Suchitra Sen facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids Suchitra Sen
সুচিত্রা সেন
Sen as Paro in Bimal Roy's Devdas (1955)
Born	Roma Dasgupta (1931-04-06)6 April 1931 Pabna District, Bangladesh
Died	17 January 2014(2014-01-17) (aged 82) Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1952–1979
Works	Filmography
Spouse(s)	Dibanath Sen (m. 1947; died 1970)
Children	Moon Moon Sen
Awards	Padma Shri (1972) Banga Bibhushan (2012)
Signature

Suchitra Sen (born Roma Dasgupta; 6 April 1931 – 17 January 2014) was a famous Indian actress. She acted in many films in both Bengali and Hindi languages.

She is especially remembered for her movies with actor Uttam Kumar. Their films together became very popular and are still loved today.

Suchitra Sen was the first Indian actress to win an award at an international film festival. She received the Silver Prize for Best Actress at the 1963 Moscow International Film Festival for her film Saat Pake Bandha.

In 1972, she received the Padma Shri, which is one of India's highest awards for civilians. Later, in 2012, she was given the Banga Bibhushan, the top honor from the West Bengal Government. After 1979, she chose to live a very private life, away from public attention.

Early Life and Family
Becoming a Star in Films
Life After Acting
Later Years and Passing
Filmography
Awards and Recognition
See also

Early Life and Family

Sen in Devdas.

Suchitra Sen was born on 6 April 1931, in a Bengali family in a village called Bhanga Bari. This village is now in Sirajganj District, Bangladesh. Her father, Korunamoy Dasgupta, was a school headmaster. Her mother, Indira Devi, took care of their home. Suchitra was their fifth child and second daughter.

She went to school at Pabna Government Girls High School. In 1947, her family moved to West Bengal, India, because of the Partition. That same year, when she was 15, she married Dibanath Sen. He was the son of a rich businessman.

Suchitra Sen had one daughter, Moon Moon Sen, who also became an actress. Her father-in-law, Adinath Sen, and her husband, Dibanath Sen, both supported her decision to become an actress.

Becoming a Star in Films

Suchitra Sen started her film career in 1952 with a movie called Shesh Kothaay, but it was never released. Her first official film was Saat Number Kayedi in 1953.

The next year, she starred with Uttam Kumar in Sharey Chuattor. This film was a huge success and made Uttam and Suchitra a very popular on-screen couple. They became famous for their roles in Bengali dramas and romances for over 20 years. Suchitra Sen acted in 30 of her 60 films with Uttam Kumar.

Her first Hindi movie was Devdas (1955). She was nominated for a Best Actress Award for her role in this film. Her romantic movies, especially with Uttam Kumar, made her the most famous Bengali actress ever.

Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen in Bangla Movie Harano Sur

Her films continued to be popular throughout the 1960s and 1970s. After her husband passed away in 1970, she continued acting. She starred in the Hindi film Aandhi (1974), which was inspired by India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Suchitra Sen was nominated for a Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her performance in Aandhi.

One of her most well-known performances was in Deep Jwele Jaai (1959). In this movie, she played a nurse named Radha Mitra. Her character had to build a personal connection with patients as part of their therapy. Radha fell in love with a patient while helping him get better, which led to her own emotional struggles.

Another important film for Suchitra Sen was Uttar Falguni (1963). In the same year, she won the Best Actress award at the Moscow International Film Festival for Saat Paake Bandha. This made her the first Indian actress to win an international film award.

A film expert once said that Suchitra Sen, along with Uttam Kumar, "redefined stardom." She combined grace, charm, and strong emotions to create a unique image that has not been matched in Indian cinema.

Life After Acting

Smritituku Thak a tribute to Sen at the Kolkata Book Fair in 2014. 29 Jan 2014.

Suchitra Sen decided to stop acting in 1978, after a career that lasted over 25 years. Her last released movie was Pronoy Pasha. After this, she chose to live a very private life, away from public view. She spent her time with the Ramakrishna Mission, a spiritual organization.

She even turned down offers from famous directors like Satyajit Ray and Raj Kapoor because she wanted to stay out of the public eye. In 2005, she refused the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, which is India's highest award for cinema, to maintain her privacy.

Later Years and Passing

Suchitra Sen remembrance at Rabindra Sadan, Kolkata, on 19 January 2014.

Suchitra Sen was admitted to the hospital on 24 December 2013, due to a lung infection. She passed away on 17 January 2014, at the age of 82, after a heart attack.

Many important leaders, including the President and Prime Minister of India, and the Prime Minister of Bangladesh, expressed their sadness at her passing. A special gun salute was given before her cremation, as ordered by the Chief Minister of West Bengal.

Her last rites were performed quickly and privately, respecting her wish for complete privacy. Even though she was a huge star, known as "Mahanayika" (Great Heroine), she remained a mystery until the very end. Thousands of fans gathered at the crematorium, hoping for one last glimpse of their beloved idol.

