion of Bengali-Hindu cultures from two ages separated long apart. We, present day people have very little idea of the olden folk poets and their religious and cultural works. This film has a lot of historical significance in that context also. A person of very remote origin can also thrive and mix into a particular culture if he really loves it. Underlying the cultural scenario there is the eternal story of love between a man and a woman. But it has never stooped to cheap sentimentalism, which is everywhere so prevalent nowadays. It may be a bit inconvenient for other than Bengal origin people to appreciate the true spirit of the nineteenth century folk literature. But the appeal of the movie can truly be universal even with subtitles.

Awesome

[ranjdeb · 10/10 · 27 January 2014]

So beautifully crafted movie with an amazing story line and the music is just that you will listen, listen and listen. Hats off to the whole team who created this masterpiece. Bangla cinema is back and back with a bang and vengeance. I watched this movie 8 times from the day it got released and believe me every time I go to a journey that is so soulful and touching to your hearts. Maybe I sound crazy but this movie had made me bonkers to love the story to the extent that you just fall in love with it. A great movie by Srijitda. Hats off for compiling the stars around this movie so beautifully and Kabir Suman, no words speechless.

A musical whose memories will stay for a long time to come...

[sandipan-bhattacharya · 10/10 · 20 January 2014]

Maybe I'm biased, but coming straight to the point, this is Srijit Mukherji's best film till date. And that ought to tell you enough since some of his earlier films were ones that changed the entire face of mainstream Bangla cinema.

To be very honest, when I first saw the trailer of Jaatishwar I was slightly unsure of whether this would be as good as the director's previous works... But having watched the film, I m awestruck. I feel enriched musically and also as a Bangali... A wonderful film... A musical journey worth cherishing... Its a complete film, with brilliant cinematography and a script that celebrates our language... On the acting front Prosenjit Chatterjee delivers yet another epic performance... Jishu, Swastika, Abir, Mamata Shankar all are very good... But the winner here is the music... When a film is labelled as a musical of memories, the director had to ensure the music justifies the label... And who else than Kabir Suman to pull this one off... Absolutely brilliant work... Thanks Srijit Mukherji for yet another fantastic film... A movie like this deserves no less than 10... You forget all cinematic clichés, the little inconsistencies here and there and the only thing that remains with you as you leave the theatre is one good feeling of having watched a new milestone being set in Bangla cinema... And of course the proud feeling of being a Bangali...

A periodic Bengali Musical - Class Apart

[ritzb86 · 20 January 2014]

Jatishwar - The best possible start of a year Tollywood can expect.

Surely Srijit's best work till date. The style of linking that old KOBIGAAN with today's BAND Performances, the way of using skip scene to relate between very two different generation of Bengali Music was just marvelous. Apart from those aspect ,maintaining a proper storyline with some subtle emotion and a sublime love story - he deserves accolades for that. About acting everybody was good to their part.Jishu looks and acts beautifully.But when Prosenjit is there and decided 2 act it is hard 2 notice anything else. Top notch performance by our own Bumba DA, it is at per with Moner Manush,Autograph,22e Shrabon if not something more. Now comes DA best part of this movie - Kabir Suman. Credit goes to Srijit to let him explore the Bengali music at his own will. Suman almost played with Bengali Music in this film. One moment we are in 18th century Kobigaan asor with Vola Moyra and within a blink we come down to psychedelic rock of Sidhu,Rupam. Total 22 song in this film and it finishes with "E Tumi kemon tumi" and "Jatiswar". It wouldn't be possible by any other person apart from Suman.

A treat to watch. A musical journey. A nostalgic representation of Bengali Music.

Spellbound

[shiladityabasu1988 · 10/10 · 31 January 2014]

This movie is a tribute to 19th century Bengali folk music and its trace back to the time when the folk song was at its peek.Its an awesome concept as not much emphasis have been given on the subject.The story telling wise it made me really think that there was character name Anthony, and direction wise it is beautifully directed. The way the movie tells us about the emergence of the Bengali folk song culture is really beautifully depicted in a satirical phrase. Its such an important thing and I would personally feel that many researcher who are doing research on Bengali folk music may actually take a cue from this film. The way this movie depicts the journey from 19th century Bengali culture to this modern Bengali culture and of course the band culture is quite interesting. This one film really made me think that the subject have really been untold of, and to make such a marvelous film with such a delicate and sensitive subject kudos and hats off to the makers. I personally feel film like this can be source of inspiration to people who believes in music, live in music and pray for music. Again well deserve applaud or standing ovation no words van describe the feeling to SRIJIT MUKHERJEE,KABIR SUMAN,PROSENJIT CHATTERJEE AND OTHERS FOR MAKING SUCH A SPELLBOUND FILM.

