Soumitra the face for Ray's Portrayal of Artistry and Creativity

 Soumitra the face of Ray's Portrayal of Artistry and Creativity

Soumitra Chatterjee,the Emotion.

Soumitra Chatterjee passed away on the 15th of November 2020. Born on the 19thof January 1935, in

Krishnanagar, Soumitra Chatterjee grew up to be an actor, playwright, writer, elocutionist, director and

poet. Soumitra is not just another personality, to every Bengali Soumitra Chatterjee, remains to be an

unforgettable legend who filled our hearts with pride through his immense contribution to the Bengali

Film Industry. Deep down in our hearts the emotion namedSoumitra Chatterjee will last till eternity.

Soumitra had taken a keen interest in theatres from a very young age and was inspired by the praise he

had received. While in his ancestral house in Krishnanagar, Soumitra had skillfully portrayed characters

from Rabindranath Tagore’s Dakghar and Mukut in various theatres. Theatre has beenSoumitra’s First

love.

Years later when Soumitra was studying the final year of college, he was deeply inspired and stunned by

Theatre Veteran Sisir Bhaduri Play. So began Soumitra’s determination to become an actor and his quest

for chasing his dream under the mentorship of Sisir Bhaduri.Satyajit Ray caught the eye of Soumitra

Chatterjee when he was an announcer at All India Radio.He was soon casted for the role of adult Apu in

the movie Apur Sansar.

Hence began the journey of the legendary duo Soumitra Chatterjee and SatyajitRay continued through

14 movies and one documentary. Though he was casted for the role of Apu in Apur Sansar, the journey in

his long and fruitful life of acting had just begun. Under the mentorship of legendary

Oscar-WinningFilmmaker, director, illustrator, and music maker Satyajit Ray, SoumitraChatterjee had a lot

to learn. Ray had spent a good amount of his time, love and dedication in preparing Soumitra for his

debut in Apur Sansar.

Before the shooting began,Ray took Soumitra to watch the film “Lost Weekend” directed by Billy

Wander at Basuree Theatre. Hehad already ordered Soumitra to observe the acting skills of Ray Milland

which clearly depicts what acting really is and how a person should act.Soumitra knew by then, the

preparation of being an actor had already begun.

Soumitra’s contribution in portraying the strong and impactful character of Feluda/PradoshChandra

Mitter by Satyajit Ray throughSonar Kella and Joi baba Felunath is immense. His roles as Feluda, afierce,

strong, and impactful detective with an extraordinary skill of deductive thinking was portrayed skillfully

by Soumitra Chatterjee which gained huge popularity and till date remains a nostalgia. Ray's

Revolutionary ideals spoke through Soumitra's character as in, Hirak Rajar deshe of Udayan

Pandit.Soumitra became the face for the portrayal of Ray’s Artistry,creativity,intellectualism and

activism .

Soumitra in the future continued to work with Satyajit Ray in 14 films.Not only was his talent cherished

by Ray but he also collaborated with Bengali directors as in Mrinal Sen and Tapan Sinha. He made his

debut alongside Sharmila Tagore and continued to act alongside Uttam Kumar in the future. Soumitra

takes great pride and inspiration from his movie Kony, he once even mentioned it as the best of all his

Soumitra the face for Ray's Portrayal of Artistry and Creativity

movies. The Catchphrase “FightKony Fight'' has been a constant source of strength for him in his times of

struggle and atrocities.

He was awarded the Padma Bhushan Award from the President ofIndia in 2004. Having awarded the

Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2012 and also the owner of 8 awards from the Bengal Film Journalists

Association. He was even awarded the National Film Award for Best Actor for Podokheep.

Soumitra‘s demise was caused due to coronavirus encephalopathy which was accompanied by other

several illnesses. He gave a tough fight to his illnesses for a long stretch of40 days when he was admitted to Kolkata’s Belle Vue Clinic. Though he finished shooting his own biopic Abhijan, his documentary was left unfinished as he breathed his last breath at Belle Vue Hospital at 12:15 pm.

In his words, “Death is inevitable, but we need to know that it is possible to at least enjoy life while we

have it.” Soumitra not only lived a successful life but also lived through the hearts of his fans and will

continue living happily ever after. Deep down we can never forget his immense talent and

contribution.

Soumitra Da is a legend and as the good old song goes, legends never die.