Aynabaji

Aynabaji (আয়নাবাজি ) is a Bangladeshi crime thriller film directed by Amitabh Reza Chowdhury and produced by Gousul Alam under the banner of Content Matters Production. The film was released on 30 September 2016 and received critical acclaim for its storytelling, cinematography, and performances. Aynabaji is considered a milestone in Bangladeshi cinema, and is commonly cited by critics as one of the best South Asian films of the 2010s and 21st century.

The film follows the story of Ayna, a professional imposter who is hired to impersonate different individuals for financial gain. As Ayna delves deeper into his work, he becomes embroiled in a web of deceit, murder, and intrigue that threatens to unravel his life.The lead characters of the film are Chanchal Chowdhury, Masuma Rahman Nabila, and Partha Barua.

Aynabaji has received numerous awards and nominations, including the Best Film Award at the 2016 Dubai International Film Festival. Nominated for 11 awards at the 41st Bangladesh National Film Awards and won 7, including the awards for Best Director and Best Actor in a Leading Role, tying Matir Moina (2002) for the most awards won by a single film. It is the highest grossing Bangladeshi film of 2016 and the 22nd highest grossing of all time.

Aynabaji was the highest-grossing film of 2016 in Bangladesh and considered a breakthrough for Chanchal Chowdhury. It was remade into the Telugu language film Gayatri.

Plot
The story is about Ayna, a struggling actor who gets to live his profession in real life after failing in his career. Gifted with the natural talents of acting, he is a man with a versatile character and can morph into anybody he wants. For this, he faces different circumstances in his life and thus the story evolves. It is also a story about the dark side of metro city Dhaka, depicting the constant combat between the ruling class and mass people living the city.

Cast

 * Chanchal Chowdhury as Sharafat Karim Ayna/Nizam Sayeed Chowdhury.
 * Lutfur Rahman George as a dishonest businessman
 * Masuma Rahman Nabila as Hridi
 * Partha Barua as Saber Hossain, a news reporter
 * Bijori Barkatullah
 * Amitabh Reza Chowdhury
 * Brindaban Das as prison officer
 * Jamil Ahmed as Saber's manservant
 * Shohel Mondol
 * Rizvi Hasan
 * Heera Chowdhury
 * Shawkat Osman
 * Shovon Jaman
 * Khairul Basar
 * Iffat Trisha
 * Raihan Chowdhury
 * Gousul Alam (Guest Appearance)

Arifin Shuvoo, and Bijori Barkatullah makes guest appearances as AC Sajjad and Saber's separated wife respectively. Producer Gousul Alam and director Amitabh Reza Chowdhury have special appearances.

Production
Gousul Alam Shaon had written the story for the film, while Anam Biswas adapted into a screenplay. Esha Yousuf was the executive producer of the film while Amitabh Reza is the director of the movie. The entire film was shot in Dhaka. Shooting of the film officially began in February 2015 and ended in August 2015. The film was released on 30 September 2016.

Soundtrack
The music for Aynabaji is composed by Arnob, Fuad, Habib & Chirkut Band. Songs have been well praised by critics.

Release
The film was released on 30 September 2016 in Dhaka and later in Chittagong and other cities. It was screened at Marché du Film at 69th annual Cannes Film Festival, where it scored well. Aynabaji has won the award of the best film at United States's 11th Seattle South Asian Film Festival. The movie was pirated after it was released on Robi online TV. The film had a limited release in theaters in the United States, France, Canada and Australia.

Reception
Aynabaji received large positive reviews. The movie has received a good response from both critics and audience. Zahid Akbar from The Daily Star gave the film a 4 out of 5 star rating, saying "The film provides the viewers with an empathic view to its characters, which is coupled with brilliant storytelling making the audience wanting more." He praised the film for its story, cast, Chanchal Chowdhury's performance, and "impeccable" cinematography, but criticized the film for being too long.

Box office
Rafi Hossain of The Daily Star described it as "an instant blockbuster hit". It did a record 91 shows in 10 days, the highest number for any Bangladeshi film. With an occupancy record of 98.89%, in eight weeks it collected BDT 20.3 million.

Awards

 * Bangladesh National Film Awards 2016
 * Best Director
 * Best Actor
 * Best Screenplay
 * Best Cinematography
 * Best Editing
 * Best Sound Recording
 * Best Costume Design

Spin-off and remake/influence
Aynabaji has a spin-off TV series titled Aynabaji-Original series. Gayatri an official Indian Telugu remake of Aynabaji has been released on 9 February 2018.