Remembering Suchitra Sen, the 'Mahanayika' of Bengali cinema on her 90th birth anniversary

Suchitra Sen was born in a Bangali family to Korunamoy Dasgupto and Indira Devi on April 6, 1931. She was their fifth child and second daughter.

(AP)

Suchita Sen married Dibanath Sen at the age of 15 years in 1947. She had one daughter, Moon Moon Sen, who is a former actress. Suchita's father-in-law, Adinath Sen, was supportive of her acting career and her husband, Dibanath Sen, also invested hugely in her cinematic journey.

Suchitra Sen made her debut in Bengali films with 'Shesh Kothaay' in 1952. Apparently, the film never saw the light of the day. Later, she acted opposite Uttam Kumar in the film 'Sharey Chuattor,' which became a huge hit.

Suchitra Sen's pairing with Uttam Kumar continued over for twenty years as the duo acted in 30 of her 60 films.

Reportedly, Suchitra Sen's marriage was strained by her success in the Bengali and Hindi film industry. While Suchitra was ruling the hearts of cine-goers in the 60s and 70s, her husband passed away in Baltimore, Maryland, USA in 1970.

Suchitra Sen acted in a spate of hits like 'Devdas' (1955), 'Deep Jwele Jaai' (1959), 'Uttar Falguni' (1963) and 'Aandhi' (1974) to name a few.

She won the Silver Prize for Best Actress for 'Saat Pake Bandha' at the 1963 Moscow International Film Festival. In 1972, she was awarded the Padma Shri. Sen also received a Filmfare Award nomination as Best Actress for 'Aandhi'. In 2005, she refused the Dadasaheb Phalke Award. In 2012, she was conferred the Banga Bibhushan award.

(Photo: Still from the movie Mamta)

From 1953 to 1978, Suchitra Sen had acted in 61 films, which included both Bengali and Hindi movies.

From 1979 onwards, Suchitra Sen left the public life after a career of over 25 years, for this she is often compared to Hollywood actress Greta Garbo.

During her retirement, Suchitra Sen refused eminent filmmaker Satyajit Ray's offer due to a scheduling problem. She also refused noted Hindi actor and filmmaker Raj Kapoor's offer for a movie under the RK banner.