Guptodhoner Sondhane

India under the Mughal rule.

Emperor Shah Jahan on the throne.

Dara Sukoh, the emperor's oldest son, stayed by his side.

Among the other princes, Murad was in Gujarat.

Auragazeb was in the Deccan.

And Prince Shuja was in Bengal.

Bengal became very rich under Shuja.

Shuja too became wealthy.

6th September, 1657.

It was rumoured that Emperor Shah Jahan is dead.

The princes descended on Delhi to claim their right to the throne.

Murad and Aurangazeb marched from the West.

Shuja marched from the East.

Dara also prepared himself to confront his brothers.

Dara's brave son Suleiman encountered Shuja in a bloody battle.

Shuja lost and returned to Bengal.

Aurangazeb put Shah Jahan under house arrest.

Murdered his brother Dara.

Murad was killed in prison by assassins.

Aurangazeb ascended the throne of Delhi.

Shuja mustered another army and marched towards Delhi again.

At Khajwa, a decisive battle followed.

Shuja was defeated again.

He was chased by Aurangazeb's commander Mir Jumla.

Bengal wasn't safe for Shuja anymore.

He decided to take refuge in Arakan, the present day Myanmar.

He wished to gain strength and return.

Before leaving for Arakan...

He entrusted his enormous wealth...

...among his zamindars and stately princes to be hidden safely.

But Shuja's dreams didn't come true.

Aurangazeb conspired with the Arakan king.

Shuja was assassinated.

With his death, his hidden treasures were lost forever.

With time history forgot Shuja's riches hidden in Bengal.

QUEST FOR THE HIDDEN TREASURE

BABU NRISHINGHONARAYAN SINGHO RAY MANIKANTAPUR 1659

Sir is in the study.

- Mr. Singhi? - Come in, Ramkrishna.

I thought you always mind your own business.

And now you've got caught up in the six-nine case.

- Pardon, sir? - Pardon?

Hope you remember the 10 reincarnations of Lord Vishnu?

First is Matsya, the fish. Second is Kurma, the tortoise.

Third is Varaha, the boar. Fourth is Nrisingho, the half-man and half-lion.

Fifth is Vamana, the dwarf.

Sixth, seventh and eighth are Parashurama, Rama and Balarama respectively.

Ninth is Krishna and tenth is Kalki.

Ramkrishna, your name has both Ram and Krishna.

Ram meaning Parashurama, the "sixth" reincarnation of Lord Vishnu.

And Krishna is his "ninth" reincarnation.

Vishnu's six and nine makes your name Ramkrishna.

With the setting sun Six and nine join hands

You pray to Singhi Mansion's Lord Gopal We get the favours of the prayers grand

Sir, you're all about riddles and rhymes.

The temple needs some repairs.

Do these new masons know how to do terracotta work?

Rai, my sister, is in Kolkata. Her husband Subir is busy.

My nephew is not interested in this ancient house.

Sir, this your house. You are the owner.

I'm being harassed regarding it's sale.

So, they've approached you, too?

I have no interest in the 2% of the brokerage...

That's a lot of money...

If they approach again, I'll tell them...

"Mr. Singhi will not sell the house. Never."

Got it?

- Sir? - Mahadeb.

Tell Jyotsna to serve dinner.

- I'm not feeling well. One more thing... - Okay... Yes...

Drop this letter off at the post office. Don't forget.

Okay.

- Jyotsna, serve dinner for sir. - Okay.

Who's there?

Who is there?

Who is it?!

Who...

FOUR MONTHS LATER...

Hi!

- Hi, Abir... All good? - All good... I'll take it.

Thanks.

No need for all this. Give me a hug.

Happy homecoming!

- The seven year itch! - An itch it is.

Will you like it here after so many years in Oxford?

My motherland is the queen among all the countries...

Get in... Let's go...

That's my beloved Motherland...

Sona just returned to India.

After being abroad for so long... Would he like it here?

He can always go back if he doesn't like it here.

With such a brilliant career...

But it's good for the country if guys like him return.

