Buddhadeb Dasgupta (11 February 1944 – 10 June 2021) was an Indian filmmaker and poet best known for his

Bengali-language films Bengali ( ), generally known by its endonym Bangla (, ), is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Bengal region of South Asia. It is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh and the second most widely spoken of ...

like '' Bagh Bahadur'', ''

Tahader Katha ''Tahader Katha'' () is a 1992 Indian Bengali-language drama film directed by Budhhadeb Dasgupta, starring Mithun Chakraborty, who won the 1993 National Film Awards for Best Actor for the film, while the film won the National Film Award for B ...

'', ''

Charachar ''Charachar'' (English language:''Shelter of the Wings'', bn, চরাচর ) is a 1993 Bengali drama film directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta based on a novel by Prafulla Roy. Plot Lakha (Rajit Kapoor) comes from a family of bird c ...

'' and ''

Uttara Uttara, which means "north" in Sanskrit and many other South Asian languages, may refer to: Places * Uttara Export Processing Zone, Bangladesh * Uttara, a suburb north of Dhaka, Bangladesh *Uttara East Thana *Uttara West Thana *Uttaradit, a city i ...

''. Five of his films have won the

National Film Award for Best Feature Film The National Award for Best Feature Film is one of the categories in the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in India. It is one of se ...

, ''Bagh Bahadur'' (1989), ''Charachar'' (1993), ''

Lal Darja ''Lal Darja'' (English language: ''The Red Door'') is a 1997 Bengali allegorical drama film about a Kolkata dentist Dr. Nabin Dutta who fears becoming a cripple. Directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta, he film won the Golden Lotus Award fo ...

'' (1997), ''

Mondo Meyer Upakhyan ''Mondo Meyer Upakhyan'' (Bengali: ''মন্দ মেয়ের উপাখ্যান'') is a 2002 Indian Bengali-language film directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta. The film was also released under the English title ''A Tale of A N ...

'' (2002) and '' Kaalpurush'' (2008), while '' Dooratwa'' (1978) and ''Tahader Katha'' (1993) have won the

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It is one of severa ...

. As a director, he has won

National Film Award for Best Direction The National Film Award for Best Direction is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Since 1 ...

twice, for ''Uttara'' (2000) and '' Swapner Din'' (2005). Over the years he has published several works of poetry including ''Govir Araley'', ''Coffin Kimba Suitcase'', ''Himjog'', ''Chhaata Kahini'', ''Roboter Gaan'', ''Sreshtha Kabita'', and ''Bhomboler Ascharya Kahini O Ananya Kabita''.

Early life and education

Buddhadeb Dasgupta was born in a Vaidya family in 1944 in Anara near

Puruliya Purulia is a city and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Purulia district. It is located on the north of the Kangsabati River. Geography Location Purulia is located at . It has an average elev ...

in Southern

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

, and was the third of nine siblings. His father Tarkanta Dasgupta was a doctor with the

Indian Railways Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...

, thus he spent the early part of childhood traveling. At the age of twelve, he was sent to Calcutta to study, earlier at Shibpur SSPS Vidyalaya and later at Dinabandhu School, Howrah. Post-independence his father was transferred first to

Kharagpur Kharagpur () is a planned urban agglomeration and a major industrial city in Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Kharagpur subdivision. It is the largest, most populated, multicultural and cosmopol ...

West Midnapore district Paschim Medinipur district or West Midnapore district (also known as Midnapore West) is one of the districts of the state of West Bengal, India. It was formed on 1 January 2002 after the Partition of Midnapore into Paschim Medinipur and Purba M ...

and

Manendragarh Manendragarh, is a city and administrative district headquarters of Manendragarh-Chirmiri-Bharatpur district in the state of Chhattisgarh, India. Formerly, it was the part of Koriya district. It is situated near the Chhattisgarh-Madhya Prad ...

(now in

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (, ) is a landlocked state in Central India. It is the ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the seventeenth most populous. It borders seven states – Uttar Pradesh to the north, Madhya Prade ...

