>Monkbot at 05:50, 13 December 2020

2020-12-13T05:50:21Z

New page

{{About|Gurudas Banerjee, the actor|the judge|Gooroodas Banerjee}}
{{EngvarB|date=January 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2016}}
{{Infobox person
|name = Gurudas Banerjee
|image =
|imagesize =
|caption =
|birth_name =
|birth_date =
|birth_place =
|death_date =
|death_place =
|height =
|occupation = Actor (theatre and cinema); Head of theatrical company
|yearsactive = 1940s–1980s
|website =
|spouse = [[Molina Devi]]
|children =
}}
'''Gurudas Banerjee''', also known as '''Gurudas Bandyopadhyay''',<ref>Ananda Lal ''The Oxford companion to Indian theatre'' 2004- Page 275 "Trained in acting by Aparesh Mukhopadhyay, she debuted in a silent movie as an 8- year-old. She began her stage career, like many of ... She teamed up with Gurudas Bandyopadhyay, her second husband, to form a troupe, M. G. Enterprise, which specialized in commercial productions of devotional drama where he enacted Ramakrishna and other holy men. She made quite a stir as the lead in the ..."</ref> is a Bengali stage and film actor who was active from the 1940s through the 1980s.<ref>Sushil Kumar Mukherjee, Suśīla Mukhopādhyāẏa The story of the Calcutta theatres, 1753-1980 (1982), Page 342: "The cast included Gurudas Banerjee (Ramakrishna), Kartick Banerjee (Girish Ghose), Santosh Dutt (Danakali), ... "</ref> As an actor, he commonly played holy men, especially the 19th century Bengali mystic [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]], a role he was said to "almost monopolize." He acted in more than 80 films, mostly in [[Bengali language|Bengali]]. With his wife, actress Molina Devi, he also directed a [[Kolkata|Calcutta]]-based theatre troupe, M. G. Enterprises.

==Biography==

Gurudas Banerjee had his stage debut in 1948 at [[Kolkata|Calcutta's]] Kalika Theatre in the role of [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] in ''Yugadevata''.<ref name=gbdetail/> He continued acting in theatre and cinema until the 1980s.
Banerjee married [[Molina Devi]] (1917-1977), who has been characterized as "one of the finest actresses of Indian theatre and cinema."<ref name=lal04/>{{rp|275}} Together, they operated their own touring theatre, M. G. Enterprises,<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|688}} which "specialized in commercial productions of devotional drama"<ref name=lal04>{{cite book |title=The Oxford companion to Indian theatre
|last=Lal |first=Ananda |author-link=Ananda Lal |year=2004
|location=New Delhi |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0195644468
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DftkAAAAMAAJ}}</ref>{{rp|275}}
in which Banerjee played the role of [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] and other holy men.

==Roles==
Gurudas Banerjee acted in a variety of roles, very commonly as [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]], which he played on both stage and in film.<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|688}}
Other roles that Banerjee played in film included
[[Bamakhepa|Sadhak Bamakhyapa]] (''Sadhak Bamakshyapa'', 1958; ''Joy Maa Tara'', 1978),<ref name=sadbham1958/><ref name=roleimdb/>
Gobinda, Husband Of Chandi (''Swayamsiddha'', 1947),
Ramola's Father (''Sare Chuattar'', 1953),<ref name=rolegomolo/>
Jitu, Anita's Father (''Ekti Raat'', 1956),<ref name=rolegomolo/>
Pishemashai (''Indranath, Srikanta O Annadadidi'', 1959),
Neepa's Father (''Mouchak'', 1975),<ref name=rolegomolo/> and
Agniswar's Father-in-law (''Agniswar'', 1975).<ref name=rolegomolo/>