Best movie i had ever seen

[mdashikurnsu · 10/10 · 23 March 2018]

One of the best Bangla movie. What a movie! Srijit Mukherji you are boss. Acting was too good. Prosenjit Chatterjee, Jisshu Sengupta Swastika,Mukherjee Abir Chatterjee, Rahul Banerjee Ananya, Chatterjee Kharaj Mukherjee, Mamata Shankar Riya Sen, Srijit Mukherji Biswajit,Chakraborty,Bharat Kaul all the actor gave the best in this movie. Musics are the best part of the move. Kabir Suman is awesome. Overall it is very good movie.

very good movie

[mdnuruddinsawn · 7/10 · 19 March 2019]

This movie made my day...wow!what a making in bangla film industry...thanks to srijit for give us this type of movie...

Must watch

[iamaditisengupta · 10/10 · 2 May 2020]

I really like the content of this film. The film is full of twist and turn starring Prosenjit Chatterjee,Jishu Sengupta, Swastika Mukherjee,Rahul Banerjee,Mamata Shankar,Abir Chatterjee which acted perfectly in their role.The connection between the past and present times is shown really beautifully in this movie.One of the best movie of Srijit Mukherjee.The music and bgm provide complete satisfaction after watching the movie.

Good, could have been great ...

[mysonamartya · 7/10 · 23 November 2015]

Bengali cinema has the distinction of using non-realism (elements of fantasy/reincarnation) to craft great cinema. Chorus, Paras Pathar, Aasete asiona, Thana theke aaschei, Sonar Kella, Ichhapuran, Golpo Holeo Satti, Khudita Pasan, Aschorjo Pradip... the list keeps growing with the addition of films like 'Jaatiswar.' The Srijit Mukherjee directed film uses a multi-layered narrative to unfold a romantic story at its core (Jishu-Swastika) laced with great music that connects a bygone era (invocation of the 'Anthony Firingee' tale of re-incarnation) with the present (Jishu's attempt to woo Swastika through music).

The film has its strength: a great performance by Prasenjit Chattopadhyay (as Kushal Hazra who suffers from a debilitating disease of memory loss owing to the memory of his past birth superimposing itself onto the present one), haunting songs by Kabir Suman, innovate camera-work and use of colors (black & white for the serious moments/sepia tone during flashback/ natural bright color during romantic sequences). Jishu Sengupta and Swastika Mukherjee are likable in the film as well.

Rating: 3.8 out of 5

Awesome movie.... Tulonahin....

[subhamoycse · 10/10 · 20 April 2014]

I generally don't write any review. But the brilliance of this movie forced me to open up an account here to write a review of it. I won't discuss the story line in my review because EVERY Bengali should watch this movie. Watching the movie was like getting deeply intoxicated with drugs , a feeling which can only be felt deep down inside your mind and heart , but hard to explain in words. Like all Bengali who claims that it would take another 500 year to replace the "Jaatishwar song by Kabir Suman", similarly it would take some 100 years for Bengal industry to churn out a movie of this calibre. Truly this is Srijit and Prosenjit's best work till date. Suddenly i forgot "Prabir Roy Choudhury" as "Kushal Hazra" completely over shadowed him. I don't know how many times I have watched this movie so far. Even if I watch it , it doesn't quench my thirst to watch it again. Last but not least Kabir Suman is incomparable. The music will stay with me till I die.To conclude, I would say one thing,there are some movies which you need to watch before you die & Jaatishwar is the only movie of that category. Highly recommended, if you miss this one, you are surely missing something great. A movie that will stay with me till I die.

Good but not ....

[titasg · 5/10 · 21 February 2015]

The theme is very unique. Casting is beautiful. Acting - Srijit ... you are a very good Director fine tuning your skills more with time .. but somehow acting your acting is not up to the mark. There are actors in your movie who don't know how to talk in Bengali with a proper accent, when this movie is especially highlighting Bengali dialect and culture. There are some graphics too which has a touch of inexperience. for ex. When Anthony Phiringi met the villagers for the first time addressing them, the placement of camera was such that on screen it felt like a robot(Pronam episode). In some screen shots more milder colour would have brought a better touch to the environment. Well, all over the theme is excellent. and I hope to see more mature surgical expertise with your operations next time. Best of Luck. :)

A Musical binding two centuries together!!!!💓💓💓

[shibsankard · 10/10 · 20 September 2020]

