Agartala: Sayantika Dhar, a young talent from Udaipur in Tripura’s Gomati district, has stepped onto the Tollywood silver screen with the Bengali feature film “Ananda Ashram”, marking a significant milestone in her budding acting career.
Produced by Maa Durga Production and directed by Ranjan Dutta, the family drama was released on July 31, 2026. Sayantika’s debut has drawn appreciation from audiences in Tripura as well as sections of Kolkata’s film fraternity.
A Class IX student of Udaipur English Medium School, Sayantika is the daughter of late Tripura Police DSP Surjit Dhar and homemaker Rakhi Singh Dhar. Alongside her studies, she has pursued her passion for dance from an early age and received training in both classical and Western forms.
Her journey towards cinema began in April 2025 after her family came across a social media advertisement from Maa Durga Production. Following a telephonic interaction and video-conference audition, she was shortlisted and invited to Kolkata for a photoshoot on April 19.
Sayantika subsequently underwent specialised training for around two to three months at Nandan in Kolkata, preparing her for her first appearance on the big screen.
Based on a story by Amalesh Chatterjee, “Ananda Ashram” centres on a small orphanage run by an elderly caregiver. The institution faces a threat from an ambitious real-estate project backed by a corrupt local MLA, triggering a struggle to protect the orphanage. The film combines family emotions with themes of social resistance and civic consciousness.
The film features established Tollywood actors Bodhisattwa Majumdar, Kaushik Banerjee, Laboni Sarkar, Shakti Dey and Soma Chakraborty, alongside young performers including Shubhojit Laha and Rittika Mondal. Sumit Acharya has handled the musical arrangements.
The film’s trailer and soundtrack were unveiled at a promotional programme at Nandan in Kolkata, attended by several film personalities.
While Sayantika has reportedly received offers for further projects, her debut has brought mixed emotions. She expressed disappointment that “Ananda Ashram” cannot be screened in her hometown because Udaipur does not have a cinema hall.
Calling for a theatre in the town, Sayantika said she hopes residents of Udaipur will someday have the opportunity to watch films on the big screen without travelling elsewhere.
