Book: SOUMITRA CHATTERJEE AND HIS WORLD

Author: Sanghamitra Chakraborty

Published by: Vintage

Price: Rs 799

“My regret is that people outside Bengal have been deprived of his oeuvre and talent”, reminisces Sharmila Tagore in her Foreword to this book by the journalist, Sanghamitra Chakraborty. Replete with personal anecdotes, the legendary co-actor’s succinct encomium is overwhelmingly alluring for the reader. Within its brevity, Tagore’s paean navigates between the individual and the professional spaces, culminating in a resonant affirmation that admirably blends exaltation with a spontaneous celebration of the multiple facets of a versatile personality: “The legacy of Soumitra is enduring — both at home and globally. I consider myself blessed that I knew him and called him a friend.”

Tagore’s persuasive Foreword, followed by an introductory authorial vindication of the biography, sets the tone for a brilliant memoir that is remarkably sustained in the rest of the volume. Chakraborty manages to accomplish a formidable task by assiduously chronicling the diverse aspects of the multifaceted personality of the legendary actor. For moviegoers and most people of Bengal, the iconic actor’s name is synonymous with various immortal characters on celluloid. Over the years, in his cinematic journey with legendary directors (like Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Tapan Sinha, Tarun Majumdar, Rituparno Ghosh and Goutam Ghose, among several others), Chatterjee managed to switch between the popular and the parallel genres of cinema with dexterity. His stellar performances not only endeared him to all types of cinegoers but also led to a shower of accolades: Chatterjee was awarded the Padma Bhushan (2004), the Dadasaheb Phalke Award (2012) and the Legion of Honour (2018) among other recognitions.

Besides being one of the outstanding actors in the history of Indian and world cinema, Chatterjee was also a prolific poet, theatre personality, an editor, writer, painter and an outstanding elocutionist — these facets have been competently explored at length in this biography. Elaborately divided into ten sections, Chakraborty’s meticulous research devotes separate chapters to the actor’s passionate involvement in each of these artistic engagements.

At the heart of the volume, however, lies the biographer’s commendable efforts in painstakingly reconstructing the deep influence of the three colossal personalities who shaped Chatterjee’s philosophy and vision of life: Rabindranath Tagore, Sisir Kumar Bhaduri, and Satyajit Ray. In the chapter, “Rabindranath and Pulu”, Chakraborty traces the influence of Tagore’s “guiding light” in shaping Chatterjee’s artistic sensibility, vindicating the actor’s own assertion: “My own heart and mind, in some way, have also been shaped by him (Tagore).” Consciously training himself for an acting career during his days in college and university, Chatterjee was also inspired by Sisir Bhaduri’s performances, especially in plays like Chandragupta and Prafulla. A young Chatterjee’s dream was to be a part of Sisir Bhaduri’s stage production: this came to fruition when he was chosen to perform in Prafulla at the Banga Sanskriti Sammelan at Marcus Square: “Soon the day came when Soumitra performed, sharing the stage with his mentor and hero, something he would treasure all his life.”

Quite naturally, the best sections of the book are devoted to Chakraborty’s scrupulous reconstruction of Chatterjee’s cinematic journey with his legendary mentor, Satyajit Ray. In chapters like “The Ray Legacy”, “Ray Calls Again”, “Shooting Apur Sansar” and “Only Manikda Got me”, readers not only get to learn about interesting anecdotes but also come to know of the fascinating circumstances that accounted for the astounding success of this illustrious symbiotic association that paved the way for some immortal creations in international cinema.

It is beyond doubt that the new biography will be an invaluable addition to contemporary film studies, enticing general readers and cinephiles alike. However, for such a voluminous biography, infused with a miscellany of glorious personalities and anecdotes, the reading would have been better served with the inclusion of a comprehensive index at the end of the book. This small quibble apart, the volume will certainly be treasured as a collector’s item that would definitely go a long way in ensuring the enduring legacy of Soumitra Chatterjee for generations to come.