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{{short description|2010 Indo-Japanese romantic drama film directed Aparna Sen}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = The Japanese Wife<br>妻は、はるか日本に<br/>দ্যা জাপানীজ ওয়াইফ
| image = The Japanese Wife.jpg
| caption = Poster
| director = [[Aparna Sen]]
| producer =
| eproducer =
| aproducer =
| story = [[Kunal Basu]]
| writer =
| screenplay = [[Aparna Sen]]
| based_on =
| starring = {{ubl|[[Rahul Bose]]|[[Raima Sen]]|[[Moushumi Chatterjee]]|[[Chigusa Takaku]]}}
| narrator =
| music = Sagar Desai
| cinematography = [[Anay Goswamy]]
| editing = Raviranjan Maitra|
| studio =
| distributor = [[Saregama|Saregama Films]]
| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2010|04|09}}<ref>{{cite web |url= http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?675188 |title= Aparna Sen's 'The Japanese Wife' to be released on April 9 |date= 24 February 2010 |work= Outlook India |accessdate= 25 February 2010 |url-status= dead |archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20110718090335/http://news.outlookindia.com/item.aspx?675188 |archivedate= 18 July 2011 |df= dmy-all }}</ref>
| runtime = 105 minutes
| country = India<br>Japan
| language = {{ubl|English|Bengali|Japanese}}
| budget =
| gross =
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}
'''''The Japanese Wife'''''
is a 2010 Indian-Japanese [[romantic drama]] film directed by [[Cinema of West Bengal|Bengali filmmaker]] [[Aparna Sen]]. It stars [[Rahul Bose]], [[Raima Sen]] and [[Moushumi Chatterjee]], and Japanese actress [[Chigusa Takaku]] in the title role. It is in [[English language|English]], [[Bengali language|Bengali]] and [[Japanese language|Japanese]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Hindustan Times| work=Aparna Sen Next film|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=b56f523b-0ae7-4af7-a347-bcda9ed1643d&ParentID=c207f947-4a26-4f76-80be-cff2b5b63c06&&Headline=Aparna+Sen's+hands+are+full/|accessdate=24 March 2007}}</ref>
The film was originally scheduled for release in October 2008,<ref>{{cite web|title=Hindustan Times| work=The Japanese wife hits theatres in October|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=694a5dbf-73fd-469c-9c49-d1141b35d7b4&&Headline=EMThe+Japanese+wife%2fEM+hits+theatres+in+October|accessdate=30 January 2008}}</ref> but the release was delayed until 9 April 2010.

The story revolves around a young [[Bengali people|Bengali]] village school teacher ([[Rahul Bose]]) marrying his [[Japanese people|Japanese]] pen friend ([[Chigusa Takaku]]) over letters and remaining true and loyal to her throughout his life, while actually never meeting her.

== Plot ==
Snehamoy Chatterjee ([[Rahul Bose]]) and Miyage ([[Chigusa Takaku]]) are pen pal friends who develop a deep and emotional relationship. Eventually, the pair exchange wedding vows through letters. Seventeen years pass but they never meet, yet the bond of marriage is strong between them. This unusual relationship is tested when a young widow, Sandhya ([[Raima Sen]]), comes to stay with Snehmoy along with her eight-year-old son Poltu. Snehmoy and the little boy bond and the arithmetic teacher discovers the joy of palpable bonds and fatherhood. He also develops an inexplicable thread of understanding with Sandhya too.
Despite this Snehmoy remains loyal to his unseen Japanese wife. When Miyage is diagnosed with cancer and falls ill, Snehmoy takes a long leave of absence from his school and tries to find a cure for her illness. Snehmoy sets out one day during a storm to talk to the closest oncologist in Calcutta, but leaves upon realization that without Miyage physically being there, the doctor can do little. The storm turns violent, with harsh wind and rain. Snehmoy stops to call Miyage, and the exposure to the cold causes him to catch pneumonia when he returns to his house. Due to the continuing storm, no villagers are able to travel to Gosaba by boat to obtain the antibiotics required to cure his infection, and he dies some days later. After the sea calms down, Miyage, who is dressed in a white sari and has a shaved head (a tradition of Hindu widows) visits the house of her late husband. Sandhya welcomes her.

== Cast ==
*[[Rahul Bose]] as Snehamoy Chatterjee
*[[Raima Sen]] as Sandhya
*[[Chigusa Takaku]] as Miyage
*[[Moushumi Chatterjee]] as Maashi
*[[Rudranil Ghosh]] as Fatik
*[[Kunal Basu]]: Special appearance

==Production==
The production of the film started in April 2007. This is the first time [[Aparna Sen]] has made a film based on someone else's story. This movie is based on the title story of ''The Japanese Wife and Other Stories'' by Bengali Indian author [[Kunal Basu]], who writes from [[Oxford]] and is an engineer by training. This film was earlier titled as ''The Kite'', but later changed to the name of the original story title.