Film: Jatiswar Genre: Musical Drama Run time: 150 minutes Director: Srijit Mukherjee Producer: Reliance Entertainment and Rana Sarkar Cast: Prosenjit Chatterjee, Jishu Sengupta, Swastika Mukherjee, Abir Chatterjee, Kharaj Mukherjee and others. Music: Kabir Suman Background Music: Indradeep Dasgupta

Review

When ever somebody asks me about my fevourite films, the first position is always kept for "The Apu Trilogy"(all the three films) and the second position is probably kept for "Jatiswar". This is a film which makes me proud as a Bengali as I have never watched a film like Jatiswar in any other language!! I have watched it atleast for 6 to 7 times. This film has intimately mixed with my life and I can not spend a single day without thinking about it!!! Positive Points

1. Music: We generally don't speak about this part of a film at first but Jatiswar's music is really special!!! Its one of the best Musicals ever made in the History of Indian Cinema!! All the song are mesmerizing and great. Being a music learner myself I can say that this album is a full music school for me. It has all kinds of songs. Whether it is romantic songs or hard rock songs or even the beautiful "Kabi gaan" (the rich culture of Bengal) All the songs are just superb and beautifully placed in the film. You never feel that a song is extra in the film apart from having 24 or 25 songs in total! The BGM is also beautiful and very satisfactory. So music is the first positive point of the film.

2. Screenplay: Non linear screenplay of the film is the one of the most important parts of the film. We have seen many films having non linear style of screenplay (the films having flashbacks) but this film is special. Drastic switch of present and past makes the screenplay interesting. You will not find a 20 minutes long flashback ever in the film. The film keeps going to flashbacks and instantly after sometime coming back to the present!!! The story is also written in a beautiful way. It feels like a combination of poetry and painting on screen!!!

3. i) Acting: Acting is the third positive of the film. Everybody gave wonderful performances. Jishu Sengupta was great as the sweet, introvert Gujrati guy. Swastika Mukherjee is one of the best actresses of India now. She has as usually given a wonderful performance!! Abir Chatterjee, Kharaj Mukherjee, Mamata Sankar everybody were very good in their small roles. But the show stealer was one and only Prosenjit Chatterjee. He gave his everything to the film. Both the charecters(Antonie Firingi and Kushal) were played with equal ease by him. This is one of his best performances till date. He was just incredible in the last scene!!!!!

ii) Direction: That's also the third positive of the film. According to me this is Srijit Mukherjee's best film till date!! He did a great job. His story telling style is the heart of the film. The climax was wonderfully built. Homage to Srijit Mukherjee!!🙏🙏🙏🙏

4. Cinematography: Cinematography is another great thing in the film. Soimik Haldar did an exceptional job as the cinematographer! The drone shots were the main highlights of the cinematography. Probably this was the first Bengali film with so many drone shots. So cinematography was also great!!!!

I don't have enough knowledge to tell any negative point of this film!! After all this is my Fevourite Film!!!

So Srijit Mukherjee's Jatiswar is one of the best films I have ever seen. What else to say about a film which got 4 National Awards???!!!!!

An Actual and real Musical of Memories!!!

Collective unconscious

[lacasablr · 8/10 · 15 February 2021]

Do anyone experience hallucinations and dreams about future events (immediate events) Mostly bad. I mostly have intuitive thoughts about possible outcomes based on current events and historical analysis. Here, I am saying about deeper intuitive dreams (maybe unreasonable) Maybe like Nostradamus of Balkans Vanga pandeva One of my friends saw Death of a few relatives. Seeing the 2004 Tsunami. Kerala Floods. I don't know the meaning of the word "Jaatishwar" But Srijit Mukherji says that reincarnation is possible based on scientific and psychological theories. 1) Maybe Hippocampal gyrus (Core of brain) The region plays an essential role in memory encoding and retrieval 2) Maybe Pineal gland (Third eye) (Part of the middle brain) Maybe AI and Big data help us to provide more insights about brain black hole. 3) Maybe Genetic memory Genetic memory is a memory present at birth that exists in the absence of sensory experience, and is incorporated into the genome over long spans of time. Carl Jung said, 'Collective unconscious' and Jung himself experienced with such experiences. Prosenjith was brilliant in Jaatishwar especially when he struggles with hallucinations. My bengali friend suggested Swastika Mukherjee is similar to Urvashi in comic scenes. She is brilliant and beautiful (Maybe the unique beauty of Bengalis) Do you feel some kind of spiritual connection when you visit someplace for the first time and feels belonging?