'Bengali Beauty' tops 50 lakhs taka mark in US box office
Rahsaan Noor's "Bengali Beauty" quietly crossed the BDT 50 Lakhs mark at the United States box office over the weekend as it opened at nine locations throughout the country, portending a strong future for the musical comedy-drama.
Despite snowy weather holding down overall movie going and stiff competition from Box Office powerhouse "Black Panther" - "Bengali Beauty" averaged close to 6 Lakhs per location. This number figures to double as "Bengali Beauty" will be doubling its screen count in America in the coming weeks. This will include opening in New York and Boston, two population heavy centers in the USA. Such a release where theaters are added week to week is called a platform release. Ziryab's distribution chief Ridwan Zayd says that the timing could not be better - particularly given how well the movie is playing in all quadrants with plenty of repeat customers.
"We have tremendous momentum heading into the Dhaka release," he said. "It's playing very well across the board, including males under 25. We'll continue to expand during the Ekushey February weekend. We'll go as wide as it merits."
"Bengali Beauty" stars Rahsaan Noor as a radio deejay and Mumtaheena Toya as medical student. Ziryab Films financed the project produced by Ethos Entertainment and Films, which has been receiving widespread praise."The strong word of mouth is the most important element," Zayd said. "We are excited about the response we are getting." The soundtrack has also been bolstering momentum, with strong sales on iTunes and Amazon. The domestic release in Dhaka is expected to be announced within the week.
With 1970s Dhaka as the film's backdrop, and a revolutionary mood, "Bengali Beauty" centers on a demure medical student (Toya) whom falls in love with a brash Bangladesh Radio deejay (Rahsaan Noor) while listening to his World Music show during the revolutionary '70s.
"Bengali Beauty" also stars Sarah Alam and Ashfique Rizwan, whom are making their acting debuts, along with strong performances by industry veterans Pijush Bandhopadhyay, Masum Basher, GM Shahidul Alam, Naziba Basher, and Naila Azad. The music is composed by Rusho Mahtab, and features vocals by Parvez, Tanvir Rossi, Ashreen Mridha, Masha, and Tushar Ahmed.
