Some films just refuse to die quietly, and Pritilata is one of them. Six years after cameras first rolled, this long-stalled biopic about revolutionary icon Pritilata Waddedar is showing real signs of life again, with director Rashid Palash confirming he’s ready to pick the project back up and Pori Moni ready to step back into the title role.
A Production That Just Kept Stalling
The story goes back to 2020, when Palash began shooting with Pori Moni cast as Pritilata and Golam Rabbani writing the script. The ambition was clear from the start: give Bengal’s most famous woman revolutionary the cinematic treatment she deserved, and introduce her to a generation that might only know her name from a textbook footnote. Then things fell apart not dramatically, but the way most delayed films do, through a slow accumulation of scheduling headaches and production troubles. Estimates suggest only about a third of the film had actually been shot before everything ground to a halt. For years, that’s where it stayed.
A Photo That Reignited Interest
Things shifted in late 2025. Palash posted a photo with Pori Moni and made an announcement that caught fans off guard: the film, he said, would finally be completed in 2026. Pori Moni’s response was simple: she was in, and ready to return to the role. Palash later added that he was targeting April 2026 to shoot the remaining footage, assuming nothing else got in the way.
Who Was Pritilata Waddedar, Really?
If you’re not familiar with her story, it’s worth pausing here. Born in 1911 in Dhalghat, Patiya, in the Chittagong region, Pritilata joined the revolutionary movement under Surya Sen and became one of the key figures in the armed resistance against British rule. Her defining moment came in 1932, when she led the attack on the Pahartali European Club in Chittagong. As British forces closed in during her escape, she was fatally wounded and rather than be captured, she took cyanide. She was only 21. What makes her story resonate even decades later is how she upended the assumption that armed resistance was a man’s arena. She didn’t just support the cause from the sidelines; she led.
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Why This Film Actually Matters
Beyond being a comeback story for Pori Moni, the revival of Pritilata matters because historical cinema has a way of reaching people that textbooks don’t. Figures like Pritilata often get a paragraph in school curricula and little else a film can change that. It’s also worth noting this isn’t the only recent attempt to tell her story. Bir Konnya Pritilata, starring Nusrat Imrose Tisha, actually made it to theaters back in 2023. Both projects started around the same time, but Palash’s version got stuck while the other crossed the finish line first.
What’s Next
The honest answer is: we wait and see. Palash has made promises before, and this project has tested patience for years. But there’s a sense this time that the piece’s director, lead actress, and renewed public interest are actually aligning. If the shoot does wrap this time, Pori Moni’s performance as Pritilata could end up being one of the more talked-about historical roles in recent Bangladeshi cinema. After six years in limbo, the film that started in 2020 might finally reach the screen.
FAQ
Who plays Pritilata Waddedar in the film?
Pori Moni, in Rashid Palash’s Pritilata.
Who’s directing it?
Rashid Palash, with the screenplay written by Golam Rabbani.
When did filming start?
2020, with the first schedule shot in Dhaka.
Why was it delayed?
A mix of personal, scheduling, and production issues over several years.
Who was Pritilata Waddedar?
A Bengali revolutionary who fought against British rule and led the 1932 attack on the Pahartali European Club, dying by suicide at 21 rather than face capture.
