Dhanraj Tamang Explained

Dhanraj Tamang
Director:Pijush Bose
Producer:Ashim Sarkar
Story:Jorasandha
Screenplay:Pijush Bose
Starring:Uttam Kumar
Sandhya Roy
Utpal Dutta
Anil Chatterjee
Dilip Roy
Music:Shyamal Mitra[1]
Cinematography:Ganesh Ghosh
Editing:Baidyanath Chatterjee
Studio:Usha Films
Distributor:Chandimata Films Pvt. Ltd.[2]
Runtime:110 Minutes
Country:India
Language:Bengali

Dhanraj Tamang is a 1978 Indian Bengali language vigilante action film co-written and directed by Pijush Bose[3] [4] based on the story of Charuchandra Chakraborty alias Jorasandha. The film was released under the banner of Usha Films starring Uttam Kumar, Sandha Roy, Utpal Dutta, Anil Chatterjee, Dilip Roy and Chaya Devi in lead roles.[5] The soundtrack of the film was composed by Shyamal Mitra, with lyrics penned by Gauriprasanna Mazumder.[6] [7] Plotted in Sittong tea estate, Darjeeling, it revolves around Dhanraj Tamang, a tea estate worker who always fights against the predators who try to rape the women instead of job in the estate. All on a sudden, he gets prisoned for being falsely alleged of raping his wife, Phoolmaya. He escapes from the jail to look into the matter and unfortunately discovers his boss to be the mastermind of all the rapes, including of his wife. After taking the revenge, Dhanraj becomes mad and dies in the Ranchi mental asylum.

Dhanraj Tamang marks the 8th collaboration between Uttam Kumar and Pijush Bose. Released on the auspicious occasion of Durga Puja, the film was an all-time blockbuster at the box office and after a number of flops, it redefined Uttam Kumar's stardom with a long run consisting of 210 days in theatres. The song 'Ekti Sudhu Naam Dhanraj Tamang, sung by Hemanta Mukherjee, became very popular among the masses, upon its release.

Plot

In a tea estate close to Darjeeling, Dhanraj Tamang is a well-liked and trustworthy worker. He is always willing to assist and encourage locals. He defends women from sexual predators but is unable to save his own wife. His tea estate boss allegedly sexually assaults his wife, leading to the sentencing of the man to prison. Dhanraj comes back to exact revenge.[8]

Cast

Soundtrack

Dhanraj Tamang
Type:Soundtrack
Artist:Shyamal Mitra
Released:1978
Recorded:1977
Studio:Usha Films
Genre:Feature film soundtrack
Length:01:01:54
Label:Angel Digital Pvt Ltd
Producer:Ashim Sarkar
Prev Title:Nishan
Prev Year:1978
Next Title:Priyatama
Next Year:1980

Award

Filmfare East Awards

Shelved remake

Superstar M.G Ramachandran, initially wanted to remake it in Tamil starring himself in lead, but got shelved. Later K. Raghavendra Rao showed his interest to remake it in both Hindi and Telugu language starring Amitabh Bachchan and NTR in the titular role respectively, but due to rights issues, it also couldn't come to the board.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang - Full Cast & Crew .
  2. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang .
  3. Book: Ashish Rajadhyaksha, Paul Willemen. Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. 10 July 2014. Routledge . 9781135943189. 1 May 2018.
  4. Book: Mukherjee, Madhuja . Popular Cinema in Bengal: Genre, Stars, Public Cultures . Bakshi . Kaustav . 2020-06-09 . Routledge . 978-1-000-44892-4 . en.
  5. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang Rotten Tomatoes . 2024-06-09 . www.rottentomatoes.com . en.
  6. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang. 1 May 2018.
  7. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang (1978) . indiancine.ma . 20 March 2019.
  8. Web site: Dhanraj Tamang . 2024-06-27 . TVGuide.com . en.