Greta Garbo of Indian cinema, Suchitra Sen, dies at 82
18 Jan 2014 6:33 AM IST
She breathed her last at 8.25 a.m on Friday morning after suffering a massive heart attack. Tollywood personalities like Prosenjit, Biswajit, Dev, June Maliah, Srijit Mukherjee and hordes of fans bade farewell to Sen as the last rites were performed by her daughter actor Moon Moon Sen at the Keoratala crematorium on Friday afternoon. Sen never acted in a Satyajit Ray or Mrinal Sen film, though her death moved the acclaimed director Mrinal Sen enough this afternoon for him to tell Millennium Post: ‘Suchitra was a powerful actress and a beautiful too’.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who visited the Belle Vue Nursing home often during the legendary actress’s last days, rushed to pay her last respects soon after receiving the news of her demise. ‘She was a wonder,’ said a visibly shaken Banerjee. The funeral was executed within hours of the star’s death, with state honours. Sen’s body was taken to the crematorium in a coffin, ensuring that her desire to stay away from public eye in the last 30 years was honoured. Sen, the most popular Bengali actress of all times, dominated Bengali films from the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s. She was the second Indian actress to win an international award after Nargis when she was selected as the best actress in the Moscow Film Festival for the movie ‘Saat Pake Bandha’.
Though not so active in Bollywood, she charmed the Hindi film audience whenever she appeared in a film - be it ‘Devdas’, ‘Mamta’ or ‘Aandhi’. During an acting career spanning quarter of a century, Sen acted in over 50 Bengali and several Hindi films. With the legendary Uttam Kumar, Sen formed the greatest romantic pair in Bengali cinema. The hit pair featured together in 30 films. Some of the most notable are ‘Agnipariksha’, ‘Ora Thake Odhare’, ‘Shap Mochan’, ‘Harano Sur’, ‘Pathey Holo Deri’, ‘Saptapadi’ and ‘Haar Mana Haar’.
However, after retiring from the silver screen in 1978, Sen withdrew from public life, shunning the media and even refusing to meet VIPs like ministers and celebrities. Only a small circle of relatives and friends had access to the reclusive actress, and over the years, she began to be called the Greta Garbo of Indian cinema after the Sweden-born Hollywood actress, who steered clear of publicity for about 40 years till her death. She delved into Hindi films with ‘Devdas’ in 1955 opposite Dilip Kumar, where she played the hero’s childhood sweetheart Parvati or Paro. The pair bonded again in the Bollywood venture ‘Musafir’ after two years. In 1975, Sen played the title role opposite Sanjeev Kumar in ‘Aandhi’, said to have been inspired by the life of then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, winning a Filmfare nomination for best actress. Fiercely protective of her privacy, she even turned down in 2005 the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honour in Indian cinema. In 2012, the West Bengal government conferred its highest award ‘Banga Bibhushan’ on Sen in absentia.
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who visited the Belle Vue Nursing home often during the legendary actress’s last days, rushed to pay her last respects soon after receiving the news of her demise. ‘She was a wonder,’ said a visibly shaken Banerjee. The funeral was executed within hours of the star’s death, with state honours. Sen’s body was taken to the crematorium in a coffin, ensuring that her desire to stay away from public eye in the last 30 years was honoured. Sen, the most popular Bengali actress of all times, dominated Bengali films from the mid 1950s to the mid 1970s. She was the second Indian actress to win an international award after Nargis when she was selected as the best actress in the Moscow Film Festival for the movie ‘Saat Pake Bandha’.
Though not so active in Bollywood, she charmed the Hindi film audience whenever she appeared in a film - be it ‘Devdas’, ‘Mamta’ or ‘Aandhi’. During an acting career spanning quarter of a century, Sen acted in over 50 Bengali and several Hindi films. With the legendary Uttam Kumar, Sen formed the greatest romantic pair in Bengali cinema. The hit pair featured together in 30 films. Some of the most notable are ‘Agnipariksha’, ‘Ora Thake Odhare’, ‘Shap Mochan’, ‘Harano Sur’, ‘Pathey Holo Deri’, ‘Saptapadi’ and ‘Haar Mana Haar’.
However, after retiring from the silver screen in 1978, Sen withdrew from public life, shunning the media and even refusing to meet VIPs like ministers and celebrities. Only a small circle of relatives and friends had access to the reclusive actress, and over the years, she began to be called the Greta Garbo of Indian cinema after the Sweden-born Hollywood actress, who steered clear of publicity for about 40 years till her death. She delved into Hindi films with ‘Devdas’ in 1955 opposite Dilip Kumar, where she played the hero’s childhood sweetheart Parvati or Paro. The pair bonded again in the Bollywood venture ‘Musafir’ after two years. In 1975, Sen played the title role opposite Sanjeev Kumar in ‘Aandhi’, said to have been inspired by the life of then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, winning a Filmfare nomination for best actress. Fiercely protective of her privacy, she even turned down in 2005 the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honour in Indian cinema. In 2012, the West Bengal government conferred its highest award ‘Banga Bibhushan’ on Sen in absentia.
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