From the 1950s through the 1970s, Gurudas Banerjee<ref>http://vidgrids.com/gurudas-bandopadhaya</ref> commonly portrayed Ramakrishna in the [[Bengali Theatre]] and [[Cinema of West Bengal|films]]. Beginning in the late 1940s, "he almost monopolized this role [of Ramakrishna] as a specialist, both on the stage and on the screen,"<ref
name=calcutheaters>{{cite book
|title=The Story of the Calcutta Theatres, 1753-1980
|last=Mukherjee |first=Sushil Kumar |author-link=Sushil Kumar Mukherjee |year=1982
|location=Calcutta |publisher=K.P. Bagchi
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Vg4AAAAIAAJ }}</ref>{{rp|688}} and was still portraying Ramakrishna in the late-1970s.<ref name=gbdetail>Gurudas Banerjee played Ramakrishna in the film ''Jata Mat Tata Path'' (1979). Mukherjee's (1982) ''Story'' states that Gurudas Banerjee was "a popular actor [who] made his stage debut at Kalika in the late-forties of the [20th] century appearing as Sri Ramakrishna in ''Yugadevata'' (1948). Since then he has almost monopolized the role as a specialist, both on the stage and on the screen. His recent appearance in this role was in ''Nata Nati'' at Rangana (1975).... He has his own touring theatre, M. G. Enterprise..." (p. 688)</ref> Sushil Mukherjee explains that the drama ''Jugadevata'', which debuted on the Calcutta stage on 19 November 1948,
{{quote|
was a devotional drama... on the life of the [[Ramakrishna|Saint of Dakshineswar]] <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Ramakrishna]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> [that] became immensely popular and established two artistes who became wholly identified with the two characters they represented. These were Gurudas Banerjee who was seen as Sri Ramkrishna and [[Molina Debi]] who appeared as [[Rani Rashmoni|Rani Rasmoni]], the founder of the famous [[Dakshineswar Kali Temple|Bhabatarini (Kali) temple at Dakshineswar]]. Since their appearance in ''Jugadevata'' at Kalika in 1948 Gurudas and Molina have appeared in the characters of these two persons in a number of other plays, both on the stage and on the screen....<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|288}}
}}

Films in which Banerjee played the role of Ramakrishna included ''Rani Rashmoni'' (1955), ''Mahakavi Girish Chandra'' (1956), ''[[Bireswar Vivekananda]]'' (1964), and ''Jata Mat Tata Path'' (1979).
Theatrical plays in which Banerjee played Ramakrishna included ''Jugadebata'' (1948), ''Thakur Sri Ramakrishna'' (1955), and ''Nata Nati'' (1975).
In fact he was the only actor to play roles of all the prominent Shaakto (Devotee of Goddess Shakti) mystics of the 18th and 19th Century Bengal, namely Sadhak Ramprasad, Kamalakanta Bhattacharya, Shri Ramakrishna Paramhamsa and Sadhak Bamakhyapa.

==Reception==
According to Sushil Mukherjee, in the many screen and stage appearances since 1948 in which Banerjee and Molina Devi have played Ramakrishna and Rani Rashmoni together, they "have carried the audience with them in every performance."<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|288}}

In 1966, ''[[The Illustrated Weekly of India]]'' mentioned Banerjee's troupe's performance in a review of the 1965-66 theatre season in [[Delhi]].<ref name=khosla66>{{cite journal
|author=G. S. Khosla |year=1966
|title=Theatre in the Capital
|journal=[[The Illustrated Weekly of India]] |volume=87 |issue=2 |pages=59
|issn=0019-2430 |oclc=6772824
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A1s6AQAAIAAJ&q=gurudas+molina&dq=gurudas+molina&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lVkMUeWbPITiiALIioCIDg&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAQ}}</ref>
The ''Weekly'' stated that
{{quote|
Milan Samity of Delhi sponsored the M. G. Enterprise of Calcutta, who brought two plays, ''Thakur Shri Ramakrishna'' and ''Baikunther Will'', and an able company of actors. The credit for composing ''Thakur Shri Ramakrishna'', round the story of [[Rani Rashmoni]], and for bringing this legendary figure to life on the stage, goes to Molina Devi and Gurudas, who headed the company.... It is not easy to put across a religious theme, but Molina and Gurudas did so convincingly, helped greatly by the telling effects of light and music.<ref name=khosla66/>
|author=|title=|source=}}

