Amit Bose (26 February 1930 - 13 December 2019) was an Indian filmmaker, film director and editor, who directed all-time classics like ''
Abhilasha'' (1968) and, as an Editor, worked on movies like ''
Madhumati
''Madhumati'' is a 1958 Indian Hindi-language paranormal romance film directed and produced by Bimal Roy, and written by Ritwik Ghatak and Rajinder Singh Bedi. The film stars Vyjayanthimala and Dilip Kumar in lead roles, with Pran and Johnny ...
'' (1958), ''
Sujata'' (1959), ''
Parakh'' (1960),
Usne Kaha Tha' (1960), ''
Kabuliwala'' (1961),
Prem Patra' (1962), ''
Bandini'' (1963) and ''
Shakespeare Wallah
''Shakespeare Wallah'' is a 1965 Merchant Ivory Productions film. The story and screenplay are by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, about a travelling family theatre troupe of English actors in India, who perform Shakespeare plays in towns across India, amid ...
'' (1965). He worked as Chief Film Editor for
Bimal Roy
Bimal Roy (12 July 1909 – 8 January 1966) was an Indian film director. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films such as ''Do Bigha Zamin'', ''Parineeta (1953 film), Parineeta'', ''Biraj Bahu'', ''Devdas (1955 film), D ...
and with several other directors including
Sanjay Khan
Sanjay Khan (born Shah Abbas Ali Khan Tanoli, 3 January 1941) is an Indian actor, producer, and director known for his works in Hindi films and television. Sanjay Khan made his debut in Chetan Anand's 1964 film '' Haqeeqat'', followed by the ...
.
Early life
Bose was born in
Jamshedpur
Jamshedpur (, ) or Tatanagar is the largest and most populous city in Jharkhand and the first planned industrial city in India. It is a Notified Area Council and Municipal Corporation and also the headquarter of the East Singhbhum district. It ...
/
Bihar
Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
, India. His grandfather was the geologist
Pramatha Nath Bose
Pramatha Nath Bose (12 May 1855 – 1934) was a pioneering Indian geologist and paleontologist. Bose was educated at Krishnagar Government College and later at St. Xavier's College of the University of Calcutta when he obtained a Gilchrist s ...
, who discovered rich iron ores, that made the Empire of
J.R.D. Tata
Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French-Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of Tata Group.
Born into the Tata family of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy ...
possible, which today belong to the
Tata Group
The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continent ...
. Eminent economic historian and civil servant
Romesh Chunder Dutt
Romesh Chunder Dutt ( bn, রমেশচন্দ্র দত্ত; 13 August 1848 – 30 November 1909) was an Indian civil servant, economic historian, writer and translator of ''Ramayana'' and ''Mahabharata''. Dutt is considered a nation ...
was his great grandfather. Dutt's daughter Kamala Dutt Bose, a renowned educator who founded the “Kamala Girls School” at
Ballygunge
Ballygunge is a locality of South Kolkata, in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India.
History
The East India Company obtained from the Mughal emperor Farrukhsiyar, in 1717, the right to rent from 38 villages surrounding their settlement. Of thes ...
was married to Pramatha Nath Bose and was his grandmother. His mother Meera Devi (born Sharma) was a Bengali actress. After her first marriage ended in divorce, she married the classical singer and actor
Pahari Sanyal
Pahari Sanyal (22 February 1906 – 10 February 1974) was an Indian actor and singer who is known for his work in Bengali cinema.
Sanyal acted in many Bengali films, such as ''Harano Sur'', ''Bhanu Goenda Jahar Assistant'', and ''Shilpi''. B ...
), who was like a father to Bose. Amit's name was given by
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, who was a cousin of Bose's mother in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
.
First steps in filmmaking
As a child Bose was a student in
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
's open-air institution
Visva Bharati
Visva-Bharati () is a public central university and an Institution of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which means the communion of the w ...
in
Bolpur
Bolpur is a city and a municipality in Birbhum district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Bolpur subdivision. Bolpur municipal area includes Santiniketan, Sriniketan and Prantik. The city is known as a Cultural a ...
,
Santiniketan
Santiniketan is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, and later expanded by his son ...
