It was an afternoon when glamour broke bread with diplomacy. The Consular Corps of Kolkata (CCK), a body of career diplomats and honorary consuls, was holding its monthly meeting where actor-producer Rituparna Sengupta was to speak. “It’s a long CV, many pages. But we all know her,” smiled Sanjay Budhia, the joint director of CCK and the honorary consul of Malaysia, while introducing her. And if she kept them waiting for a while, it was because, he added, Rituparna was flying back from Mumbai where she had been promoting her film Puratawn.
Lunchtime for diplomats with Rituparna Sengupta at the CCK meet
Budhia started by asking Rituparna how she switched between her work in Hindi and Bengali. The actress, who has starred in over 30 Hindi films, pointed out that language did not matter much in her craft. “The other day I thoroughly enjoyed watching a Thai horror film. The language of cinema is universal. That’s why I want my films to reach a global audience. I have received great feedback for Puratawn even from people who do not know Bengali,” she said.
(L-R) Sanjay Agarwal, honorary consul of Bosnia and Herzegovia, with CCK office-bearers Nayantara Palchoudhuri, Sanjay Budhia and Pradeep Khemka
Rituparna said her foray into films was an accident as her family has a different background. “My father worked in a pharmaceutical company while several others are doctors. I graduated with history honours from Lady Brabourne College. It was destiny’s call that I’d join an industry where I was an outsider. In my first film (Shwet Pathorer Thala), I faced a stalwart like Aparna Sen. But since I was a dancer, I did not have stage fright,” said the actress.
Asked to name an unknown facet of hers, Rituparna recalled playing carrom recently with her son and his friends. “I won all the games. His friends had no idea (that I played well) and swore not to play with me again,” she laughed. She also loves to play badminton and write, she said.
Asked about the social causes she supports, the actress shared an account of her grandmother. “Bahadur was a part of our domestic staff. Years after he had quit, when he fell ill, my grandmother took him to the hospital and nursed him back to health. This is the environment I have grown up in,” she said.
(L-R) Consuls general of Russia, Myanmar and Nepal — Maxim Kozlov, Aung Aung Myo Thein and Jhakka Prasad Acharya respectively
She lauded Budhia for creating institutions for people with mental health issues — Carring Minds and I Can Fly. “I feel strongly about social causes,” said the brand ambassador of Life Beyond Cancer. “Their motto is ‘no child should die of cancer’.”
She also supports Kolkata Endeavour Society, which works for women and children, including in red-light areas. She is also involved with organisations dealing with autism, thalassaemia, the deaf-mute, and the visually challenged. “I have purchased several artworks created by visually challenged kids. I try to help marginalised communities,” she said.
CCK treasurer Pradeep Khemka asked her about her 2005 film Main Meri Patni aur Woh, where she had starred opposite Rajpal Yadav as the tall wife of a short husband. “I asked the director (Chandan Arora) whether people would watch a film on such a subject. He told me that this would become a cult film. He was right. Even today, there are repeat telecasts. It was a film ahead of its time. Perhaps they are making a sequel now,” she said.
Nayantara Palchoudhuri, the CCK joint director, delivered the vote of thanks. “The CCK meets once a month over lunch. The objective is to foster camaraderie,” she told t2.
Budhia explained, CCK invites people from different walks of life. “In order to create awareness about the creative economy and explain how the entertainment industry can build bridges between nations, who better than Rituparna, the reigning queen of Tollywood?” he asked.