It's surely good for the country...

But the ones coming back should also be benefitted.

Mom!

- They are here... - Let's go...

Come...

Thanks for the gift.

Where are they?

- There he is... - You've lost so much weight, Sona.

"You should take better care..."

Want a beating?

This is for both of you.

- Thank you... - Did I not tell you, Sona'da?

How many times have I told you, he's your father's brother?

Very simple... first cousin of first cousin...

- Come, sit... - Sit...

Uncle or brother, big deal...

It's old-fashioned. We prefer calling everyone brother, "dada".

Correct.

Actually, I like "dada" over uncle.

It makes me feel younger...

Mom, what's for starters? Fish roe fritters...

This boy lives for food. Just like his maternal uncle.

Well, Sona ...

Abir has always been fond of you and his maternal uncle.

Got the sad news from my mom.

Heard your brother passed away suddenly...

Yes, very sad.

He was a perfectly fit guy.

Had a fatal heart attack right before dinner.

What's the name of your maternal uncle's place?

Manikantapur.

What a romantic name!

Your family used to be zamindars there, right?

It used to be spectacular during it's heyday.

Now, only the house remains.

Just look at him.

- You know, Sona... - Yeah...

This Singho Ray mansion in Manikantapur...

...is about 350 years old.

Really? 350 years?

That's from Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan's era.

- Let's make a trip, Sona'da. - Let's go.

Rai, what's up with your son?

I'm noticing everything.

But you don't like going to your uncle's place.

Credit goes to Professor Subarna Sen.

He upgraded a broken house into a mansion from Shah Jahan's time...

Turned a dilapidated case into a historical place.

Your uncle asked you to visit so many times.

But you had other priorities.

That trekking was more important for you.

Sona, I suggest you two visit Manikantapur.

I hardly get any time off from the court.

But we can join you later.

I think it's a great idea.

I just have to take care of a few things first.

And I'm speaking at two seminars. One in RBU and the one in JU.

Let's go after that.

If you leave in the afternoon, you'll reach by the evening.

- Just a matter of three-four hours. - Done.

Great! Let's leave after lunch and have dessert on the way.

Can't you plan anything other than food?

Mom, life is all about food!

You haven't changed at all.

HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF BENGAL

And that's why if we wish to enjoy history...

...we must understand historical connotations in literature too...

We must always keep in mind...

...the novelist, the playwright or the filmmaker who is working on a historical subject...

...is merely inspired. He's not trying to be a historian.

He's only trying to connect history with his times through his art.

Like Shakespeare's "Macbeth" or "Hamlet".

Bankim Chandra Chatterjee's "Raj Singho".

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's "Krishna Kumari".

Or Dijendra Lal Roy's "Noor Jahan" or "Shah Jahan".

The key word is inheritance.

The way there's inheritance in history, it's the same with literature and culture.

The Bengali culture and literature is so rich...

That there's an unmistakeable attachment to this cultural heritage...

Bengalis as global citizens...

...have a deep rooted pride for this inheritance.

Thank you.

You did justice to the buffet.

They won't allow us in 6 Ballygunge Place in the near future.

Sona'da, people who cook only want appreciation.

And the proper appreciation of food is by consuming the food particles.

Keep eating the food...

That's true.

Only you can come up with such things.

But you can't deny the fact that even in Y2K, there's nothing like the two "K"s.

Y2K is the 21st century but what does the other two "K"s stand for?

KIS and KPJ.

KIS is "Kolaghat's Ilish Shorshe", Kolaghat's mustard fish.

And KPJ is "Kochi Pathar Jhol", mutton curry.

When did you last meet your uncle?

He'd called right before I left for the Ladakh trek.

He was really insistent about me visting Manikantapur.

Sad...

He was really witty.

He loved to speak in rhymes and riddles.

Really? Tell me how.

He would say...

"Two sparrows, you and I, You fly and I fly".

You're always flying off the handle but what about him?

My name is Abir which means colour. So, I fly.

He writes, so he flies through his words.

Great sense of humour!