Stars rain down as Bengali streaming platform Hoichoi celebrates 10th season

The event brought together several prominent names from the Bengali film and entertainment industry, including Mithun Chakraborty, Mimi Chakraborty, Koel Mallick, Tota Roy Chowdhury, Gaurav Chatterjee, Iman Chakraborty, Srijit Mukherji and Abir Chatterjee, among others.

Actress Mimi Chakraborty in attendance at Hoichoi's 10th season celebration. Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS

The celebration also saw the presence of several Kolkata-based digital influencers, as Hoichoi looks to expand its engagement with creators and potentially integrate them into future projects. Among those attending were Ratnaraj Bhattacharjee, Debjani Das, Swarnadeep Gayen, Joydipto Ghosh and Niranjan Mondal.

The event's visual theme centred on red and purple. Red reflected Hoichoi's core brand identity, including its red logo, while purple was used to add a celebratory element to the 10th-season event.

Actor Abir Chatterjee at Hoichoi's 10th season celebration. Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS

The celebrity arrivals featured a mix of traditional and western styles, reflecting different interpretations of contemporary Bengali fashion and culture.

Speaking to IBNS on the red carpet, several celebrities reflected on their association with Hoichoi, memorable moments from the past decade, the evolution of Bengali storytelling and their favourite series and characters from the platform.

Icon Mithun Chakraborty enters Hoichoi's 10th season celebration. Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS

Actress Angana Roy recalled her experience working on Srikanta, released in 2022, as one of the highlights of her association with Hoichoi.

“I think my favourite moment would be working for Srikanta, and it blew up like anything. I still get reels and other content that fans make for Srikanta. And every year I have been part of something or the other, and I am happy to be a part of their journey and hope to be there for 10 more,” Roy told IBNS.

“I think Srikanta is my favourite web series since I was a very different person back then when I played Srikanta, and I am very grateful for the way the audience accepted me through Srikanta,” she added.

Actor Prosenjit Chatterjee at Hoichoi's 10th season celebration. Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS

Actor Gaurav Chatterjee, meanwhile, spoke about his association with Hoichoi and said his favourite projects on the platform were his own creations.

Actor Arjun Chakrabarty spoke about the changes in Bengali storytelling over the past decade and announced his upcoming project Kotha Amrito.

“Bengali storytelling has changed greatly because we work differently; we are taking risks, and the industry is taking risks. I am just glad to be a part of this for 10 years in Hoichoi,” Chakrabarty said.

Radio personality Somak Ghosh, known for his association with Eken Babu, highlighted some of the series and creators he has particularly enjoyed on the platform.

“I love Eken Babu obviously, but leaving that, I loved Mandaar very much. I would love to see more series based on storylines like Mandaar. In fact, I feel I really dig the creations and curations of Anirban Bhattacharya,” Ghosh said.

Director Srijit Mukherjee poses with actress Trina Saha at Hoichoi's 10th season celebration. Photo: Avishek Mitra/IBNS

He also mentioned Achinta Aich and praised Hoichoi's non-fiction content created in association with different brands.

“That’s a very fresh thing they do,” he said.

The 10th-season celebration comes as Hoichoi continues to expand its Bengali-language streaming catalogue and reach audiences beyond India. For Bengali-speaking audiences around the world, the platform has also become a way of staying connected with the language, stories and cultural references of Bengal.

With its 10th season, Hoichoi is set to introduce another slate of projects while continuing its focus on Bengali storytelling and new talent.

(Reporting by Swastik Sarkar. Photos by Avishek Mitra/IBNS)