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Coffee Houser Adda on television
by Tahmina Shafique
‘Shei shaatjon nei, aaj tebilta shudhu ache,
shat-ti peyaala aajo khali nei,
aki she bagaane aaj, esheche notun kuri,
shudhu shei shediner mali nei,
koto shwapner rod othe ei coffee housey,
koto shwapno meghe dheke jai,
koto jon elo gelo, koto jon-i aashbe,
coffee house-ta shudhu theke jaay’
Decades on, the song still pulsates within the memory of countless people. Almost everyone, at some point, can relate to Manna’s Dey’s classic song Coffee Houser Shei Addyata.
Tucked in a corner of a busy street, as seven friends share endless experiences over a cup of coffee and smoke from endless number of cigarettes spiralling up to ceilings- the sight beckons from every nook and corner, the essence of the Coffee House in Kolkata. ‘It seems like many aspects of the song- the friends, their lives, and their stories have come to life on screen,’ says 45-year-old house-wife Selina.
Indeed, more than fifty years after the establishment of the legendary Coffee House and almost twenty-five years after Manna Dey’s dedication to his favourite place-the story of Coffee House, the tale of friendship, joy and sorrow, has been brought to life on the television screen.
‘It is difficult to justify such a sensitive song through any sort of serial or story,’ says the young director of the TV serial on Channel one, Coffee House, Mezbaur Rahman Sumon. ‘But, there are countless people who associate themselves with this song in some way or the other. This is the reason why we just took the concept of the song and built on that.’
Sumon, who is an honours student at CharuKala, selected each of the characters according to their real life professions. ‘Since the story is based on strong ties of friendship and also the struggles of separate individuals, I picked most of the people around me, who suited each character, in order to bring the natural and raw touch to the plot.’
Although the 26-episode long serial which comes to an end this week has a different plot from the song, Sumon managed to keep some aspects of the song intact. ‘Things like the names, professions, Nikhilesh going to France, Amol struggling, and all the other little details were adapted from the song to keep the flavour of it alive,’ says Sumon.
The role of the seven friends has been played by Apurbo, Joya Ahsan, Afroza Banu, Tisha, Shajal, Milon, Mahmudul Islam Mithu, Dilip, Papia, Sabyasachi Hazra and Shibu Kumar Shill.
Interestingly, Sumon and the script writer Masud Hassan Ujjal based the whole story against the backdrop of present time Dhaka. So, the Coffee house where the seven friends chatted and spend time is actually the Coffee House situated in elephant road.
‘The characters and the content naturally suit the present time and it’s more like the story of young friends in Dhaka,’ explains Sumon.
‘For me, it was easier to act in the serial because Sumon is from CharuKala as well and he knows me and he wanted me to be myself,’ says Shibu Kumar Shill, who plays the role of Amol. ‘I did not really feel that I was acting, rather I was being the way I am all the time.’ Shibu, who is a student of CharuKala feels the story was relevant and has captured the emotions and essence of the song, if not the actual plot.
According to Sabyassachi Hazra, who played the role of Nikhilesh, the success of the serial lies on the ability of the director to bring out the original characteristics of the actors and mould them in to the plot. Hazra, who is also a student of CharuKala works for the Bengali newspaper, Shomokal. Although, he had worked in set design for Praccho Naat, years ago, this experience is very new for him. ‘I certainly enjoyed myself more because the plot was so much like our daily life.’
Despite the inherent success and the sense of nostalgia that it has brought to many, a few do feel that the story was not justified. ‘I felt the story did not do justice to the true essence of the song- the life, the strength in their friendship and the emotions associated with how friends part. Moreover, the set did not have any form of resemblance with the actual Coffee House,’ points out forty-six year old Banker, Jaiyyan Rahman.
‘The truth is that the serial lacked that speed, that colour and life that the original song has,’ admits actor Dilip Chokrobarty who plays the role of Moidul. ‘The story lacked a lot of detail and also interaction between the friends. Although I was a part of the serial, I personally felt it was not at all justified to the essence of Coffee House.’
According to Sumon, however, adaptations from historical stories always attract a lot of criticism. ‘But the truth is that we did not attempt to make another Coffee House, because we knew it would be a difficult task. Moreover, if you look at Devdas- the movie was improvised and made in the present time. True, it did not do justice to the original story but it did bring back the essence and established its own style.’
The original Coffee House located in Calcutta traces its roots to the Albert Hall which came to being in April 1876. Decades later, the Coffee Board decided to start the Coffee House from the Albert Hall with the aim of popularising coffee. As the popularity of the café grew, the management decided to close it down. But the workers formed a worker’s co-operative - something Kolkata had never seen - and took over the running of the Coffee House in 1958.
From that day till date, Coffee House is of historical significance for being the rendezvous of innumerable versatile people. People like Jagadish Chandra Bose, Ritwik Ghatak, Narayan Gangopadhyay, Sunil Gangopadhyay, other writers and editors of the magazine Krittibas have been just a few among the regulars of the restaurant. Several literary magazines owe their origin to the inspiration from the adda sessions at this coffee house.
The coffee house today is famous for its adda sessions, and as the breeding place of several political and cultural personalities and movements. It has also become one of the major tourist attractions of Kolkata. Moreover, the prestige of the Coffee House increased with regular visitors such as Satyajit Ray, Manna Dey, Amartya Sen, Mrinal Sen and Aparna Sen. During the 80’s, when Manna Dey sang the song Coffee houser shei addyata, the fame of the place grew even more.
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