HOUSE PROUD: On a rain-soaked June afternoon, t2 caught Prosenjit in a relaxed mood at his plush Ballygunge residence. Sipping on a can of Schweppes Ginger Ale, Bumbada took us around a few cosy corners of his four-storey house which has 34 rooms (yes, you read it right). While the ground floor is occupied by his office (nideas, Prosenjit’s production company), the first floor has two huge living rooms, two bedrooms and a master bedroom that belongs to Prosenjit alone, a lounge and his puja room, plus a guest room and a study. The second floor has three living rooms, two bedrooms, two guest rooms and a make-up room. The third floor has lounge areas, bedrooms and the dining space. The top floor has a tiny DVD room tucked away inside his spacious home theatre, a gym and a lounge.
“The best thing about this house is that Satyajit Ray had shot a portion of Nayak here. Rituda (Rituparno Ghosh’s Khela was shot here) too. I had wanted to demolish this house and build a two-storey bungalow, but when I heard Nayak was shot here I decided not to,” said Prosenjit, sitting in his study, leafing through the pages of Rituparno Ghosh’s First Person. Everything in the Prosenjit household exudes a subtle sophistication — white-washed walls, gleaming antique wood furniture, polished wooden floors and sunlight streaming in through the many windows. “Every item that you see in my house has been hand-picked by me. Arpita has no interest in interior designing. I pick up home decor stuff from all over the world, which includes an expensive table-and-chair set from Jordan.”
FAVOURITE COUCH: This third-floor room, or rather the couch, is where Prosenjit spends maximum time when home. “I love watching TV in this room, in fact Arpita and I like having dinner here too. When friends come over, we have great adda here. This is undoubtedly my favourite space in the house,” he smiled.
FRAMES, THEN & NOW: “Would you like to take pictures with Ma (Ratna Debi) and Bapi (Biswajit Chatterjee) in the background?” Yes, we say. The black-and-white photographs of the entire Chatterjee family adorn one half of Prosenjit’s study.
IN THE CLOSET: “I am a shopaholic,” says Prosenjit. “I shop for my wife and son too. Now of course most of Mishuk’s (son) clothes fit me, that’s an advantage!” Mumbai is his shopping destination, where he buys clothes “in bulk”. “I have a few tailors in Bombay who make clothes for me. I have a fetish for watches. I wear brands like Emporio Armani, Calvin Klein, Fossil, Tissot, Tommy Hilfiger and Rolex. Not only do I buy watches for myself, I also gift watches a lot. I give away most of my clothes to my technicians.”
ROOM WITH A VIEW: There are very few days in a month when Prosenjit can actually lie sprawled on his couch, watch a film or look out through the large windows at the greenery. “When I am not shooting, I have meetings with directors and producers at home. I start my day as early as 7am, though I don’t go to bed before 2am! I hit the gym (Solace) around 8am. Then I come back, take a walk in my garden, go for a shower and have breakfast. Spending time in this living room (on the third floor) and watching the day pass by is a luxury. But thanks to t2, I could spend some me-time today,” he smiled.
SHOEBITE: Prosenjit shows off his collection of shoes stashed away in the five drawers of one of the bedrooms (on the second floor).
LIKE A PRAYER: Before stepping out, Prosenjit makes it a point to spend some time in his prayer room.
AN APPLE A DAY: No, he is not a tea or coffee addict, so Prosenjit begins his day with an apple and... t2! “My mornings are incomplete without t2,” he says, at his breakfast table. Yaaayyyy, we say!
DVD WATCH: A DVD a day keeps an actor aware, or so believes Prosenjit. “Of the 30 days in a month, I watch films at least 27 days. The Godfather is my all-time favourite,” says Prosenjit, pausing at a scene from The Godfather Part II. This lavish home theatre is on the top floor.
Text: Kushali Nag
Pictures: Pabitra Das