Filmography

Suchitra Sen acted in 61 films between 1953 and 1978, in both Bengali and Hindi.

No	Year	Movie	Release date	Role	Director	Hero	Notes
1	1952	Shesh Kothaay	NA	NA	Bireswar Basu (??)	NA	This movie was never released. However, it was later released in January 1974 under the name "Shrabana Shandhya".
2	1953	Saat Number Kayedi	7 Feb 1953	Aruna	Sukumar Dasgupta	Samar Roy	This was her first film that was officially released.
3	1953	Sharey Chuattor	20 Feb 1953	Romola	Nirmal Dey	Uttam Kumar	This was the first big hit for the "Uttam-Suchitra" pair.
4	1953	Bhagaban Srikrishna Chaitanya	11 Dec 1953	Bishnupriya	Debaki Bose	Basanta Chaudhury	This was one of Suchitra Sen's first movies based on Hindu philosophy. She played "Vishnu Priya", the wife of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
5	1953	Kajori	10 April 1953		Niren Lahiri	No major hero
6	1954	Atom Bomb	1 Jan 1954		Taru Mukherjee	Robin Majumdar	She appeared as an extra in this film. It was filmed in 1951 but released in 1954.
7	1954	Ora Thake Odhare	5 Feb 1954	Nilu	Sukumar Dasgupta	Uttam Kumar
8	1954	Dhuli	3 Jun 1954	Minati	Pinaki Mukherjee	Prasanta Kumar
9	1954	Maraner Parey	25 Jun 1954	Tanima	Satish Dasgupta	Uttam Kumar
10	1954	Sadanander Mela	16 Jul 1954	Sheela	Sukumar Dasgupta	Uttam Kumar
11	1954	Annapurnar Mandir	6 Aug 1954	Sati	Naresh Mitra	Uttam Kumar
12	1954	Agnipariksha	3 Sep 1954	Taposhi	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar	This was the first superhit movie starring Suchitra and Uttam. It marked the beginning of their iconic pairing in Bengali films.
13	1954	Grihaprabesh	12 Nov 1954		Ajoy Kar	Uttam Kumar
14	1954	Balaygras	17 Dec 1954	Manimala
15	1955	Sanjher Pradip	28 Jan 1955	Raju	Sudhanshu Mukherjee	Uttam Kumar
16	1955	Devdas	1 Jan 1955	Parvati (Paro)	Bimal Roy	Dilip Kumar	Her first Hindi language film. It was based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel "Devdas".
17	1955	Snaajhghar	11 Mar 1955
18	1955	Shapmochan	27 May 1955	Madhuri	Shudhir Mukherjee	Uttam Kumar	This was the second superhit movie starring Suchitra and Uttam.
19	1955	Mejo Bou	30 Sep 1955
20	1955	Bhalobasa	6 Oct 1955			Basanta Chaudhury
21	1955	Sabar Uparey	1 Dec 1955	Rita	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar	This film was based on the novel "Beyond This Place" by Scottish writer A. J. Cronin.
22	1956	Sagarika	1 Feb 1956	Sagarika	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar
23	1956	Subharaatri	30 Mar 1956	Shanti/Sudha	Sushil Majumdar	Basanta Chaudhury
24	1956	Ekti Raat	11 May 1956	Santana	Chitta Bose	Uttam Kumar
25	1956	Trijama	28 June 1956	Swarupa	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar
26	1956	Shilpi	30 Nov 1956	Anjana	Agragami	Uttam Kumar
27	1956	Amar Bou	14 Dec 1956			Bikash Roy
28	1957	Harano Sur	6 Sep 1957	Dr. Roma Banerjee	Ajoy Kar	Uttam Kumar	This film was based on the novel "Random Harvest" by James Hilton.
29	1957	Chandranath	15 Nov 1957	Saraju	Kartik Chattopadhyay	Uttam Kumar	Based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel "Chandranath". It was the first Bengali movie released in Calcutta Metro Cinema.
30	1957	Pathe Holo Deri	5 Dec 1957	Mallika Banerjee	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar	Based on a novel by Prativa Basu.
31	1957	Jeeban Trishna	25 Dec 1957	Shakuntala	Ashit Sen	Uttam Kumar
32	1957	Musafir	26 April 1957	Shakuntala Verma	Hrishikesh Mukherjee	Shekhar Kumar	Hindi language film.
33	1957	Champakali	31 Dec 1957	Rajo	Nandlal Jaswantlal	Bharat Bhushan	Hindi language film.
34	1958	Rajlakshmi O Srikanta	28 Feb 1958	Rajlakshmi	Haridas Bhattacharya	Uttam Kumar	Based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel "Rajlakshmi O Shrikanta".
35	1958	Suryatoran	21 Nov 1958	Anita Chatterjee	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar	This film was based on the 1949 Hollywood movie "The Fountain Head".
