Debut Film Exposes Kolkata's Discriminatory Rental Market

In October 2025, a medical practitioner's debut feature film 'Pinjar' is making waves at the 31st Kolkata International Film Festival. The film, which focuses on the subject of bird poaching, has also explored the city's discriminatory tenancy problem that makes it challenging for Muslims to find rental accommodation in Kolkata.

The film's director, Rudrajit Roy, was inspired to make the movie after treating a Muslim patient whose relative had faced dire housing problems in the city during the COVID-19 pandemic. "The relative of my patient had an extended family living with him. During Covid, he was asked to shift elsewhere. The reason given was that the average number of people living under the same roof in a Muslim family is more than usual. It became a nightmare for this family to then find a new apartment in Kolkata," Roy recounted.

This experience contributed to the making of 'Pinjar', which depicts the struggles of a Muslim poacher who pines for his wife, who cannot come and stay with him in the city due to the tenancy challenges. The film, shot by Manas Bhattacharyya with vintage lenses mounted on a digital camera, showcases how "people from all strata of life can be very rude while discriminating against others on the basis of religion." In one scene, a ruthless landlord turns away the Muslim poacher after learning about his religious identity, and the maid subsequently washes the porch as an act of "cleansing."