Jaya Ahsan

Television

Having started her career as a model in the late 1990s, Ahsan has since worked in numerous television dramas and serials. She worked in Giashuddin Selim’s Shongshoy and later in Anechy Shurjer Hashi. Directors, among others, opine that one of the reasons behind her success is that she has always been selective about the plot and the character of the plays she was offered.^[5] Her reputation as an actress was founded on the notable roles she played in Kuhok, Labonyo Probha, Horton-er Bibi, Shonkhobash, Hatkura and many more. She has won wide recognition among TV viewers for her role as Aaysha in Anechy Shurjer Hashi and Monika in Labonyo Probha. Her acting skills can be gauged in Toukir Ahmed and Bipasha Hayat's play Shonkhobash in which she played the role of Pushpo which was a bold character according to her. The role she played in Hatkura added another chapter in her career as a performer. Set in the outskirts of a village in Rangpur District. The play was quite a challenge for her. "I had to learn the dialect of Rangpur for the role. Actually, I had never been to a village before that. And it was a completely new experience for me" she said.^[5] In 2010-2011 ongoing serial Choita Pagol aired on Channel i, she played the role of Alta, who is also a rural woman. She said "Alta is one of my favourite characters. I liked playing the role." Her outstanding performance in Mejbaur Rahman Sumon's Tarporo Angurlata Nondoke Bhalobashe also made her way to the top and cemented her position as an actress. She portrayed various characters in teledramas including Sixty Nine (69), Tevaga, Shahortolir Alo, Tarpor Paruler Deen, Amader Choto Nodi, Mayesha, Jostna, Nodi Othoba Roshider Kichu Kolpo Drisyo and many more. Her stunning performances one after one made her the most popular leading actress and she became the highest-paid actress in the television industry of Bangladesh.

Film

On the big screen, she had a special appearance in a film named Bachelor (2004) which was directed by Mostofa Sarwar Farooki. Her first film was Nurul Alam Atik's debut film Dubshatar, English title: In Too Deep (2010). The film did not do well in the box office but her performance was praised by the critics. In the same year, she acted in a thriller named Firey Esho Behula (2010), directed by Tanim Noor.

In 2010-2011, she worked in Nasiruddin Yousuff's big budget film Guerrilla. The movie was based on the events of the Bangladesh Liberation War, and it was an adaptation of the novel 'Nishiddho Loban' by Syed Shamsul Huq. It narrates the tale of Bilkis Banu, played by Ahsan, a freedom fighter, who actively participates in the Liberation War while searching for her lost husband. The film was a huge hit and ran over hundred days in many movie theaters around the country. This film won National Awards in ten categories, including the Best Actress Award for Ahsan. After the success of this film, she shifted her focus into film industry.

In the following year, she worked on Chorabali (2012), which is an action thriller directed by Redoan Rony.^[7] She portrayed 'Noboni Afroz', a journalist and won her second National Film Award for her performance. The film performed well in the box office and was declared a hit.

In 2013, Ahsan acted in a Bangla film named Aborto, directed by Arindam Sil.^[8] She was nominated for the Filmfare Awards East for Best Debut Performance Female for her role in the film. She also received an official invitation to attend the 66th Cannes Film Festival. In the same year, she performed in Purno Doirgho Prem Kahini, a Bangladeshi romantic film directed by Shafi Uddin Shafi. It was her first mainstream Bangladeshi film in collaboration with Shakib Khan. Filming began on 4 August 2012 and was wrapped-up by June 2013. The film released on 16 October 2013 of Eid al-Adha. Upon release, the film received positive reviews and was a huge box office success. The original production team announced plans to make a sequel titled, Purno Doirgho Prem Kahini 2. The sequel has retained leads Shakib Khan and Ahsan while Mamnun Hasan Emon and Mousumi Hamid are new additions to the cast, and tbe movie released in October 2015.

Ahsan started working in an action-science-fiction film named Parle Theka, directed by Samurai Maruf in 2013-14 but the director stopped filming. The film became much anticipated film of the year for a video song called Jongoler Daak which created somewhat of a buzz in the media when the work for the movie began few years ago. The shooting of the film began near the end of 2012 and even when 2015 rolled in, the shooting was not completed. In 2015, the film was set to resurface and the shooting began again, but under a completely different name, with the title Mesidona.
After one-year break Zero Degree was her following venture. The film was a psychological thriller written and directed by Animesh Aich and was released on 15 January 2015. The film was not a commercial success though it was critically acclaimed and Ahsan won a national film award in the category of best actress for her performance in the movie.
In 2015, Ahsan worked in three other Indian Bangla films- Rajkahini based on the 1947 east and west Bengal separation which is directed by Srijit Mukherji, Ekti Bangali Bhuter Golpo a horror film directed by Indranil Roychowdhury and Kantho directed by Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukhopadhyay. Ekti Bangali Bhuter Golpo was set for a world TV premier in Kolkata on 17 May in ZEE Bangla Cinema. Rajkahini was scheduled to release on 16 October 2015.
She signed up for a new Bangladeshi film. The actress will be seen as the lead character in director Mahmud Didar's upcoming film Beauty Circus. The shooting for the film was set to begin from November 2015 and the entire shoot took place in the hilly areas.

Television work