The shooting locations are [[Kolkata]] and [[Sundarbans]] in [[Bengal]] and the [[Japan]]ese cities of [[Yokohama]] and [[Tsukuba, Ibaraki]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The China Post| work=New film probes Indian-Japanese romance|url=http://www.chinapost.com.tw/art/108511.htm|accessdate=1 May 2007}}</ref>

===Casting===
Aparna Sen had seen [[Rahul Bose]]'s work in ''[[English, August]]'' and ''[[Split Wide Open]]'' and felt that he was a good, controlled and intelligent actor. In an interview Aparna states that her choice of him for three of her films in a row is because she "can deconstruct him completely and mould him differently in any which way I can. Few actors have this kind of malleability".<ref>{{cite web|title=Sunday Tribune India| work=Touching account of love|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2007/20070610/spectrum/main5.htm|accessdate=10 June 2007}}</ref>

Aparna Sen's daughter [[Konkona Sen Sharma]] was the first choice for the role now played by [[Raima Sen]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Bollywood Humgama| work=Konkona opts out of her mother's film |url=http://www.indiafm.com/news/2007/03/12/9070/|accessdate=12 March 2007}}</ref> For her role, her name is not mentioned in the original short story, but Aparna Sen named her "Sandhya". Aparna told the ''Hindustan Times'' that "Raima as Sandhya shared perfect onscreen chemistry with Rahul. Both are shy and refined and suited the characters well".<ref name="Hindustan Times">{{cite web|title=Hindustan Times| work=Madhusree Chatterjee's Interview of Aparna Sen|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=694a5dbf-73fd-469c-9c49-d1141b35d7b4&&Headline=EMThe+Japanese+wife%2fEM+hits+theatres+in+October|accessdate=29 January 2008}}</ref>

For casting [[Chigusa Takaku]] in the title role, Aparna said "We had hired an agency and chose her after auditioning 12 girls. She is a sensitive woman and an intuitive actress. Hence, she got a feel of the character quickly enough.<ref name="Hindustan Times"/> She didn’t know any English. We had to converse with her through her translator who was always on the sets."<ref>{{cite web|title=Screen India| work=Searching the Japanese Wife|url=http://www.screenindia.com/fullstory.php?content_id=16372|accessdate=6 June 2007}}</ref>

==Reception==

===Critical reception===
[[File:Aparna Sen.jpg|thumb|Director [[Aparna Sen]] at a ''The Japanese Wife'' (2010) promotional event. ]]
The film received positive to very positive reviews from critics in India.

[[Nikhat Kazmi]] of ''[[The Times Of India]]'' rated the film 4 out of 5 stars, and gave it an excellent review saying that, "There is such beauty, restraint and minimalism in this akin-to-a-haiku film, it transports you into another world altogether." She praised the acting of all the lead actors, saying "Rahul Bose is in stellar form with his village boy look and his Bangla Angrezi. Raima Sen is delectable as the reticent, shy widow and Moushumi Chatterjee is a revelation." [[Rajeev Masand]] of ''[[CNN-IBN]]'' rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and gave a good review and praised the acting and direction, saying that, "Despite its leisurely pace and its wildly implausible premise, populated with believable, flesh-and-blood characters who have real fears and anxieties that you can connect with."<ref>{{cite web |url= http://ibnlive.in.com/news/masands-the-japanese-wife-is-a-film-that-stays-with-you/113012-47-84.html?from=tn |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121007052509/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/masands-the-japanese-wife-is-a-film-that-stays-with-you/113012-47-84.html?from=tn |url-status= dead |archive-date= 7 October 2012 |title= Masand: The Japanese Wife, a charming love story |author=Rajeev Masand |date= 10 April 2010 |work= CNN-IBN |accessdate=13 April 2010}}</ref> [[Anupama Chopra]] of ''[[NDTV]]'' rated the film 3 out of 5 stars and praised the acting, but criticized the pace of the film, saying "How much you enjoy Aparna Sen’s The Japanese Wife is directly proportionate to how patient you are. The film is slow to the point of being painful. And yet, if you stay with it, The Japanese Wife is a rewarding experience. It’s rich with yearning and sadness and yet hopeful, in a quiet way."<ref>{{cite web |url= http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_review.aspx?id=501&albumname=The%20Japanese%20Wife |title= Anupama Chopra reviews: The Japanese Wife |author= Anupama Chopra |date= 9 April 2010 |work= NDTV |accessdate=13 April 2010}}</ref> Omar Qureshi of ''[[Zoom (Indian TV channel)|Zoom]]'' rated the film 5 out of 5 stars and called it "zoombastic".

