No competition with myself: Abir

Not considering it a war against himself, 'Feluda' Abir Chatterjee feels Ray's lucknow-based classic thriller will have its own takers during this Christmas season.
"I am keen to know how the audience receives me as Feluda. I had long been yearning for taking the cloak previously worn by Soumitra Chatterjee and Sabyasachi Chakroborty," Abir said on the eve of the release of the thriller, based on the effervescent Bengali sleuth, still getting one of the highest number of sale 'TRP's as a Bengali book in any book fair.
"And yes there is anticipation how my audience reacts to a portrayal shot three years back. But if you ask me, I had been getting into the skin of Feluda since director Sandip Ray told me more than a year back and I kept my dates. I look forward to do more Feludas in days to come," the Kanamachi and Jodi Love Dile Naa Praane actor said.

Abir, who wouldn't dwell on it more, recalled his shooting days in Lucknow for the film.
"This is one of the earliest Feluda stories and I am glad to start my innings as Satyajit Ray's ageless sleuth with this work. Badshahi Angti in a way marks the debut of Feluda as a private investigator when he was younger, and I was really excited on sets since I had grown up watching Soumitra uncle and Benuda (Sabyasachi) on big and small screens. It was a dream come true," Abir said.
"We had been introducing Feluda in new horizons and situations in the Christmas season every alternate season. So it had long been decided ever since shooting started that Badshahi Angti, one of the most layered works by my father, will hit the screens this time of the year. This was a decision involving everybody - me, producers and the cast - director Sandip Ray said.