). He studied economics at the

Scottish Church College Scottish Church College is a college affiliated by Calcutta University, India. It offers selective co-educational undergraduate and postgraduate studies and is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in A ...

and the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, ...

Career

Buddhadeb started his career as a lecturer of Economics, at the Shyamsundar College of the

University of Burdwan The University of Burdwan (also known as Burdwan University or B. U.) is a public university in Purba Bardhaman, West Bengal, India. It was established by the West Bengal Government as a teaching and affiliating university on 15 June 1960 with ...

followed by

City College, Calcutta City College is a composite fully state government-aided public college, affiliated to the University of Calcutta. Established in 1881, it is one of the heritage institutions of Kolkata, and played a prominent role in the wake of the Bengal ...

. In 1976, when disenchanted by the gap he perceived between the economic theory he taught and the socio-political reality, he took to film making. Meanwhile, his membership with the Calcutta Film Society, where he started going in his senior high school along with his uncle, exposed him to the works of directors like Charlie Chaplin, Ingmar Bergman,

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...

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) ...

Roberto Rossellini Roberto Gastone Zeffiro Rossellini (8 May 1906 – 3 June 1977) was an Italian film director, producer, and screenwriter. He was one of the most prominent directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing to the movement with films such ...

, and Michelangelo Antonioni. This, in turn, inspired him to take film making as a mode of expression. He started his film career with a 10-minute documentary in 1968, ''The Continent of Love''; eventually he made his first full-length feature film, '' Dooratwa'' (Distance) in 1978. His lyricism has been extended to cinema as well. During the early stages of his film career, Dasgupta made films inspired by

Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian director, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker, author, essayist, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligrapher, and music composer. One of the greatest auteurs of fil ...

's realistic films and later moved on to other forms. Some of his most acclaimed films are ''Bagh Bahadur'', ''Tahader Katha'', ''Charachar'' and ''Uttara''.

Filmography

Feature films

*'' Samayer Kache'' (1968) (short) *'' Dooratwa'' (1978) (Distance) *'' Neem Annapurna'' (1979) (Bitter Morsel) *''

Grihajuddha ''Grihajuddha'' (English language:''Crossroads'') is a 1982 Bengali film directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta and starring Sunil Mukherjee. The film was produced under contract from the Government of West Bengal. The Naxalite movement i ...

'' (1982) (The Civil War) *''

Andhi Gali ''Andhi Gali'' (English language: ''Dead End'') is a 1984 Hindi drama film directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta, and based on Bengali story, ''Ghar Bari'' by Dibyendu Palit. It stars Deepti Naval, Mahesh Bhatt and Kulbhushan Kharbanda ...

'' (1984) (Blind Alley, Hindi) *''

Phera '' Phera'' (English language:''The Return'') is a 1988 Bengali drama film directed by Buddhadeb Dasgupta based on a story of Bengali novelist Narendranath Mitra. It was entered into the 38th Berlin International Film Festival, competition sect ...

'' (1988) (The Return) *'' Bagh Bahadur'' (1989) (The Tiger Man) *''

'' (1992) (Their Story) *''

'' (1993) (Shelter of the Wings) *''

'' (1997) (The Red Door) *''

'' (2000) (The Wrestlers) *''

'' (2002) (A Tale of a Naughty Girl) *'' Swapner Din'' (2004) (Chased by Dreams) *''

Ami, Yasin Ar Amar Madhubala ''Ami, Yasin Ar Amar Madhubala'' ('Me, Yasin and my honeymoon') is a 2007 Indian Bengali film directed and written by Buddhadev Dasgupta. The film was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. Plot When a Kolkata surveillance special ...

'' (2007) (The Voyeurs) *'' Kaalpurush'' (2008) (Memories in the Mist) *''

Janala ''Janala'' ( The window) is a 2009 Bengali film directed by Buddhadeb Dasgupta and produced under Reliance Pictures banner. The music of the film was composed by Biswadeb Dasgupta. The film received best film's title in the 54th Asia Pacific Film ...