==Filmography==

Gurudas Banerjee acted in more than 80 films, mostly in Bengali, as listed here (including year released, and role if available; all films in Bengali unless otherwise noted):<ref>Listed in Gomolo except as noted.</ref>
*''Banglar Meye'' (1941)<ref name=imdbonly>[[IMDb]] only (not Gomolo)</ref>
*''Swayamsiddha'' (1947) (Gobinda, Husband Of Chandi<ref name=rolegomolo>Role given by Gomolo</ref>)
*''[[Kalo Chhaya]]'' (1948)
*''Ultorath'' (1949)
*''Paribartan'' (1949)
*''Mayajaal'' (1949)
*''[[Kuasha (1949)]]''
*''Cartoon'' (1949)
*''Vidyasagar'' (1950)
*''Sree Tulsidas'' (1950)
*''Sanchali'' (1950)
*''Sahodar'' (1950)
*''Kankantala Light Railway'' (1950)
*''Jugadebata'' (1950)
*''Gypsy Meye'' (1950)
*''Apabad'' (1950)
*''Ganyer Meye'' (1951)
*''Bhakta Raghunath'' (1951)
*''Bhairab Mantra'' (1951)
*''Anandamath'' (1951)
*''Vidyasagar'' (1952, Hindi)<ref name=imdbonly/>
*''Sabitri Satyaban'' (1952)
*''Nildarpan'' (1952)
*''Mahishasur Badh'' (1952)
*''Sanjibani'' (1952)
*''Sarala'' (1953)
*''Rami Chandidas'' (1953)
*''Maharaja Nandakumar'' (1953)
*''Bhagaban Srikrishna Chaitanya'' (1953)
*''Sare Chuattar'' (1953) (Ramola's Father<ref name=rolegomolo/>)
*''Makarsar Jaal'' (1953)<ref name=citwfonly>[[CITWF]] only (not Gomolo)</ref>
*''Shibashakti'' (1954)
*''Sada Kalo'' (1954)
*''Naa'' (1954)
*''[[Rani Rasmani (film)]]'' (1955) ([[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=roleimdb>Role given by [[IMDb]]</ref>)
*''Katha Kao'' (1955)
*''Joy Maa Kali Boarding'' (1955)
*''Chatujye Banrujye'' (1955)
*''Atmadarshan'' (1955)
*''Aparadhi'' (1955)
*''Sajher Pradip'' (1955)
*''Debatra'' (1955)
*''Subholagna'' (1956)
*''Sadhak Ramprasad'' (1956)
*''Rajpath'' (1956)
*''Mahakabi Girishchandra'' (1956) ([[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=roleimdb/>)
*''Bhola Master'' (1956)
*''Asamapta'' (1956)
*''Abhagir Swarga'' (1956)
*''Ekti Raat'' (1956) (Jitu, Anita's Father<ref name=rolegomolo/>)
*''Tamasa'' (1957)
*''[[Nilachaley Mahaprabhu|Nilachale Mahaprabhu]]'' (1957)
*''Ami Baro Habo'' (1957)
*''Sree Sree Maa'' (1958)
*''Sadhak Bamakshyapa'' (1958) ([[Bamakhepa|Sadhak Bamakhyapa]]<ref name=sadbham1958/>)
*''Purir Mandir'' (1958)
*''Mejo Jamai'' (1958)
*''Kangsa'' (1958)
*''Jonakir Alo'' (1958)
*''[[Indranath Srikanta O Annadadidi]]'' (1959) (Pishemashai)
*''Abhishap'' (1959)
*''Tailangaswami'' (1960)
*''Nader Nimai'' (1960)
*''Kono Ek Din'' (1960)
*''Sadhak Kamalakanta'' (1961)
*''Carey Saheber Munsi'' (1961)
*''Taranisen Badh'' (1962)
*''Bireswar Viveknanda'' (1964) ([[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=roleimdb/>)
*''Rup Sanatan'' (1965)
*''Bharater Sadhak'' (1965)
*''Debitirtha Kamrup Kamakshya'' (1967)
*''Adyashakti Mahamayay'' (1968)
*''Trinayani Maa'' (1971)
*''Umno O Jhumno'' (1975)
*''Swayamsiddha'' (1975)
*''Mouchak'' (1975) (Neepa's Father<ref name=rolegomolo/>)
*''Agniswar'' (1975) (Agniswar's Father-in-law<ref name=rolegomolo/>)
*''Nagar Darpane'' (1975)
*''Sree Sree Maa Lakshmi'' (1977)
*''Baba Taraknath'' (1977)
*''Jaal Sanyasi'' (1977)
*''Joy Maa Tara'' (1978) ([[Bamakhepa|Sadhak Bamakhyapa]]<ref name=roleimdb/>)
*''Balak Saratchandra'' (1978)
*''Aguner Phulki'' (1978)
*''Jato Mat Tato Path'' (1979) ([[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=roleimdb/>)
*''Dub De Mon Kali Bole'' (1979)
*''Matribhakta Ramprasad'' (1980)
*''Abhi'' (1980)
*''Maa Bhabani Maa Amar'' (1982)
*''Kshyapa Thakur'' (1987) (Mohanto baba<ref name=rolegomolo/>)
*''Bile Naren'' (1988)

