Basanta Choudhury

Basanta Choudhury,[1] or Basanta Chowdhury (Bengali:বসন্ত চৌধুরী) (5 May 1928 – 20 June 2000), was an actor in the Kolkata-based Bengali film industry and the Mumbai-based Hindi film industry. He worked with directors Asit Sen, Rajen Tarafdar, Ajay Kar and Bijay Bose,[2] often in leading roles.

Basanta Chowdhury
বসন্ত চৌধুরী
Basanta Chowdhury
Born5 May 1928
Nagpur, India
Died20 June 2000 (2000-06-21) (aged 72)
Calcutta (Kolkata)
NationalityIndian
EducationDeena Nath High School Nagpur
OccupationActor, Producer
Years active1952–1993 (41 years)
Spouse(s)Aloka Chowdhury
Children2
AwardsBest Actor Prize for his film "Raja Rammohan" by B.F.J.A, Bangla Stage Centenary Star Theater award.
HonoursSheriff of Kolkata, Chairman of Nandan-West Bengal Film Center.

Choudhury's collection of Kashmiri and Persian shawls were enviable. Director Satyajit Ray admired those collections and used for his masterpieces.

Birth and childhood

Basanta Chowdhury was born into an affluent Datta Chowdhury family of Andul, Howrah.[3] He was the eldest son of Shiddeshwar Chowdhury and Kamala Devi. His younger brother was Prasanta Chowdhury. The actor was born and spent his early life in Nagpur where he had his schooling and college education. In 1945 AD he completed his Matriculation Examination from Deena Nath High School Nagpur.After shifting to Kolkata, Chowdhury used to stay at Ranikuthi in Tollygunge.[4]

He was a numismatist i.e. an expert collector of Ganesha idols, rare coins, paper currency and was a collector of Kashmiri and Persian shawls.[5]

Career

His first film was Mahaprasthaner Pathe by director Kartik Chattopadhay in 1952. Some of his memorable films are, Bhagaban Shri Krishna Chaitanya, Jadu Bhatta, Andhare Alo, Deep Jwele Jaai with Suchitra Sen, Anushtoop Chhanda, Abhaya O Srikanta, Raja Rammohan Roy, Diba Ratrir Kabya, Devi Chaudhurani. He was also involved with amateur theater and radio.

Filmography

Awards

In 1965, actor Chowdhury was awarded the Best Actor Prize for his film "Raja Rammohan" by B.F.J.A. In 1996, he also received Bangla Stage Centenary Star Theater award from Calcutta University. He had also acted in several Hindi films.

The actor had been the Sheriff of Kolkata. He was also appointed as the Chairman of Nandan-West Bengal Film Centre in Kolkata.

Death

The actor suffered from lung cancer for quite some time. He died on 20 June 2000 in Kolkata.[6]

References
  1. "All in the family". The Times of India. 14 October 2009. Retrieved 29 April 2013. Eki Onge Eto Roop starring Madhabi Mukherjee, Soumitra Chatterjee and Basanta Chowdhury ...
  2. "Films from the heart". The Hindu. 3 September 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
  3. আবসার, নুরুল. "আন্দুল রাজবাড়িকে ঘিরে জাদুঘরের ভাবনা - Anandabazar". Anandabazar Patrika (in Bengali). Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  4. "রাগ বসন্ত". Anandabazar Patrika (in Bengali). Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  5. "6 best films of Basanta Choudhury - a sophisticated actor almost forgotten| Half Samosa". Half Samosa. 10 April 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  6. http://pib.nic.in/archive/releases98/lyr2000/rjun2000/r21062000.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
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