Tarun Majumdar

Tarun Majumdar (also often credited as Tarun Mazumdar) ( _bn. তরুণ মজুমদার "Torun Mojumdar") is a Bengali Indian film director who makes films in Bengali and is notable for his depiction of Bengali culture and society. Many of his films are literature-based. He has recreated classics written by Bimal Kar, Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay, and Tarashankar Bandopadhyay on celluloid. Another feature of many of his films is the ample use of songs written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore to convey a range of emotions. Although often lacking in critical acclaim as some of his peers like Tapan Sinha, Satyajit Ray, and Mrinal Sen, he has consistently produced box-office hits for over forty years.

Early years

Tarun Majumdar was born in 1931 in Bogra, Bengal, now in Bangladesh. His early films were credited to "Yatrik" (phonetically "Jatrik" in Bangla). "Yatrik" was the screen-name of the trio of directors Tarun Majumdar, Sachin Mukherji, and Dilip Mukherji until 1963 after which each began to be credited separately. As "Yatrik", the trio created well-known classics such as "Chaowa Paowa" in 1959, starring matinee idol Uttam Kumar and screen-diva Suchitra Sen, and "Palatak" and "Kancher Swarga", both in 1963.

Later years

In 1965, Tarun Majumdar made two films "Ektuku basha" with Soumitra Chatterjee and "Alor pipasha" with Basanta Choudhury. Both films featured Sandhya Roy, a popular actress he married. In 1967, he made one of the top grossing films of the year, "Balika badhu", an adaptation of story written by Bimal Kar, in which a teenage Moushumi Chatterjee made her debut. He would remake this film in Hindi in 1976, where it was a moderate success. He would make quite a few box-office blockbusters through the years including (but not exclusively), "Shriman Prithviraj", "Ganadevata", "Dadar kirti", "Bhalobasha bhalobasha", "Poroshmoni", and "Apon amar apon". Apart from being a major success in 1980, "Dadar kirti", based on a short story by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay introduced Debashree Roy and Tapas Pal. Both would go on to dominate the Bengali film screen for over a decade. In many films after "Dadar kirti", Tapas Pal found himself typecast in similar roles to "Kedar".

Revival

In the middle of the Nineties, Tarun Majumdar retired from filmmaking. For almost a decade he stayed away from filmmaking. In 2004, Tarun Majumdar made a comeback with Alo (film), a film based on a story written by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay. This film received both critical and popular acclaim and became one of the hits of the year. As in many of Tarun Majumdar's films, the soundtrack featured songs written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore

Awards

Indian National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment for "Ganadevata", (1979).

Partial Filmography

* Ektutu basha (1965)
* Balika badhu (1967)
* Shriman Prithviraj (1973)
* Phuleswari (1974)
* Balika badhu (Hindi remake, 1976)
* Ganadevata (1979)
* Dadar Kirti (1980)
* Bhalobasha bhalobasha (1985)
* Poroshmoni (1988)
* Apon amar apon (1990)
* Sajani go sajani (1991)
* Alo (film) (2003)
* Bhalobashar anek naam (2006)
* Khelar Putul
* Amargiti
* Baba Tarokanath

External links

* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0538306/ IMDB film page]
* [http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060609/asp/etc/story_6326228.asp Review of "bhalobashar anek naam" by the Calcutta "Telegraph"]