Suchitra Sen

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Suchitra Sen

Suchitra Sen as Paro in Bimal Roy's Devdas(1955)

Born

Rama Dasgupta 6 April 1931 Pabna, Bengal Presidency,British India (now in Bangladesh)

Died

17 January 2014 (aged 82) Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Nationality

Indian

Ethnicity

Bengali

Years active

195279

Notable work(s)

Saat Pake Badha Sharey Chuattor Saptapadi Shaapmochan Harano Sur Deep Jele Jai Aandhi

Religion

Hinduism

Spouse(s)

Dibanath Sen (1947-1970 till his death)

Children

Moon Moon Sen

Awards

Padma Shri, Banga Bibhushan

Signature

Suchitra Sen (Bengali pronunciation: [utira en]

listen (helpinfo)), born Rama Dasgupta (

listen (helpinfo);

6 April 1931 17 January 2014), was an Indian actress who acted in several Bengali and a few Hindi films. The movies in which she was paired opposite Uttam Kumar became classics in the history of Bengali Cinema.[1] Suchitra Sen was the first Indian actress to receive an award at an international film festival when, at the 1963 Moscow International Film Festival, she won the Silver Prize for Best Actress for Saat Paake Bandha.[2][3] In 1972, she was awarded the Padma Shri, one of the highest civilian awards in India.[4] From 1979 on, she retreated from public life and shunned all forms of public contact; for this she is often compared toGreta Garbo.[5][6] In 2005, she refused the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest cinematic award in India, in order to stay out of the public eye.[7] In 2012, she was conferred the West Bengal Government's highest honor: Banga Bibhushan.[8]
Contents
[hide]

1 Personal life and education 2 Career 3 In retirement 4 Death 5 Selected filmography 6 Awards 7 References 8 External links

Personal life and education[edit]

Suchitra Sen was born in Pabna, in the present-day Pabna District of Bangladesh, on 6 April 1931.[9][10] Her father Late Karunamoy Dasgupta was the headmaster of the local school, and her mother Indira Devi was a homemaker. She was their fifth child and third daughter. She received her formal education in Pabna.

Suchitra Sen married Dibanath Sen, son of wealthy Bengali industrialist Adinath Sen, in 1947 [11] and had one daughter, Moon Moon Sen, who is a former actress. Her father-in-law Adinath Sen was supportive of her acting in films after her marriage.[12]Her industrialist husband initially invested a lot in her career and gave her all possible support.[13] Suchitra Sen made a successful entry into Bengali films in 1952, and then a less successful transition to the Bollywood film industry. According to persistent but unconfirmed reports in the Bengali press, her marriage was strained by her success in the film industry.[14]

Career[edit]
Suchitra Sen made her debut in films with Shesh Kothaay in 1952, but it was never released.[15] The following year saw her act opposite Uttam Kumar in Sharey Chuattor, a film by Nirmal Dey. It was a boxoffice hit and is remembered for launching Uttam-Suchitra as a leading pair. They went on to become the icons for Bengali dramas for more than 20 years, becoming almost a genre unto themselves. [16] She received a Best Actress Award for the film Devdas (1955), which was her first Hindi movie. Her Bengali melodramas and romances, especially with Uttam Kumar, made her the most famous Bengali actress ever.[17] Her films ran through the 1960s and '70s. She continued to act in films even after her husband died, such as in the Hindi film Aandhi (1974). Aandhi was inspired by India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi[18]. Sen received a Filmfare Award nomination as Best Actress, while Sanjeev Kumar, who essayed the role of her husband, won the Filmfare as Best Actor.[19] One of her best known performances was in Deep Jwele Jaai (1959). She played Radha, a hospital nurse employed by a progressive psychiatrist, Pahadi Sanyal, who is expected to develop a personal relationship with male patients as part of their therapy. Sanyal diagnoses the hero, Basanta Choudhury, as having an unresolved Oedipal dilemma. He orders Radha to play the role though she is hesitant as in a similar case she had fallen in love with the patient. She finally agrees and bears up to Choudhury's violence, impersonates his mother, sings his poetic compositions and in the process falls in love again. In the end, even as she brings about his cure, she suffers a nervous breakdown. The film is noted for its partly-lit close ups of Sen, which set the tone of the film.[20] Asit Senremade the film in Hindi as Khamoshi (1969) with Waheeda Rehman in the Suchitra Sen role.[21] Suchitra Sen's other landmark film with Asit Sen was Uttar Falguni (1963). She plays the dual role of a courtesan, Pannabai, and her daughter Suparna, a lawyer. Critics note that she brought a great deal of poise, grace and dignity to the role of a fallen woman determined to see her daughter grow up in a good, clean environment.[22][23][24] Suchitra Sen's international success came in 1963, when she won the best actress award at the Moscow International Film Festival for the movie Saat Paake Bandha, becoming the first Indian actress to receive an international film award.[25]