36	1958	Indrani	10 Oct 1958	Indrani	Niren Lahiri	Uttam Kumar
37	1959	Deep Jwele Jaai	1 May 1959	Radha Mitra	Ashit Sen	Basanta Chaudhury	This was a block-buster movie.
38	1959	Chaowa Paowa	27 Feb 1959	Manju	Yatrik	Uttam Kumar	The story was taken from a short story called "Night Bus". It was also made into the Hollywood movie "It Happened One Night".
39	1960	Hospital	16 Sep 1960	Dr. Sarbari Roy	Shushil Majumdar	Ashok Kumar
40	1960	Smriti Tuku Thak	23 Sep 1960	Shobha/Utpala	Yatrik	Ashit Baran / Bikash Roy	This was the first time she acted in a double role.
41	1960	Bombai Ka Baboo	2 Dec 1960	Maya	Raj Khosla	Dev Anand	Hindi language film.
42	1960	Sarhad	9 Sep 1960	Mala	Shankar Mukherjee	Dev Anand	Hindi language film.
43	1961	Saptapadi	20 Oct 1961	Rina Brown	Ajoy Kar	Uttam Kumar
44	1962	Bipasha	26 Jan 1962	Bipasha	Agradoot	Uttam Kumar	This was a milestone in Bengali movie history. Suchitra Sen was the first Bengali actor (male or female) to receive one lakh rupees for a film role.
45	1963	Saat Pake Bandha	22 Mar 1963	Archana	Ajay Kar	Soumitra Chatterjee
46	1963	Uttar Falguni	11 Oct 1963	Debjani / Pannabai / Suparna	Ashit Sen	Dilip Mukherjee, Bikash Roy	Based on Dr. Nihar Ranjan Gupta's novel "Uttar Falguni".
47	1964	Sandhya Deeper Sikha	2 Oct 1964	Jayanti Bannerjee	Haridas Bhattacharya	Dilip Mukherjee, Bikash Roy	This movie was based on Tarun K. Bhaduri's book Sandhya Deeper Shikha.
48	1966	Mamta	27 Feb 1966	Devyani / Pannabai / Suparna	Asit Sen	Dharmendra, Ashok Kumar	This was the Hindi version of the Bengali film "Uttar Phalguni".
49	1967	Grihadaha	5 May 1967	Achala	Subodh Mitra	Uttam Kumar	Based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel "Grihadaha".
50	1969	Kamallata	2 Oct 1969	Kamallata	Haridas Bhattacharya	Uttam Kumar	Based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel "Kamallata".
51	1970	Megh Kalo	4 Sep 1970	Dr. Nirmalya Roy	Shushil Mukherjee	Basanta Chaudhury
52	1971	Nabaraag	4 Feb 1971		Bijoy Bose	Uttam Kumar
53	1971	Fariyad	5 Nov 1971	Chapa/Ratanmala	Bijoy Basu	Utpal Dutta
54	1972	Alo Amaar Alo	17 Mar 1972	Atashi		Uttam Kumar
55	1972	Har Mana Har	19 Dec 1972	Neera		Uttam Kumar
56	1974	Devi Chaudhurani	6 Sep 1974	Prafullamukhi	Dinen Gupta	Basanta Chaudhury and Ranjit Mallik
57	1974	Srabana Sandhya	25 Jan 1974		Bireswar Basu (??)		The original name of "Shrabana Shandhya" was "Shesy Kothaay". It was half-finished in 1952 and released 22 years later in January 1974.
58	1975	Priyo Bandhabi	3 Oct 1975			Uttam Kumar
59	1975	Aandhi	13 Feb 1975	Aarti Devi	Gulzar	Sanjeev Kumar	Hindi language film.
60	1976	Datta	30 Jul 1976	Datta	Ajoy Kar	Soumitra Chatterjee	Based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Datta.
61	1978	Pranay Pasha	9 June 1978	Taposhi	Mangal Chakraborty	Soumitra Chatterjee	This was her last movie to be released.

Awards and Recognition

Suchitra Sen received many awards during her career. In 1963, she made history by becoming the first Indian actress to win an international award.

1962 – Won BFJA Award for Best Actress for Saptapadi
1964 – Won BFJA Award for Best Actress for Uttar Phalguni
1973 – Won BFJA Award for Best Actress for Alo Amaar Alo
1976 – Won BFJA Award for Best Actress (Hindi) for Aandhi
1963 – Won Silver Prize for Best Actress at the 3rd Moscow International Film Festival for Saat Paake Bandha
1967 – Nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Actress for Mamta
1972 – Won Padma Shri for her great work in arts
1975 – Won Filmfare Award for Best Actress for regional cinema Priya Bandhabi
1976 – Nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Actress for Aandhi
2012 – Won Banga Bibhushan for her lifetime achievements in film acting
2014 – Won Filmfare East Lifetime Achievement Award (given after her death)