Chhotolok
{{Short description|Indian Bengali-language web-series}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox television
| image = Chhotolok Poster.jpg
| caption = Chhotolok Poster
| genre = Suspense Thriller
| creator = Indranil Roychowdhury
| inspired_by =
| writer =
| screenplay = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
| director = Indranil Roychowdhury
| producer = Patralika Mukherjee, Soumya Mukhopadhyay, Anasua Roychoudhury
| starring = Indrani Haldar
Daminee Benny Basu
Gaurav Chakrabarty
Priyanka Sarkar
Ushasie Chakraborty
Ushasi Ray
| music = Gaurab Gaboo Chatterjee
| country = India
| language = Bengali
| num_episodes = 9
| executive_producer = Samar Ray
| editor = Amit Ray
| company =
| network = ZEE5
| first_aired = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
| last_aired =
}}
Chhotolok is Bengali crime thriller drama web series starring Indrani Haldar, Daminee Benny Basu, Gaurav Chakrabarty, Priyanka Sarkar, Ushashi Ray, Pratik Dutta and Ushasie Chakraborty. It was created and directed by Indranil Roychowdhury. It is also the director's first web series.{{Cite news | title= Web series 'Chhotolok' to stream soon |url= https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tv/news/bengali/web-series-chhotolok-to-stream-soon/articleshow/104035860.cms |access-date=25 October 2023|website=The Times Of India |date= 29 September 2023 |language=en}}{{Cite web | title= Actor Ushasi Ray talks about her role in the web series Chhotolok |url= https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/tv/2023/nov/02/actor-ushasi-ray-talks-about-her-role-in-the-web-series-chhotolok-54733.html |access-date=5 November 2023|website=IndulgeExpress |date= 2 November 2023 |language=en}}{{Cite web | title= Director Indranil Roychowdhury opens up about his web series debut Chhotolok |url= https://www.indulgexpress.com/entertainment/tv/2023/oct/26/director-indranil-roychowdhury-opens-up-about-his-web-series-debut-chhotolok-54503.html |access-date=5 November 2023|website=IndulgeExpress |date= 26 October 2023 |language=en}}
Plot
Desperate to come out of a failing marriage, a married man gets into a whirlwind affair with a glamorous woman who has a criminal past, but ends up as the prime accused when she is murdered. The case falls into a timid but determined cop who unearths a deep buried scandal about the man's family involving his politically affiliated mother.
Cast
- Indrani Haldar{{Cite web | title= Chhotolok trailer: Priyanka Sarkar, Ushasi Ray, Gaurav Chakraborty shine in Indranil Roychowdhury's show |url= https://www.ottplay.com/news/chhotolok-trailer-priyanka-sarkar-ushasi-ray-gaurav-chakraborty-shine-in-indranil-roychowdhurys-show/32bca368a3828|access-date=25 October 2023|website=ottplay.com |language=en}} as Mohor Bhattacharya: A political leader.
- Damini Benny Basu as Sabitri Mondol: Sub-Inspector of Gajipur Police Station; Investigator of the murder case of Rupsha Ghosh.
- Gaurav Chakrabarty as Raja Bhattacharya: An engineer; Mohor's son; Mallika's husband.
- Priyanka Sarkar as Mallika Das: An accountant; Raja's wife.
- Ushasi Ray{{Cite news | title= Ushasi Ray to entertain the viewers in a new web series |url= https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tv/news/bengali/ushasi-ray-to-entertain-the-viewers-in-a-new-web-series/articleshow/100870546.cms|access-date=25 October 2023|newspaper=The Times of India |date= 9 June 2023|language=en}} as Rupsha Ghosh: Model cum actor; Mallika's ex colleague.
- Ushasie Chakraborty{{Cite web | title= Exclusive! Ushasie Chakraborty: Lobbying and PR are more important qualities than the acting ability to bag a role in Tollywood |url= https://www.ottplay.com/interview/exclusive-ushasie-chakraborty-lobbying-and-pr-are-more-important-qualities-than-the-acting-ability-to-bag-a-role-in-tollywood/e6206db9b7854|access-date=25 October 2023|website=ottplay.com |language=en}} as Kasturi Guha: A chartered accountant, who rules many "big fishes".
- Debesh Chattopadhyay as Tanmay Bagchi: A political leader, MLA; Mohor Bhattacharya's rival.
- Loknath Dey as Farooq.
- Joydip Mukherjee as Aditya Bhattacharya: Mohor's husband; Raja's father.
- Sumeet Samaddar as Madhusudan: Mohor's younger brother.
- Jeet Sundar Chakrabarty as Basudev Das aka Basu.
- Pratik Dutta as Jamil Sheikh: Junior of Sabitri.
- Tapasya Dasgupta as Pushpo: Putul and Basu's mother.
- Suvrajit Dutta as Rudra Mondal: A medicine shop keeper; Sabitri's husband.
Episodes
{{series overview
| color1 = #804848
| link1 = Chhotolok #Season 1 (2023)
| episodes1 = 9
| start1 = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
| end1 = {{N/A|TBA}}
}}
= Season 1 (2023) =
{{Episode table |background=#804848 |overall= |title= |director= |writer= |airdate= |airdateR= |country= |aux4= |aux4T= Length (Minutes) |episodes=
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 1
|Title = A Respectable Residential Complex
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = A young woman is found dead in her apartment. Sub Inspector Sabitri Mondal and ASI Jamil Sheikh from the Gazitala Police Station are assigned to the case.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 2
|Title = An Open And Shut Case
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = The police arrest the victim's secret lover, but he denies committing the crime. Is he telling the truth?