. As a young man he took his first steps in the film industry in 1946 in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
. He worked as an assistant to the film director Nimai Ghosh during the making of ''Chinna Mul'' (''"Broken Branch"'' - a movie reflecting the up-rooting of the nation during the Great Famine). This film won several awards, both in India and abroad. It is still hailed as one of the great classics of Indian Cinema. Bose then went to
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
and worked as an assistant to the Director
Phani Majumdar
Phani Majumdar was a pioneering Indian film director, who worked in Hindi cinema, most known for his film ''Street Singer'' (1938) starring K.L. Saigal noted for its song, '' Babul Mora Naihar Chhooto Jaye'', Meena Kumari classic ''Aarti'' (1962 ...
at
Bombay Talkies Studios in
Malad
Malad (Pronunciation: aːlaːɖ is a suburb located in North Mumbai. Malad has a railway station on the Western line (Mumbai Suburban Railway) of the Mumbai Suburban Railway, lying between Kandivali station to the north and Goregaon station t ...
, in 1947. He also appeared in a bit-part in Majumdar's film
Tamasha', which starred the Great Indian Screen Heroine of all time,
Meena Kumari
Meena Kumari (born Mahjabeen Bano; 1 August 1933 – 31 March 1972) was an Indian actress and poet, who worked in Hindi films. Popularly known as ''The Tragedy Queen'', she was active between 1939 and 1972. Kumari is widely considered one of ...
.
In 1952, Bose went to England, where he did an apprenticeship at
Pinewood Studios
Pinewood Studios is a British film and television studio located in the village of Iver Heath, England. It is approximately west of central London.
The studio has been the base for many productions over the years from large-scale films to te ...
and
A.B. Pathé.
In 1953 he directed and performed in
Sharat Chandra Chatterji's classic novel, ''
Devdas
''Devdas'' ( bn, দেবদাস, transliterated as ''Debdās'') is a Bengali romance novel written by Sarat Chandra Chatterjee. The story pivots a tragic triangle linking Devdas, an archetypal lover in viraha (separation); Paro, his forbidden ...
'', as Devdas on stage (in English, translated by Monica Sen).
During the next few years he did his diploma in film direction, screenplay writing and film editing at
Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia
The Centro sperimentale di cinematografia (Experimental Film Centre or Italian National film school) was established in 1935 in Italy and aims to promote the art and technique of cinematography and film.
The centre is the oldest film school in ...
in
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, Italy. During that period in Rome he also was an apprentice assistant to
Luigi Zampa
Luigi Zampa (2 January 1905 – 16 August 1991) was an Italian film director.
Biography
Son of a worker, Zampa studied filmmaking from 1932 to 1937 at the Italian film school Centro sperimentale di cinematografia in Rome.
He directed several ...
(during the making of ''
Ragazze d'oggi'' / ''"Girls of Today"'', 1955),
Vittorio De Sica
Vittorio De Sica ( , ; 7 July 1901 – 13 November 1974) was an Italian film director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement.
Four of the films he directed won Academy Awards: ''Sciuscià'' and ''Bicycle Thieves'' (honorary) ...
(''
Stazione Termini
Roma Termini (in Italian, ''Stazione Termini'') is the main railway station of Rome, Italy. It is named after the district of the same name, which in turn took its name from ancient Baths of Diocletian (in Latin, ''thermae''), which ...
'' / ''"Terminal Station"'', 1953 & ''
Il Tetto
''The Roof'' ( it, Il tetto) is a 1956 Italian drama film directed and produced by Vittorio De Sica.
Plot
Natale, an apprentice bricklayer, and Luisa, who has no marketable skill, marry and try to live with Natale's parents and other relatives i ...
'' / ''"The Roof"'', 1956) and
Mario Soldati
Mario Soldati (17 November 1906 – 19 June 1999) was an cinema of Italy, Italian writer and film director. In 1954 he won the Strega Prize for ''Lettere da Capri.'' He directed several works adapted from novels, and worked with leading Ital ...
(''
Guerra e Pace'' / ''"War And Peace"'', 1956).
Life and work
On his return to India, and after his marriage in Kolkata in September 1957, Bose settled in
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, where he worked as the Chief Film Editor for
Bimal Roy
Bimal Roy (12 July 1909 – 8 January 1966) was an Indian film director. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films such as ''Do Bigha Zamin'', ''Parineeta (1953 film), Parineeta'', ''Biraj Bahu'', ''Devdas (1955 film), D ...
