By Siddiq Ahamed
“Aynabaji” is a chronicle of Sarafat Karim Ayna (Chanchal Chowdhury) who wanted to be an actor but ended up as a human chameleon, serving as body double for convicted criminals, operating in the dark side of metro city Dhaka. Hridy (Masuma Rahman Nabila), the next-door-girl develops a connection with Ayna, as she is attracted to him. Ayna was content with his transforming life, until a stubborn and reckless crime reporter named Saber (Partha Barua) starts investigating his background. The film then becomes a cat and mouse game, as Ayna, like every cocky-confident ‘professional', gets into a dangerous situation, finding himself not having the control he was accustomed to. Will he be able to pull one final trick out of his bag?
First clap goes to the reputed cinematographer Rashed Zaman for his spectacular efforts. From the first frame, he traps the audience through his visual illusion. The visual narrative mirrors the reality of life within the silver screen. Nobody ever tried to shoot the city in this way, within a frame.
“Aynabaji” is probably the first political crime thriller from Bangladesh. No such story had ever been told in this country before. Iy is an excellent, gripping thriller with ample of twists and a package of surprises.
Chanchal Chowdhury plays six characters and he does justice to all of them, except Laddu. Partha Barua is exceptionally good as he highlights his acting skills. Masuma Rahman Nabila as Hridy has done well but could have been more expressive. The supporting characters played by Gousul Alam Shaon, Lutfar Rahman George, Bridaban Das and others are the vital parts of the story. Sometimes, the acting is a bit too theatrical, but it is good in its own way.
However, the romantic dynamics of Nabila and Chanchal were not convincing and not in harmony with the plot.
The dialogues and the screenplay (by Anam Biswas) are well written and entertaining; the main scheme of the story captivates the audience, although the storyline is not flawless, as the missing pieces of the puzzle should be “louder”, in order to define the major plot holes. The fact that this is the story of a man who spent his life in prison but there is no big prison break scene is questionable.
Sound arrangement is not up to the mark, but the background music is splendid. Indradip Dasgupta is incredible as the composer of the score.
“Aynabaji” is a good experience, particularly for native viewers, a fresh original story, a gripping political thriller communicated well, although not a great film when compared to world cinema.
