Bollywood actor Irrfan Khan starrer Doob (No Bed of Roses) is Bangladesh's official entry for the Oscars next year. Doob courted controversy in the wake of reports that it was loosely based on late Bangladeshi writer and filmmaker Humayun Ahmed.
Irrfan Khan starrer Doob – No Bed of Roses, which was once banned in Bangladesh, has been chosen as the country’s official entry for the Academy Awards 2019. According to agency reports, the Bangladesh Oscar Committee chose the movie as the entry for the best film in foreign language category.
Doob courted controversy in the wake of reports that it was loosely based on late Bangladeshi writer and filmmaker Humayun Ahmed.
The film, directed by Mostofa Sarwar Farooki denied that it was a biopic and the film later received a 'No Objection Certificate' from the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation. The film released on October 27, 2017 and was later released in Bangladesh, France, India, and Australia.
The movie features Irrfan, who is currently in London undergoing treatment for a neuroendocrine tumour, in the lead. The movie also features Rokeya Prachi as Irrfan’s wife, while Nusrat Imrose Tisha plays the daughter and Indian actress Parno Mittra plays her childhood friend.
Irrfan plays Javed Hasan, a successful director going through midlife crisis when he has a tryst with his daughter's childhood friend whom he also marries, causing a national scandal.
The director said in a statement that he took inspiration from a real-life incident "which shook the very foundation of Bangladesh's judgmental Muslim society" and "how women struggle in our society and find strength in despair".
An India-Bangladesh co-production, Doob, bagged independent jury award at the 39th Moscow International Film Festival besides being nominated for Golden Goblet Awards in Shanghai International Film Festival just before its release. Farooki's previous films, Third Person Singular Number (2009) and Television (2012) were also submitted as Oscar entries.
Bangladesh is yet to secure an Academy Award nomination. Partition-set drama Khacha was its last year's entry. The Oscars award ceremony will be held on February 24.
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