. He edited films like ''
Madhumati
''Madhumati'' is a 1958 Indian Hindi-language paranormal romance film directed and produced by Bimal Roy, and written by Ritwik Ghatak and Rajinder Singh Bedi. The film stars Vyjayanthimala and Dilip Kumar in lead roles, with Pran and Johnny ...
'' (1958, the shorter English version for entry to the American
Oscars
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
), ''
Sujata'' (1959), ''
Parakh'' (1960),
Usne Kaha Tha' (1960), ''
Kabuliwala'' (1961),
Prem Patra' (1962) and ''
Bandini'' (1963), which he left before completion, because of an opportunity to direct a Children's Film, for which he was awarded the Best Director Award in the same year.
In India, he worked with directors from
Bimal Roy
Bimal Roy (12 July 1909 – 8 January 1966) was an Indian film director. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films such as ''Do Bigha Zamin'', ''Parineeta (1953 film), Parineeta'', ''Biraj Bahu'', ''Devdas (1955 film), D ...
to
Sanjay Khan
Sanjay Khan (born Shah Abbas Ali Khan Tanoli, 3 January 1941) is an Indian actor, producer, and director known for his works in Hindi films and television. Sanjay Khan made his debut in Chetan Anand's 1964 film '' Haqeeqat'', followed by the ...
,
Krishna Shah
Krishna Shah (10 May 1938 – 13 October 2013) was an Indian-American/Gujarati people, Gujarati film and theatre director, screenwriter, playwright, producer, and Filmmaking#Production, production/Film distribution, distribution executive.
Shah ...
, Firoze Khan, Kewal Kashyap and many others, knowing actors like
Sunil Dutt
Sunil Dutt (born Balraj Dutt; 6 June 1929 — 25 May 2005) was an Indian actor, film producer, director and politician. Dutt was one of the major stars of Hindi cinema in the late 1950s and 1960s and continued to star in many successful film ...
,
Nutan
Nutan Samarth Bahl (4 June 1936 – 21 February 1991), known mononymously as Nutan, was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films. In a career spanning nearly four decades, she appeared in more than 70 films, mostly as a protagonist, in both bi ...
,
Sadhana,
Meena Kumari
Meena Kumari (born Mahjabeen Bano; 1 August 1933 – 31 March 1972) was an Indian actress and poet, who worked in Hindi films. Popularly known as ''The Tragedy Queen'', she was active between 1939 and 1972. Kumari is widely considered one of ...
,
Shashi Kapoor
Shashi Kapoor (pronounced əʃi kəpuːɾ (born Balbir Raj Kapoor; 18 March 1938 – 4 December 2017) was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his work in Hindi films. A recipient of several accolades, including four Nation ...
,
Raaj Kumar
Raaj Kumar (born Kulbhushan Pandit; 8 October 1926 3 July 1996) was an Indian actor who worked in Hindi films. He appeared in the Oscar-nominated 1957 film ''Mother India'' and starred in over 70 Hindi films in a career that spanned over four ...
,
Felicity Kendal
Felicity Ann Kendal (born 25 September 1946) is an English actress, working principally in television and theatre. She has appeared in numerous stage and screen roles over a more than 70-year career, but the role that brought attention to her ...
,
Rex Harrison
Sir Reginald Carey "Rex" Harrison (5 March 1908 – 2 June 1990) was an English actor. Harrison began his career on the stage in 1924. He made his West End debut in 1936 appearing in the Terence Rattigan play ''French Without Tears'', in what ...
,
John Saxon
John Saxon (born Carmine Orrico; August 5, 1936 – July 25, 2020) was an American actor who worked on more than 200 film and television projects during a span of 60 years. He was known for his work in Western (genre), Westerns and horror film ...
,
Sulochana,
Kamini Kaushal
Kamini Kaushal (born as Uma Kashyap, 24 February 1927) is an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films and television. She is noted for her roles in films such as ''Neecha Nagar'' (1946), which won the 1946 Palme d'Or (Golden Palm) at Cannes Fil ...
,
Dharmendra
Dharam Singh Deol (born 8 December 1935), also known mononymously as Dharmendra, is an Indian actor, producer and politician who is known for his work in Hindi films. Known as the first " He-Man" of Bollywood, Dharmendra has worked in over 301 ...
and
Rehman Rehman may refer to a Muslim surname which means, "Merciful", "King", " Lord". It's an honorary title used by some Muslims of Sheikh or Sayyid Caste of Middle Eastern Origin, it is a common surname or middle-name among some Pashtun tribemen. It is a ...
closely.
