Identifying the paranormal trait in his son, his needy father takes him to a budding magician, Sunil Tarafdar, who immediately assures to include Nayan in his stage shows against a monthly allowance to the father and providing upkeep for the boy. With his position becoming regular in the magic shows, Nayan instantly attracts attention of many with varied interests. There are some who would like him to assure their gambling wins while others would want to showcase his abilities worldwide. Again there were others who would want Nayan to reveal their forgotten passkeys while there would be obsessive collectors lurking, ready to stoop low enough to snatch Nayan away from his free life and place him among their prized collections. Everything happens as Tarafdar gears up for his South India tour, backed by his mysterious sponsor, who wishes to remain anonymous.
Soon a kidnapping attempt on the boy right from the residence of Tarafdar follows. The worried wizard seeks the help of Feluda and Co who offers to help by accompanying the boy and the magic party through their upcoming tour. But the task of protecting the boy becomes difficult as, thanks to Tarafdar, media is briefed of the tour well in advance who publicizes the event much before the tour begins. Also, Feluda is forced to take another case of a businessman, allegedly fearing for his life. Thus the stage is set for a showdown as threats pile up while protecting both his clients.
The original novel had never been my favourite as fantasy prevailed over mystery but it seemed on afterthought, that the novel had the ingredients for a commercial movie with magic, action, paranormal, theft, murder and the climactic twist. Curiously however, all these being shown, but the actual essence of suspense and tension is missed somehow. The entire presentation thus becomes bland and only fit for the less matured. The background score was insufficient and the direction was not up to the mark. Infact, pondering over whatever the film offered, the editing will also be held responsible for the less crisp finale. Thus, Sandip Ray gives us something that the entire family may watch together but the refreshing Ray touch is disregarded entirely.
As to the acting, two persons stand out among the flock. They are Abhinav Barua as Nayan putting up a splendid show, perfect and naive, just what the character required and Supriyo Dutta as the crazy collector, T N T. Indeed, Dutta steals the limelight in most of the scenes he features and breathes the much needed energy and relief in the otherwise impassive settings with his animatedly menacing gestures and spontaneous playacting. Frankly speaking, I have liked Indranil Sengupta with his natural smartness and humility as Feluda and if he could manage to improve his dialect, he will indeed be a better Feluda, given his characteristic inclination of not copying the style of any of his predecessors. Ayush Das complements well as Topshe and devoid of any street smartness, might shine as a better successor if he matures in the line that the character demands, the subtle apprentice and the primary admirer of the sleuth. Abhijeet Guha is another person who understands Jatayu better than many and thus we get a happily comical Jatayu, in a more responsible role this time, instead of a jester that many had previously and of course, mistakenly, characterized.
In summary, similar to what Feluda advised to Tarafdar about the missing splendour and grandeur that his neat magic show demanded, we can reiterate only similarly the need of a bit of intellectual sparkle in future Feluda movies to augment the appeal of the uncomplainingly compact version of the silver screen release.
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