===Film table with references===
Further details on selected films appear in the table below.<ref name=ftableinfo>Information in the table of selected films is derived, as noted in the final column, from film entries in [[YouTube]], or from Gurudas Banerjee at [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1278454 IMDB], [http://www.gomolo.com/about-gurudas-bandyopadhyay/5190 Gomolo], or [http://www.citwf.com/person536791.htm CITWF.]</ref> Films known to be dubbed versions of other films have not been listed. Any films known to be [[Cinema of India#Multilinguals|multilinguals]] (separately filmed in multiple languages) are explicitly noted as multilinguals.<ref name=multilinguals>Some Indian films are known as "[[Cinema of India#Multilinguals|multilinguals]]," having been filmed in similar but non-identical versions in different languages. According to Rajadhyaksha and Willemen in the ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema'' (1994), in its most precise form, a multilingual is "a bilingual or a trilingual [that] was the kind of film made in the 1930s in the studio era, when different but identical takes were made of every shot in different languages, often with different leading stars but identical technical crew and music." They wrote that in seeking to assemble the ''Encyclopedia'', it they often found it "extremely difficult to distinguish multilinguals in this original sense from dubbed versions, remakes, reissues or, in some cases, the same film listed with different titles, presented as separate versions in different languages.... it will take years of scholarly work to establish definitive data in this respect."
Source: {{cite book|last=Rajadhyaksha|first=Ashish|title=Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema|year=1994|publisher=Oxford University Press; British Film Institute (London)|location=New Delhi |isbn=019-563579-5|author2=Paul Willemen}}</ref><ref>At present, no pairs of films listed in the table are known to be multilinguals; however, this category has been added for clarify, and to accommodate possible additional information (12 Feb 2013)</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable" border="0"
|-
! Year
! Film Title
! Banerjee Role
! Film Director
! Notes & Sources<small><br>(DB=data base)</small>
|-
|-
| 1950 ||''Jugadebata''|| [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=confirm>Probable but unconfirmed - see talk page</ref> ||[[Bidhayak Bhattacharya]] || Bengali; Sources: DBs,<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film177209.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/jugadebata-movie/13300 Gomolo] (unlisted in IMDb)</ref> other<ref>Mentioned in [https://books.google.com/books?id=pzEdHF5UYcMC&pg=PA87&dq=%22Bengali+Cinema%22+Guptoo+Jugadebata&hl=en&sa=X&ei=UE_8UIeELqeAiwKiooGgDg&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Bengali%20Cinema%22%20Guptoo%20Jugadebata&f=false p. 84 of Guptoo (2011) as "based on the <nowiki>[life]</nowiki> of... saint Sri Ramkrishna Paramhansa"]</ref>
|-
| 1950 ||''Vidyasagar''|| [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || [[Kali Prasad Ghosh]] || Bengali; Sources: DBs,<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film372714.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/vidyasagar-movie/13324 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0215334 IMDB]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3Nts_2wIjI YOUTUBE (2:06:46)]</ref> other<ref name=vidyasagact>The actor appearing as Sri Ramakrishna in the last two minutes of ''Vidyasagar'' (1950) is readily identifiable as the same as the actor appearing in the role of Sri Ramakrishna in ''Mahakavi Girish Chandra'' (1956), as viewable in the [http://iffi.nic.in/Dff2011/Frm4thNFAAward.aspx?PdfName=4NFA.pdf State Awards for Mils Programme (1956)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171122202225/http://iffi.nic.in/Dff2011/Frm4thNFAAward.aspx?PdfName=4NFA.pdf |date=22 November 2017 }} (page 9) (accessed 12 Feb 2013).</ref>
|-
| 1952 ||''Vidyasagar'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]<ref name=confirm/> || Kali Prasad Ghosh || Hindi; Sources: DBs<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film372715.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/vidyasagar-movie/2296 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0215335 IMDB]</ref>
|-
| 1955 || ''Rani Rashmoni'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || Kali Prasad Ghosh || Bengali; Sources: DBs<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film288117.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/rani-rashmoni-movie/13553 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0215115/ IMDB]</ref> Molina Devi as [[Rani Rashmoni]]
|-
| 1958 || ''Sadhak Bamakhyapa'' || [[Bamakhepa|Sadhak Bamakhyapa]] || [[Banshi Ash]] || Bengali; Sources: DBs<ref name=sadbham1958>
YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIP8KtTQ_VE (Part 1)] [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7jIzAcJvQw (Part 2)] (Gurudas Banerjee is credited as portraying [[Bamakhepa|Sadhak Bamakhyapa]] at 1:06 in video)</ref><ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film302113.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/sadhak-bamakshyapa-movie/13695 Gomolo] (unlisted in IMDb)</ref>
|-
| 1956 || ''[[Mahakavi Girish Chandra]]'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || [[Madhu Bose]] || Bengali; Sources: DBs<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film209368.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/mahakabi-girishchandra-movie/13585 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0156763/ IMDB]</ref> [[Pahari Sanyal]] as [[Girish Chandra Ghosh]]. The film won a 1956 Certificate of Merit.<ref name=com56>[http://iffi.nic.in/Dff2011/Frm4thNFAAward.aspx?PdfName=4NFA.pdf State Awards for Mils Programme (1956)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171122202225/http://iffi.nic.in/Dff2011/Frm4thNFAAward.aspx?PdfName=4NFA.pdf |date=22 November 2017 }} (page 8). (accessed 12 Feb 2013)</ref>
|-
| 1964 || ''[[Bireswar Vivekananda]]'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || Madhu Bose || Bengali; Sources: DBs<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film37992.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/bireswar-viveknanda-movie/13888 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0156367/ IMDB]</ref><ref>YouTube ([https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYjhmBoSQlA Part 1 (1:05:49)], [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGawTJLI5Ks Part 2 (1:04:16)] no subtitles)</ref> Amaresh Das as [[Swami Vivekananda|Vivekananda]]
|-
| 1979 ||''Jata Mat Tata Path'' (''As Many Views, As Many Ways'')|| [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || [[Gurudas Bagchi]] || Bengali; Sources: DBs<ref>[http://www.citwf.com/film172154.htm CITWF] [http://www.gomolo.com/jato-mat-tato-path-movie/14329 Gomolo] [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0154672 IMDB]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxotSkE8dTY YOUTUBE (2:03:38, English subtitles)]</ref>
|}

