Ajitesh Bandopadhyay ( bn, অজিতেশ বন্দোপাধ্যায়; born: 30 September 1933 ― 13 October 1983) was an actor, playwright, activist and director. He along with Shambhu Mitra and Utpal Dutt are considered to be the doyens of Bengali theatre of the post - Independence era.

Early life

He was born as Ajit, at Ropogram in Purulia District, West Bengal at his maternal uncle's house. His native village was Kenda situated in the Raniganj region of

Paschim Bardhaman district Paschim Bardhaman district is a predominantly urban mining-industrial district in West Bengal. The headquarter of the district is Asansol. It was formed on 7 April 2017 after bifurcation of the erstwhile Bardhaman district as the 23rd district o ...

, West Bengal. He was the eldest son of coal miner Bhubhanmohan and Lakshmirani. Having graduated from

Maharaja Manindra Chandra College Maharaja Manindra Chandra College is an undergraduate college in North Kolkata, India, established in 1941, at 20 Ramkanta Bose Street, Kolkata - 700003. It is affiliated under the University of Calcutta. It shares premises with Maharaja Sris ...

, Kolkata, he taught for few years in the same college and in

South Point School South Point is a higher-secondary co-educational private school located in Kolkata, West Bengal and affiliated to Central Board of Secondary Education, consisting of three organisations – South Point School (Nursery to Class V), South Poi ...

before plunging himself in the world of theatre by joining the '' Nandikar'' group in 1960.

Theatre

Prior to joining '' Nandikar'', he had been in close touch with the IPTA (''Indian Peoples' Theatre Association'') and was both directing and performing a number of its stage productions. While with '' Nandikar'', Ajitesh along with

Rudraprasad Sengupta Rudraprasad Sengupta (born 31 January 1935) is a Bengali Indian actor, director and cultural critic. Biography Sengupta was born in Calcutta (now Kolkata), Bengal, the son of Anant Sengupta and Usha Prabha Sengupta. He studied at the Scottish ...

Asit Bandopadhyay Asit Bandopadhyay (or Banerjee) (1936 – 17 September 2020) was a Bengali dramatist, screenwriter and actor. He was associated with the Nandikar theater group. He lived and worked in Kolkata, India. He was a playwright, screenwriter, director ...

and Keya Chakrabarty, staged and performed many successful plays - mostly adaptations of '' Chekhov'', '' Sophocles'', '' Luigi Pirandello'' and such ''stalwarts''; of these, few like ''Antigone'', ''Teen Poysar Pala'' (adapted from ''Three Penny Opera''), ''Manjari Aamer Manjari'' (adapted from ''Cherry Orchard'') not only drew large audiences but created milestones of success even at the national level. Plays like ''Bhalomanusher Pala'' and ''Sher Afgan'' met with same success. As a recognition of his directorial ventures and contribution to theatre, he was honoured with the ''Sangeet Natak Academy Award'' in 1976 at the age of 42, one of the youngest recipients of this nationally prestigious award. In the early 1970s, he was described by none other than

Sombhu Mitra Sombhu Mitra (22 August 1915 – 19 May 1997) was an Indian film and stage actor, director, playwright, reciter and an Indian theatre personality, known especially for his involvement in Bengali theatre, where he is considered a pioneer. H ...

as the "most powerful performer of the Bengal theatre in current times". In 1977, he left Nandikar and formed his own theatrical group ''

Nandimukh Village Anarpur is a drama group based in Zila Shilpakala Academy in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The group stages creative and contemporary drama productions, currently led by playwright Abhijit Sen Gupta. As a theatre troupe, they organize internati ...

'' through which he continued his stage productions and performances with equal aplomb.

Film

At the same time, his performance on the silver screen, particularly as a character-actor, in films like ''Haate Bajare'', ''

Chhuti ''Chhuti'' ( English: ''A Vacation'') is a 1967 Bengali film, based on a novel by Bimal Kar. It marked the directorial debut of Arundhati Devi, who also wrote the screenplay and composed the music for the film. At the 14th National Film Awards, ...

'', ''

Atithi Atithi may refer to: * ''Atithi Devo Bhava'', meaning the Guest is equal to God as per Hindu scripture * ''Atithi'' (1965 film), a 1965 Bengali film * '' Atithee'', a 1978 Hindi film * ''Atithi'' (2002 film), a 2002 Kannada film * ''Atithi'' (200 ...

'', '' Kuheli'' followed by ''Ganadevata'', ''Aaj Kaal Porshur Galpo'', ''

Megh o Roudra ''Megh o Roudra'' (English: Clouds and Sunshine) is a Bengali drama film directed by Arundhati Devi and produced by Ajitesh Bandopadhyay based on Rabindranath Tagore's short story by the same name. This film was released in 1969 under the banner ...

'', '' Thagini'', ''Nidhiram Sardar'', ''Hire Manik'', ''

Kapalkundala ''Kapalkundala'' ( bn, কপালকুণ্ডলা) is a Bengali romance novel by Indian writer Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. Published in 1866, it is a story of a forest-dwelling girl named Kapalkundala, who fell in love with and married ...

'', ''Samjhauta'' (in Hindi) established him as a powerful thespian of the stage and screen. He was actively involved with ''radio-plays'' and ''Jatra'' also. An instance of his integrity and devotion is found when he left his teaching career on being cast for the role of the antagonist in ''Haate Bajare'' Directed by Tapan Sinha stating that his acting might negatively impact the young minds.

Death

His untimely demise (at the age of 50) left a void, especially in Bengal theatre, which is, perhaps, still felt by one and many.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bandopadhyay, Ajitesh 1933 births 1983 deaths 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights People from Purulia district Indian male dramatists and playwrights Indian theatre directors 20th-century Indian male actors Male actors from Kolkata Male actors from West Bengal 20th-century Indian male writers Maharaja Manindra Chandra College alumni Dramatists and playwrights from West Bengal