Abroad he worked in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
,
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...
,
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
and
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
, amongst many other countries. He directed and/or edited more than thirty feature films around the world, working with such prestigious directors as
Vittorio De Sica
Vittorio De Sica ( , ; 7 July 1901 – 13 November 1974) was an Italian film director and actor, a leading figure in the neorealist movement.
Four of the films he directed won Academy Awards: ''Sciuscià'' and ''Bicycle Thieves'' (honorary) ...
,
Luigi Zampa
Luigi Zampa (2 January 1905 – 16 August 1991) was an Italian film director.
Biography
Son of a worker, Zampa studied filmmaking from 1932 to 1937 at the Italian film school Centro sperimentale di cinematografia in Rome.
He directed several ...
,
Franco Zeffirelli
Gian Franco Corsi Zeffirelli (12 February 1923 – 15 June 2019), was an Italian stage and film director, producer, production designer and politician. He was one of the most significant opera and theatre directors of the post-World War II era, ...
,
Louis Malle
Louis Marie Malle (; 30 October 1932 – 23 November 1995) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in both Cinema of France, French cinema and Cinema of the United States, Hollywood. Described as "eclectic" and "a fi ...
,
James Ivory
James Francis Ivory (born June 7, 1928) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. For many years, he worked extensively with Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant, his domestic as well as professional partner, and with screen ...
and many other well known Filmmakers around the world.
He also directed the children's film ''Five Puppets (Panch Puthliyan)'' for th
Children's Film Society India for which he was awarded best Director by the President of India,
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (; 5 September 1888 – 17 April 1975), natively Radhakrishnayya, was an Indian philosopher and statesman. He served as the 2nd President of India from 1962 to 1967. He also 1st Vice President of India from 1952 ...
, in 1964.
Among many other feature films, Bose edited a documentary on the
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
invasion of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, produced by the Films Division in
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, that took place in 1961/1962.
His credits include movies like ''
Chori Chori'' (1956), ''
Godaan
''Godaan'' ( hi, गोदान, , lit=Cow donation) is a famous Hindi novel by Munshi Premchand. It was first published in 1936 and is considered one of the greatest Hindi novels of modern Indian literature. Themed around the socio-economic ...
'' (1963),
Kaajal' (1965, as Ghost Director and Editor, winner of over 40 awards), ''
Abhilasha'' (1968),
At Five Past Five' (1969) (a play about the assassination of
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
), ''
Chandi Sona
''Chandi Sona'' is a 1977 Indian Hindi-language film. Produced and directed by Sanjay Khan the film stars Sanjay Khan, Parveen Babi, Premnath, Pran, Ranjeet, Danny Denzongpa, Asrani, Paintal, Kamini Kaushal, Iftekhar and Raj Kapoor (in a spec ...
'' (1977) and ''
The Courtesans of Bombay
''The Courtesans of Bombay'' is a 1983 British docudrama directed by Ismail Merchant. A collaboration by Merchant, James Ivory, and Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. The film focuses on a Bombay compound known as Pavan Pool, where women aspiring to work in t ...
'' (1983).
Bose taught film technology in the Film Institute in
Pune
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. He introduced and helped many unknown actors to stardom and more than 20 editors, from assistantship to full editorship. He helped young talents grow, by telling them all his secrets, as
De Sica once upon a time told him.
Bose was retired and lived with his wife Monica in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. In his spare time, he worked, as a volunteer, at the local Association for the Blind. His daughters Roma and Papri-Tara are settled with their families in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. He has five grandchildren, including television producer
Simone Thorogood. He passed away during January 2020.
Selected works
Bose was specialized in dubbing films from different languages to English and vice versa. To name a few, the following is a short list:
External links
*
Amit Boseat CITWF (Complete Index to World Film).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bose, Amit
1930 births
2019 deaths
Film directors from Bihar
Bengali film directors
Hindi film editors
Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia alumni
Visva-Bharati University alumni
People from Jamshedpur
20th-century Indian film directors
Film editors from Bihar
Directors who won the Best Children's Film National Film Award