Chokher Bali ( Bengali: চোখের বালি; literally translated to "sand in the eye", figuratively to "constant irritant") is a Bengali drama film based on the novel Chokher Bali by Rabindranath Tagore. It was directed by Rituparno Ghosh in 2003 and stars Prasenjit as Mahendra, Aishwarya Rai as Binodini and Raima Sen as Ashalata. Ashalata and Binodini refer to each other as Chokher Bali. The other major characters are played by Lily Chakravarty (as Rajlakshmi, Mahendra's mother) and Tota Roy Chowdhury (as Behari, Rajlakshmi's adopted son). The film was later dubbed into Hindi and was released internationally in that language.
Upon release, Chokher Bali met with positive critical and box office reception.
Chokher Bali won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali and was nominated for the Golden Leopard (Best Film) award at the Locarno International Film Festival in 2003. The film screened at the 34th International Film Festival of India on 19 October. It was the Official Selection at the Chicago International Film Festival in 2003 and was showcased in over 25 international festivals including the Toronto International Film Festival, London Film Festival, Palm Springs, Karlovy Vary and Washington DC International Film Festival besides winning the Apsara Film Producers' Award for the Best Regional Film 2004. Aishwarya Rai had won the Best Actress award at the Anandalok Awards 2003.
Come, come like sugar my love
Until the bitter taste is gone
These images then burn my eyes
Like the thumbprints of the sun
Come, come everything to please me
Candy canes on parade
Lay me in the sun till every trace is gone
I am bleached away, bleached away
Oh sugar pill I believe you
Oh sugar pill I wanna eat you up up up up
[ The Bravery Lyrics are found on www.songlyrics.com ] Now I am blissed out
I have kaleidoscope eyes
I'm light as cotton
I am wide as the sky
This is where my thoughts come to die
And I am happy
Oh sugar pill I believe you