A film critic summed up Suchitra Sen's career and continuing legacy as "one half of one of Indian cinema's most popular and abiding screen pairs, Suchitra Sen redefined stardom in a way that few actors have done, combining understated sensuality, feminine charm and emotive force and a no-nonsense gravitas to carve out a persona that has never been matched, let alone surpassed in Indian cinema"[26]

In retirement[edit]
Suchitra Sen refused Satyajit Ray's offer due to a date problem; as a result Ray never made the film Devi Chaudhurani. She also refused Raj Kapoor's offer for a film under the RK banner.[27] Sen continued to act after her husband's death in 1970, but called it a day when "Pronoy Pasha" flopped,[28] and retired from the screen in 1978 after a career of over 25 years to a life of quiet seclusion. She was to do a film project 'Nati Binodini', also starring Rajesh Khanna,[29] but the film was shelved mid-way after shooting when she decided to quit acting. She assiduously avoided the public gaze after her retirement and devoted her time to the Ramakrishna Mission.[9] Suchitra Sen was a contender for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2005, provided she was ready to accept it in person. Her refusal to go to New Delhi and personally accept it from the President of India deprived her of the award.[30]

Death[edit]
Suchitra Sen was admitted to the hospital on 24 December 2013 and was diagnosed with a lung infection. She was reported to have been recovering well in the first week of January.[31] She died at 8.25 am on 17 January 2014, due to a heart attack.[32][33] Suchitra Sen's death has been condoled by many leaders, including the President of India Dr. Pranab Mukherjee, the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, and BJP's Prime Ministerial Candidate Narendra Modi.[34] A gun salute was given before her cremation, as ordered by Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal.[35]

Selected filmography[edit]
Year Title Role Language Director Co-star Notes

1952

Shesh Kothay

Bengali

Unreleased

1953

Saat Number Kayedi

1953

Bhagaban Srikrishna Chaitanya

Bishnupriya

Bengali

Debaki Bose

Vasant Choudhury

Year

Title

Role

Language

Director

Co-star

Notes

1953

Sharey Chuattor

Romola

Bengali

Nirmal Dey

Uttam Kumar

The first film to pair Uttam and Suchitra, in the film their story formed a sub-plot

1953

Kajori

Bengali

Niren Lahiri, Satu Roy

1954

Sadanander Mela

Sheela

Bengali

Sukumar Dasgupta

Uttam Kumar

1954

Ora Thaake Odhare

Bengali

Sukumar Dasgupta

Uttam Kumar

1954

Grihaprabesh

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

Uttam Kumar

1954

Atom Bomb

Suchitra Sen appeared as a background performer or an extra in the film. Shot around 1951, the film released in 1954.

1954

Dhuli

Minati

Bengali

Pinaki Bhushan Prashanta Mukherji Kumar

1954

Maraner Parey

Tanima

Bengali

Satish Dasgupta

Uttam Kumar

1954

Balaygras

Manimala

Bengali

Pinaki Bhushan Mukherji

1954

Annapurnar Mandir

Bengali

Naresh Mitra

Uttam Kumar

1954

Agnipariksha

Bengali

Agradoot

Uttam Kumar

First film where Uttam Suchitra pair got the main billing and the duo's first

Year

Title

Role

Language

Director

Co-star hit.[36]

