Soumik Haldar on why he won't do his debut film's photography

Cinematographer Soumik Haldar is one of the most-sought after names in Tollywood. Even before locking in a project, directors make a beeline in front of his house to rope him in. However, Haldar says that he won't be doing the principal photography in his debut directorial. Surprising, isn't it? Haldar, who has done the cinematography for films such as Chander Pahar, Aar Ekti Premer Galpo and Jaatiswar, says, "As a director my primary task is to tell a story convincingly and hence I want to concentrate on that. Mrinmoy is the cinematographer of this film. I have decided not to touch the camera. In fact, even in the future when I direct, I probably won't be doing the principal photography," he smiles.

Haldar was supposed to make his directorial debut on the big screen with a project starring Prosenjit Chatterjee. However, he has to wait for a while for that film to take off. In the meantime, he will be seen wielding the megaphone for Barood, a film produced by Chatterjee for the small screen. "I would love to direct a full-length feature film. Srijit's (Mukherji) next film on Kakababu got postponed. So, we had some time in between. This is also a wonderful opportunity given to me by Bumba da (Prosenjit is fondly known by this name in the industry). This will be like a warm-up match before the final," laughs Haldar, who has done the cinematographer for films such as Shob Charitro Kalponik, 22 e Srabon and Goynar Baksho.

A story of two neighbouring paras (para is street in Bengali), Haldar has roped in Mainak and Ritabhari Chakraborty to play the lead roles. Haldar, who doesn't want to reveal the story much, however, says that Mainak will be seen playing a goon in the film. "The story needed fresh faces and Mainak and Ritabhari fitted the bill. They soon develop a relationship. But this is not a simple boy-meets-girl story. Padmanabha (Dasgupta), who has also written the film's script, plays the film villain. The story has a political angle and also stars Koushik Kar and Nina (recently seen in Swade Ahlade)," says Haldar.

Kamaleshwar Mukherjee, who has directed films such as Chander Pahar and Meghe Dhaka Tara, will be seen playing a police officer in the film. "The character doesn't have much screen time but it's highly relevant," says Haldar, who has also done the cinematography for Mukherjee's new film, starring Prosenjit Chatterjee, Raima Sen and Paoli Dam.