Kadambari Devi, 13 years younger to her playwright husband Jyotirindranath, came to the Tagore household in July 1868, and committed suicide on April 19, 1884, about four months after Rabindranath's marriage. She was slightly older than the poet.
"Kadambari Devi, her space in the poet's life, her equations with other women in the Tagore household as well as husband Jyotirindranath Tagore, will always make her as one of the most intriguing characters in Bengali literary history," Konkona says.
The set was built at a heritage house near 'Thakurbari' (the Tagore house) at Jorasanko in north Kolkata and Konkona was draped in a blue saree and long sleeve blouse with frills, typical of that age.
Asked how much she had known about Kadambari Devi, Konkona said, "I had previously read and heard about her. But after sounded by Suman (director Suman Ghosh) I began scouring for more books on her and got a better grasp about her character. She was a forward looking creative woman of that era and bonded well with the women in Thakurbari."
Asked if Kadambari is the principal character in the film, director Suman says, "Yes, Kadambari is my protagonist and I had only Konkona in mind for her personality, her intellectual edginess and vulnerability."
Suman, who has made acclaimed movies like 'Dwando', 'Podokkhep' and 'Nobelchor', said, "I have put great effort to dwell on the psyche of Kadambari and other woman of the household. But that does not mean there is only passing references to men like Jyotirindranath and Rabindranath.