Notes

1954

Sanjher Pradip

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

1955

Devdas

Parvati (Paro) Hindi

Bimal Roy

Dilip Kumar First Hindi film

1955

Shapmochan

Madhuri

Bengali

Sudhir Mukherjee

Uttam Kumar

1955

Sabar Uparey

Bengali

Agradoot

Uttam Kumar

1955

Snaajhghar

1955

Snaajher Pradeep

Bengali

1955

Mejo Bou

Bengali

1955

Bhalabaasa

Bengali

Debaki Bose

1956

Sagarika

Sagarika

Bengali

Agragami

Uttam Kumar

1956

Trijama

Swarupa

Bengali

Agradoot

Uttam Kumar

1956

Amar Bou

Bengali

1956

Shilpi

Anjana

Bengali

Agragami

Uttam Kumar

1956

Ekti Raat

Swantana

Bengali

Chitta Bose

Uttam Kumar

Year

Title

Role

Language

Director

Co-star

Notes

1956

Subharaatri

Bengali

1957

Harano Sur

Dr. Roma Banerjee

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

Uttam Kumar

1957

Pathe Holo Deri

Mallika

Bengali

Agradoot

Uttam Kumar

1957

Jeeban Trishna

1957

Chandranath

Saraju

Bengali

Kartick Chattopadhyay

Uttam Kumar

1957

Musafir

Shakuntala Verma

Hindi

Hrishikesh Mukherjee

Dilip Kumar

1957

Champakali

Hindi

Nandlal Jaswantlal

1958

Rajlakshmi O Rajlakshmi Srikanta

Bengali

Haridas Bhattacharya

Uttam Kumar

1958

Surya Toran

Aunita Chatarjee

Bengali

Agradoot

Uttam Kumar

1958

Indrani

Indrani

Bengali

Niren Lahiri

Uttam Kumar

1959

Deep Jwele Jaai

Radha

Bengali

Asit Sen

Ajit Chatterjee, Anil Chatterjee

1959

Chaaowa Pawoa

Bengali

Tarun Uttam Majumdar, Dilip Kumar Mukherjee and Sachin

Year

Title

Role

Language

Director Mukherjee

Co-star

Notes

1960

Hospital

Sarbari

Bengali

Sushil Majumdar

1960

Smriti Tuku Thaak

Shobha

Bengali

Tarun Majumdar, Dilip Mukherjee and Asitbaran Sachin Mukherjee

1960

Bombai Ka Baboo

Maya

Hindi

Raj Khosla

Dev Anand

1960

Sarhad

Hindi

Shankar Mukherjee

Dev Anand

1961

Saptapadi

Rina Brown

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

Uttam Kumar

1961

Saathihara

1962

Bipasha

1963

Saat Paake Badha

Archana

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

Soumitra Chatterjee

1963

Uttar Fhalguni

Debjani / Pannabai / Suparna

Bengali

Asit Sen

Bikash Roy

1964

Sandhya Jayanti Deeper Sikha Bannerjee

Bengali

Haridas Bhattacharya

Anil Chatterjee, Dilip Mukherjee

1966

Mamta

Devyani / Pannabai /

Hindi

Asit Sen

Dharmendra

Year

Title

Role Suparna

Language

Director

Co-star

Notes

1967

Grihadaha

Achala

Bengali

Subodh Mitra

Uttam Kumar

1969

Kamallata

Kamallata

Bengali

Harisadhan Dasgupta

Uttam Kumar

1970

Megh Kalo

Dr. Nirmalya Roy

Bengali

1971

Fariyaad

Bengali

Bijoy Bose

Utpal Dutt

1971

Nabaraag

1972

Alo Amaar Alo

Atashi

Bengali

Pinaki Bhushan Uttam Mukherji Kumar

1972

Haar Maana Haar

Bengali

Salil Sen

Uttam Kumar

1974

Devi Chaudhurani

Prafullamukhi Bengali

Dinen Gupta

Ranjit Mallik

In the 1960s Satyajit Ray decided to film the famous Bengali novel 'Devi Chaudhurani' he had first approached Suchitra for the role. However Satyajit Ray wanted her to block her dates and sign an exclusivity clause during the shooting. This condition was not acceptable to the actress after which Ray altogether dropped the idea.[37]

1974

Srabana Sandhya

Bengali

Bireshwar Basu

Year

Title

Role

Language

Director

Co-star

Notes

1975

Priyo Bandhabi

Bengali

Uttam Kumar

1975

Aandhi

Aarti Devi

Hindi

Gulzar

Sanjeev Kumar

1976

Datta

Bijoya

Bengali

Ajoy Kar

1978

Pranoy Pasha

Bengali

Awards[edit]
Year Award Notes Film

1963

Moscow Film Festival Best actress award

Won

Saat Paake Bandha [3]

1963

Filmfare Best Actress Award

Nominated

Mamta

1972

Padma Shri

Awarded

For notable contribution in Arts[4]

1976

Filmfare Best Actress Award

Nominated

Aandhi

2012

Banga Bibhushan

Awarded

Lifetime Achievement in Film acting