===Box office===
''The Japanese Wife'' had a decent opening with a 44% theatre occupancy. Released on only 32 prints, the film had an 88% initial collection according to Saregama Films.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://movies.ndtv.com/movie_story.aspx?Section=Movies&ID=ENTEN20100137989&subcatg=MOVIESINDIA&keyword=bollywood |title= Prince going strong at the Box Office |author= Indo-Asian News Service |date= 13 April 2010 |publisher=NDTV |accessdate=13 April 2010}}</ref>

===Home media===
In order to combat piracy, ''The Japanese Wife'' DVD was released in India only a month after the film's theatrical premiere.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/actress-raima-sen-launches-dvd-of-the-japanese-wife_100362518.html |title= Actress Raima Sen launches DVD of "The Japanese Wife" |author= Sampurn |date= 12 May 2010 |publisher=Thaindian News |accessdate=14 May 2010}}</ref> Despite this safeguard, the film was pirated soon after cinematic release and was sold online before the film's producers were able to file an injunction against the company.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://calcuttatube.com/oney-seal-fighting-piracy-and-distributing-bangla-films-in-north-america/107914/ |title=Oney Seal Fighting Piracy and Releasing Bangla Films in North America |author=Shoma A Chatterji |publisher=Calcutta Tube |accessdate=25 July 2010}}</ref> It was purchased by Databazaar Media Ventures for distribution in [[North America]] where it was released through [[Netflix]], [[Amazon.com]] and [[iTunes]] on 13 July 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://sify.com/news/aparna-sen-s-the-japanese-wife-set-for-us-distribution-news-international-kecmEcabiic.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100501162035/http://sify.com/news/aparna-sen-s-the-japanese-wife-set-for-us-distribution-news-international-kecmEcabiic.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= 1 May 2010 |title= Aparna Sen's 'The Japanese Wife' set for US distribution |date= 2 April 2010 |publisher=Sify.com |accessdate=10 April 2010}}</ref> In the [[United Kingdom]], the film was shown on [[Channel 4]], on 25 April 2011.<ref>{{cite web|title=Channel 4 TV listings|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=25 April 2011|url=http://theguardiandev.tvgenius.net/text-only/?tvgBroadcaster=UKTerrestrial&tvgRegion=Channel+Islands&tvgFlagFilter=&tvgChannelName=Channel+4|archiveurl=http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:1FCTKnxafb8J:theguardiandev.tvgenius.net/text-only/%3FtvgBroadcaster%3DUKTerrestrial%26tvgRegion%3DChannel%2BIslands%26tvgFlagFilter%3D%26tvgChannelName%3DChannel%2B4+japanese+wife+channel+4&cd=8&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk&source=www.google.co.uk|archivedate=2011-04-25|accessdate=2011-06-07}}</ref>

==Awards==
*Star Entertainment Award for Best Film
*Star Entertainment Award for Best Director, [[Aparna Sen]]
*Star Entertainment Award for Best Cinematography, [[Anay Goswamy]]
*Best Film Award at the 2010 Hidden Gems Film Festival<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/the-japanese-wife-wins-at-hidden-gems-film-festival/707429/ |title='The Japanese Wife' wins at Hidden Gems Film Festival |publisher=Indian Express |date=2010-11-05 |accessdate=2012-10-16}}</ref>
*Silver Crow Pheasant Award (Audience Choice) at 2010 [[International Film Festival of Kerala]]<ref>{{cite news|title=Top prize for Colombian film|url=http://www.hindu.com/2010/12/18/stories/2010121862590400.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110320021838/http://www.hindu.com/2010/12/18/stories/2010121862590400.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=20 March 2011|accessdate=19 April 2011|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|date=18 December 2010}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{External media
|video1= {{YouTube|OR7ru1r8pWc|Full movie}}
}}
*{{IMDb title|id=1620620|title=The Japanese Wife}}
* [http://www.reviewgang.com/movies/54-The-Japanese-Wife-Reviews The Japanese Wife] at ReviewGang

{{Aparna Sen}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Japanese Wife}}
[[Category:2010 films]]
[[Category:2010 romantic drama films]]
[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:Indian romantic drama films]]
[[Category:English-language Indian films]]
[[Category:Bengali-language films]]
[[Category:Films set in Kolkata]]
[[Category:Films based on short fiction]]
[[Category:Films about interracial romance]]
[[Category:Foreign films shot in Japan]]
[[Category:Films shot in India]]
[[Category:Films directed by Aparna Sen]]
[[Category:2010s Bengali-language films]]
[[Category:Japan in non-Japanese culture]]

The Japanese Wife - Revision history

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