An icon of Bengali cinema and one of the most venerated actors in the country, Soumitra Chatterjee had immortalised a plethora of characters over the course of a career spanning around six decades. A recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and French government`s Ordre des Arts et des Lettres honour, the National Film Award-winning actor is perhaps best known for his association with legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray, with whom he worked in as many as 14 films.
Since his debut in the titular role in the 1959 classic Apur Sansar directed by Satyajit Ray, Soumitra had appeared in over 250 movies: an illustrious filmography that encompasses some of the greatest titles in Bengali cinema over the last sixty years or so. Among these are Ray films like Charulata (1964), Ashani Sanket (1973), Joi Baba Felunath (1979) and Ghare Baire (1984); Mrinal Sen`s Akash Kusum (1965); and Tapan Sinha`s Kshudhita Pashan (1960).
Though he had given a number of stellar performances over the years, it was in the fifth decade of his career that the veteran actor won his maiden National Film Award for Best Actor; for his performance in the 2006 film Podokkhep. Besides this, he has also won multiple Bengal Film Journalists` Association Awards for his work in movies like Baghini (1968), Agni Sanket (1988) and Krantikaal (2005). Other significant acting credits in more recent times include Angshumaner Chhobi (2009), Hemlock Society (2012), the family drama Posto (2017), Sesh Chithi (2017), Basu Paribar (2018), Flat No 609 (2018) and Abak Kando (2018). Soumitra`s 2019 ventures include WMT 9615, Kolkatay Kohinoor, Sesher Golpo, Dash Mash Dash Diner Galpo, Adda and Sanjhbati. His 2020 releases include Sraboner Dhara, Amar Artanad and Samapti. Soumitra Chatterjee passed away in November 2020.