The ‘Suchitra Sen International Bangla Film Festival’ is held at the Jamaica Performing Arts Centre in New York. It is scheduled to take place on April 20–21 to commemorate the renowned heroine of the subcontinent, Suchitra Sen. This festival featured the world premiere of the film Neelapadma.
The festival received numerous film submissions from both Bengali regions. One of the films chosen for the festival was ‘Neelpadma’, the newest work by independent director Taufiq Elahi. The film had its global premiere during the festival.
For about two years, Taufiq Elahi, the producer, conducted an extensive study on the lives, social identity, and rights of sex workers in Daulatdia brothel, which is one of the largest sex villages in the subcontinent. As a result of this research, he independently produced the film ‘Neel Padma’.
Runa Khan portrayed the protagonist in this narrative, centred around a female character. In addition, Rokeya Prachi, Mamunur Rashid Apu, Shahed Ali, Sujat Shimul, and other actors have portrayed significant characters in different roles.