'Jazz City's Jimmy is Bengal's Dhurandhar but he doesn't touch a single gun in the whole show': Soumik Sen | Exclusive

Originally slated for a February release, Jazz City has now been postponed to March 2026. This Bengali-language thriller–musical series, directed by Soumik Sen, is set in 1970s Calcutta, capturing the vibrant jazz scene on Park Street amid the turbulence of political unrest and the Bangladesh Liberation War. The series will be released on March 19, 2026, on SonyLIV (OTTplay Premium), and before that, director Soumik had a conversation with OTTplay. 

Jazz City director Soumik Sen's interview excerpts...

What first sparked the idea of telling an espionage story through the world of a jazz club in 1971 Calcutta?

A few things. I mean, obviously, I have grown up on Park Street in Calcutta. My school and college were there. And I have always, you know, been attracted to, you know, jazz music. And I am, you know, I am a musician, by training, as well as by profession, to an extent. But till a lot of a large part of my life, I had no clue that just almost like next door, literally 100 kilometres away, there was a genocide, which was orchestrated four years before I was born, which led to the birth of a new nation. And also much later in life, the International Language Liberation Day is celebrated on the 21st of February, not for any other language, but for Bangla, which is my mother tongue.

And as the world per se, and as largely, we become more homogenous. And everybody seems to be speaking in one language. And, you know, and by and large, people like us were essentially cosmopolitan in our own ways. And obviously, in order to make a living and you embrace other more widely spoken and understood languages, a natural neglect towards your mother tongue does happen. And, so only when you realise that, okay, this is what happened, close to 3 million people, probably more, were killed in a genocide, who are all trying to basically save their language.

It's the only, and then you get to know that it's the only instance in the world where, you know, the majority of a nation actually overthrew the minority. So the Bengali-speaking people in East Pakistan essentially carved out a mission for themselves. So when you see and read of all of these things, and you talk and get to know about Operation Searchlight, and I was like, God damn it, you know, being a Bengali, I don't know.

And we have in films set in 1971, which is largely about the western border, which is largely a corollary, because that was that's the minor event of the 71 war, the major thing happened, where India, in its probably its greatest military triumph, helped create a new nation. And we have hardly any work, which talks about that especially with the Bangla language. So that was the primary, you know, reason for doing this. 

But of course, I wanted to do it in a manner which is very entertaining, seen from the point of view of an apathetic, you know, leading man, who, like me, didn't know much, right. And he gets to know. And yeah, that's the reason why.

Also Read: Jazz City: Release date, OTT platform, cast, plot, and more about Soumik Sen's historical drama about Bangladesh’s revolution

1971 was a turbulent time in Kolkata with political unrest and the Bangladesh Liberation War. How did you ensure the series authentically captures that atmosphere?

Essentially, you know, a great team and they set up this team of production design and all of that, which was exemplary. The huge team (makeup, costumes, and more) that goes around and obviously creates the set of Jazz City, making sure that, you know, certain things are done the way they are. Of course, Kolkata helps, because Kolkata is a city where, even in 2026, there are parts of the city that still look like they were in the 1960s. The architecture is pretty much untapped, and all of that. Of course, a great VFX team. 

Jazz City is described as a musical espionage thriller. How did you balance the intensity of spy drama with the artistic world of music?

So essentially, the music is in two forms. One is jazz, which is more like a dialectic, which is essentially the fact that it's a backdrop, like wallpaper. So if you're in a jazz club, that's the music that you listen to. Of course, there are subtexts and all of that, but that's primarily what it is. 

And then there is the music in Bangla, which is essentially Ranbindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul Islam, Atul Prasad Sen, which is essentially to highlight the ethos of the Bengali culture and the language that people are essentially fighting for. The jazz, of course, talks about one is the mood, the feel, the tonality of what Kolkata is. Obviously, it works as a contrast between these two worlds. 

Jimmy is introduced as someone trying to stay neutral but gets pulled into espionage. What makes him the right lens through which to explore this story?

Jimmy Roy, portrayed by Bangladeshi actor Arifin Shuvoo, is the lead figure in Jazz City. Set against the backdrop of 1970s Calcutta, Jimmy starts as a politically indifferent individual but gradually gets entangled in a perilous web of espionage, music, and intrigue.

Speaking about Jimmy, Soumik said, "Jimmy, I've said this previously, if you've read Lord of the Rings, the task of carrying the ring to Mordor is entrusted by Gandalf to Frodo Baggins. But he gets Samwise Gamgee to go along with him to essentially take the ring, and he carries with him pots and pans, or obviously, it's a long journey, so they'll have to eat. 

And at the bottom of his bag, he carries a small packet of salt. So that basically tells you that even in the worst of situations, where the world is coming to an end, there will always be time that they will hunt and they will eat, and there will be time to season that food. So it's about that joy. 

So Jimmy is, to an extent, like a guy who's oblivious to what's happening across the border. And like most of us are oblivious to what's really happening across the world as of today, now that we are in the centre of a war that is going on in the Middle East. And we don't really know, we'll never know the real picture till the dust really settles. And then there are people who are apathetic about it, who are like, 'I will just do my own thing,' and then you get thrust into that world, okay, which is about your own people, and the suffering and all of that. That is what leads to an inner transformation. That is what Jimmy is about." 

What do you hope viewers take away from Jazz City beyond the thriller aspect?

I think viewers haven't seen a spy drama that is this musical and entertaining, which is a period musical entertaining spy drama in India ever. Because whenever you've seen a period drama, it has always been treated with a lot of, I think, seriousness.

This is a fun show. It's fun in a very with a lot of tongue-in-cheek humor. And I want the music to be the way it is. It needs to be enjoyable. And that's essentially, I think, what it is. Without and also while I'm giving you that entertainment, I'm also opening up chapters of a forgotten part or rather an underheard and underspoken part, about the history of the soft world.

Jazz City is releasing around the same time as Dhurandhar: The Revenge. Do you see it as competition?

Dhurandhar is actually Jimmy Roy is what I call Bengal's Dhurandhar. So the only difference is that he does not touch a single gun in the whole show. So he does not fire a single bullet. He doesn't even hold a gun or a knife, for that matter of fact. He's a true reluctant spy, if I may call it that. And he has nothing, he has nothing with him except for his wits and charms. And so that's where the similarity is. Other than that, this is a different period, this is a different time, it's a different story at a different part of the world.

So yeah, there is involvement of the intelligence agencies and stuff. The other thing is about the more commercial reasons. Obviously, the whole world is looking forward to watching a spectacular sequel to a spectacular film, including me. So I'm going to watch Dhurandhar 2 also. And I think when you come back home after a certain point of time and Dhurandhar is about, I think, a three and a half hour film. Yeah. So this is a 10-part, you know, 50-minute each kind of musical spy thriller, which you watch in the convenience of your own home.

It's two different, I think, two different segments. You can go watch Dhurandhar 2 and come back and watch this, or the other way around. 

How was it working with the whole cast and crew in Jazz City?

Fabulous. They all went through a very gruelling, if I may say so, audition process. We've cast people from various industries, trying to keep them as fresh as I could, as in faces, actors and performances that you've not seen before.

Meanwhile, Jazz City stars Arifin Shuvoo as Jimmy Roy and Sauraseni Maitra as Sheela, alongside an ensemble cast including Shantanu Ghatak, Aniruddha Gupta, Sayandeep Sen, Shreya Bhattacharya, Shataf Figar, Alexandra Taylor, Amit Saha, and Tanika Basu.