==Theatre roles==
The following table chronicles Gurudas Banerjee's stage career. It is not complete.
{| class="wikitable"
|- "
! Opening date !! Title !! Role !! Location<br />[[Kolkata|Calcutta]] ''unless otherwise specified'' !! Playwright !! Director !! Notes and other cast
|-
| 19 Nov. 1948 || ''[[Jugadebata]]'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || Kalika Theatre || Tarak Mukherjee || || Source;<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|688}} Also Molina Debi ([[Rani Rashmoni]])
|-
| 1955 || ''Thakur Sri Ramakrishna'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]] || [[Minerva Theatre, Kolkata|Minerva Theatre]] || || || Source;<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|292}} Also Molina Debi ([[Rani Rashmoni]]). Part of a state Congress celebration
|-
| 1975 || ''Nata Nati'' || [[Ramakrishna|Sri Ramakrishna]]|| Rangana Theatre || [[Ganesh Mukherjee]] || Ganesh Mukherjee || Source;<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|342,688,777}} Kartick Banerjee ([[Girish Chandra Ghosh|Girish Gose]]), Basanti Chaterjee ([[Binodini Dasi|Binodini]]), Sudhangsu Maiti ([[Swami Vivekananda|Narendranath]]), and others. Over 300 performances
|-
| Oct. 1977 || ''Rajadrohi'' || ?<ref name=unclear>Unclear - needs research - see talk page</ref> || Rungmahal Theatre || Saradindu Banerjee || || Source;<ref name=calcutheaters/>{{rp|322,688}} [[Dilip Kumar Roy|Dilip Roy]] (hero), Lily Chakraverti (heroine)
|}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*Gurudas Banerjee at [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1278454 IMDB], [http://www.gomolo.com/about-gurudas-bandyopadhyay/5190 Gomolo], [http://www.citwf.com/person536791.htm CITWF]
*[http://img1.gomolo.com/images/people/P_5190.jpg Photo of Gurudas Banerjee (Gomolo)]

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Banerjee, Gurudas}}
[[Category:Male actors in Bengali cinema]]
[[Category:People from Rajasthan]]
[[Category:Indian male stage actors]]
[[Category:Bengali theatre personalities]]
[[Category:Indian male film actors]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male actors]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]

Gurudas Banerjee - Revision history

>Monkbot at 05:50, 13 December 2020