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 3
|Title = The Little Mercies of an Antacid
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = The interrogation continues as the police dive deep into Raja Bhattacharya's past. They find more details about his family and a brief affair with Rupsa.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 4
|Title = Darling, Come to Me
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = The police start interrogating Mallika and find out about Rupsa's double life. An unnatural death from Mohor's past resurfaces.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 5
|Title = Patiala to Patuli
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = Rupsa's murder case goes to court. Raja's married life comes to the forefront. Police start investigating the stories and plots surrounding the murder.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 6
|Title = City of Dogs
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = An unexpected meeting of two old acquaintances reveals further details about the Bhattacharya family's murky past.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 7
|Title = A Big Fish
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = Madhu gets a reality check, and more skeletons from the past tumble out. The investigation leads the police to an influential person.
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 8
|Title = An Undelivered Package
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = Sub Inspector Sabitri Mondal is about to take a chance that could potentially end her career. What will her next step be?
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
|EpisodeNumber = 9
|Title = Egg Mutton Roll
|DirectedBy = Indranil Roychowdhury
|WrittenBy = Sugata Sinha, Indranil Roychowdhury
|OriginalAirDate = {{Start date|2023|11|03|df=yes}}
|Aux4 = 30 Minutes
|ShortSummary = Familiar faces emerge in unfamiliar territories as Sabitri wraps up the case. But is the case really solved?
|LineColor = 000
}}
{{Episode list
}}
}}
Production
Director Indranil Roychowdhury started shooting for the show in October 2022 after a year of scripting and workshops with his actors.{{Cite web | title= Indranil Roychowdhury on Chhotolok: I want to make a pure Bengali thriller without any influence of Hollywood, Nordic or Korean style |url= https://www.ottplay.com/news/indranil-roychowdhury-on-chhotolok-i-want-to-make-a-pure-bengali-thriller-without-any-influence-of-hollywood-nordic-or-korean-style/3e318ac015940 |access-date=25 October 2023|website=ottplay.com |language=en}}
Marketing
The show was officially announced by ZEE5 on December 11, 2022.{{Citation|title= ZEE5 announces new Bengali shows with popular directors and actors|url= https://www.telegraphindia.com/entertainment/zee5-announces-new-bengali-shows-with-popular-directors-and-actors/cid/1903667 |access-date=25 October 2023 |website= The Telegraph (India) |language=en}}{{Citation|title= ZEE5 to strengthen regional play with original content slate in Bengali|url= https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/info-tech/zee5-to-strengthen-regional-play-with-original-content-slate-in-bengali/article66251590.ece |access-date=25 October 2023 |website= TheHinduBusinessline.com |date= 11 December 2022 |language=en}} Following that, a teaser poster of the show was first revealed on Jun 8, 2023.{{Cite web | title= Chotolok Poster Out: ওটিটিতে এবার স্ক্রিনশেয়ার শ্রীময়ী-জুন আন্টির, মুক্তি পেল নতুন সিরিজের মোশন পোস্টার |url= https://www.etvbharat.com/bengali/west-bengal/entertainment/movie/indrani-halder-and-ushasi-chakrabortys-web-series-new-poster-out/wb20230608213840940940357 |access-date=25 October 2023|website=etvbharat.com |date= 8 June 2023 |language=bn}} The trailer of the show was launched on October 12, 2023.{{Cite web | title= Zee 5 Series Chhotolok Trailer: গোয়েন্দা গিন্নির পর রাজনীতির ময়দানে ইন্দ্রানী, রহস্য-যৌনতায় ঠাসা 'ছোটলোক'-র ট্রেলার |url= https://eisamay.com/entertainment/tv-news/zee-5-originals-upcoming-web-series-chhotolok-will-be-streaming-from-3-november-trailer-out-now/articleshow/104359570.cms |access-date=25 October 2023|website=eisamay.com |date= 12 October 2023 |language=bn}}{{Cite news | title= 'Chhotolok' trailer: Indranil Roychowdhury's thriller promises a riveting murder mystery |url= https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movies/news/chhotolok-trailer-indranil-roychowdhurys-thriller-promises-a-riveting-murder-mystery/articleshow/104389903.cms?from=mdr|access-date=25 October 2023|newspaper=The Times of India | date=13 October 2023 |language=en}}
Reception
The show drew positive reactions across board from critics. The Indian Express call it "Bengal’s best web series" rating it 4 out of 5.{{Cite web | title= Caste, class and a special brand of sexism: Chhotolok, Bengal's best web series is defiantly feminist|url= https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/web-series/caste-class-and-a-special-brand-of-sexism-chhotolok-bengals-best-web-series-is-defiantly-feminist-9011862/|access-date=5 November 2023|website=IndianExpress.com |date= 3 November 2023|language=en}} OTTPlay commented, "Chhotolok is one of the finest Bengali content available in India in the OTT space."{{Cite web | title= Chhotolok review: Daminee Basu shines bright in Indranil Roy Chowdhury's unputdownable cop drama
|url= https://www.ottplay.com/review/chhotolok-review-daminee-basu-shines-bright-in-indranil-roy-chowdhurys-unputdownable-cop-drama/628bec8cb832|access-date=5 November 2023|website=IndianExpress.com |language=en}}
References
External links
- {{IMDb title|id=tt29458434 }}
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDSto24CaVI Chhotolok Trailer] on YouTube
- [https://www.zee5.com/web-series/details/chhotolok/0-6-4z5379682 Chhotolok] on ZEE5
Category:2023 Indian television series debuts
Category:ZEE5 original programming