Theatre and film actress Shobha Sen passed away at her Regent Park home following a cardiac arrest on Sunday morning. She was 93. Family members said she had been suffering from age-related ailments.
Sen, survived by a daughter, joined Utpal Dutt's Little Theatre Group, later rechristened People's Theatre Group, in the earlier 1950s. She married the thespian in 1960.
Theatre actor-director KOUSHIK SEN pens a tribute to the veteran actress
My introduction to Shobha Sen was through a photograph kept in my family album. The photograph was from the historic play called Angaar written and directed by Utpal Dutt.
The play was staged in the 1950s. I saw the photograph around 1979-80. My father (Shyamal Sen) was the hero of the play and Shobha Sen played his mother. Gradually I got to know that she was a legend, that she had played an important role in the IPTA movement, and was an important part of Ritwik Ghatak's Nagarik. From all of this we get a sense of how deeply she was involved not only in cultural activities but also the socio-political activity that was very much vibrant at that time.
As an actress, she had a powerful stage presence. Her performance in Tiner Talowar was one of my favourites.
Later on I got to share screen space with her in a film called Ferari Fouj, that was based on Utpal Dutt's famous play. And I played the same role - of a freedom fighter who betrays his comrades - that my father had played. She was very versatile and comfortable in front of the camera. The film happened in early 2000. In the play she played the hero's mother. In the film she had a cameo.
Also, I got to know from my father she had a huge contribution in shaping Utpal Dutt's journey as an artiste. She stood by him like a rock when he was going through his struggling period, when he was part of the Communist Party movement and had gone underground. She supported and funded many of his plays from the money she earned from films.
I would like to remember her as a person who contributed everything for theatre. And someone who stood by her beliefs and political ideologies.