'' (2009) (The Window) *''Mukti'' (2012) *'' Choli Ke Pichey'' (2012) (TV Movie) *''Arjun'' (2012) (TV Movie) *''The Station'' (2013) (TV Movie) *'' Anwar Ka Ajab Kissa'' (2013) (Sniffer, Hindi) *'' Tope'' (2017) *'' Urojahaj (2018)''

Documentary and TV work

*''The Continent of Love'' (1968) *'' Dholer Raja Khirode Natta'' (1973) *''Fishermen of Sundarban'' (1974) *''Saratchandra'' (1975) *''Rhythm of Steel'' (1981) *''Indian Science Marches Ahead'' (1984) *''Vigyan O Tar Avishkar'' (1980) *''Story of Glass'' (1985) *''India on the Move'' (1985) *''Ceramics'' (1986) *''Aranyak'' (1996) *'' Contemporary Indian Sculpture'' (1987) *''History of Indian Jute'' (1990)

Awards

* Buddhadeb Dasgupta was honoured with the lifetime achievement award at the Spain International Film Festival in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

on 27 May 2008.Merchant of Dreams: Buddhadeb Dasgupta gets lifetime achievement award at the Spain International Film Festival
''The Tribune'', 31 May 2008. * Golden Athena Award at the Athens International Film Festival in 2007 *

National Film Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directora ...

Best Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

*** 1989: Bagh Bahadur *** 1993:

*** 1997:

*** 2002:

*** 2008: Kaalpurush ** Best Direction *** 2000:

*** 2005: Swapner Din ** Best Screenplay *** 1987:

** Best Feature Film in Bengali *** 1978: Dooratwa *** 1987:

*** 1993:

** Best Arts/Cultural Film *** 1998: ''A Painter of Eloquent Silence: Ganesh Pyne'' *

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

** 1982: FIPRESCI award:

** 2000:

Silver Lion The Silver Lion ( it, Leone d'argento, also known as Silver Lion for Best Direction) is an annual award presented for best directing achievements in a feature film at official competition section of the Venice Film Festival since 1998. The pri ...

for Best Director:

** 1982: Golden Lion nomination:

** 2000: Golden Lion nomination:

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the fest ...

** 1988:

Golden Bear The Golden Bear (german: Goldener Bär) is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin. History The win ...

nomination:

** 1994:

nomination:

* Locarno Film Festival ** Critic's Award: Dooratwa ** Special Jury Award: Neem Annapurna *

Asia Pacific Film Festival The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific. The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954. History The festival was first held in Tok ...

** Best Film:

Karlovy Vary Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become ...

** Special Jury Award: Neem Annapurna * Damascus International Film Festival ** Golden Prize: Neem Annapurna *

Bangkok International Film Festival The Bangkok International Film Festival (BKKIFF) ( th, เทศกาลภาพยนตร์นานาชาติกรุงเทพฯ) is an international film festival held annually in Bangkok, Thailand, since 2003. In addition to fi ...

**Best Asian Film Award (2003):

Family

His youngest daughter,

Alokananda Dasgupta Alokananda Dasgupta is a contemporary music composer. She was pursuing her Masters in English Literature at Calcutta University when she decided to pursue her lifelong passion for music in Toronto, where she completed a Bachelors of Music with ...

, a trained classical pianist, composed the background score for his 2013 film, ''Anwar Ka Ajab Kissa''.

Death

He died at the age of 77 on 10 June 2021.

References

External links

*
Merchant of Dreams: Buddhadeb Dasgupta gets lifetime achievement award at the Spain International Film Festival
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dasgupta, Buddhadeb 1944 births 2021 deaths 20th-century Indian film directors Film directors from Kolkata People from Purulia district Bengali film producers Bengali film directors Film theorists Indian film score composers Bengali-language writers Culture of Kolkata Scottish Church College alumni University of Calcutta alumni University of Burdwan faculty University of Calcutta faculty Indian documentary filmmakers Indian male screenwriters Best Director National Film Award winners City College, Kolkata faculty Hindi-language film directors Bengali male poets Best Original Screenplay National Film Award winners Producers who won the Best Feature Film National Film Award Directors who won the Best Feature Film National Film Award Venice Best Director Silver Lion winners