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Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Review: Soumitra Chatterjee and his World by Sanghamitra Chakraborty
A few weeks before the release of Apur Sansar (The World of Apu, 1959), directed by Satyajit Ray, Charlie Chaplin's Limelight was re-released in Calcutta (now Kolkata). A large hoarding in the city displayed the film's poster. The actor Soumitra Chatterjee, who was making his silver screen debut with Ray's film, would 'admire this larger-than-life poster as he passed the area' on his way to work, writes journalist Sanghamitra Chakraborty. 'One evening… unmindfully looking up to get a glimpse of the Limelight poster… he got the shock of his life.' Chaplin's face had been replaced by his own. 'It was a poster of Apur Sansar.' This remarkable debut launched Chatterjee into a career that would make him one of the most important actors of the 20th century. Chakraborty's deeply researched biography, Soumitra Chatterjee and his World, explores all these different aspects of his life and career. Through in-depth interviews with his family, friends and colleagues, archival research (including Chatterjee's personal journals) and an analysis of his work, Chakraborty creates a compelling portrait of a complicated human being. Instead of slipping into the morass of a hagiography, which is common with celebrity biographies in India, Chakraborty explores even the less-than-complimentary aspects of her subject's life, such as his extramarital affairs and some dubious career decisions. However, she does this with a sort of empathy that does not in any way diminish Chatterjee, instead revealing him to be only too human. Though Chatterjee has been the subject of several biographies already, it is perhaps safe to say that this book is by far the most detailed and engaging one yet. Future biographers or anyone commenting on Bengali cinema, will have to take it into serious account. Soumitra Chatterjee and his World is divided into 10 parts, each exploring different aspects of its subject's life, such as his family and early years outside Calcutta, his college and university education, his early days in theatre (under the tutelage of the notable thespian Sisir Kumar Bhaduri), his Coffee House friends and literary pursuits, his committed leftist politics and his relationship with this wife Deepa, a talented badminton player. A significant portion is, obviously, dedicated to his relationship with Ray. The author writes several accounts of how Chatterjee prepared for the different roles he played in Ray's films, such as a hot-headed taxi driver (Abhijan, 1962), an aspiring 19th-century writer (Charulata, 1964), a beleaguered village priest (Ashani Sanket, 1973) or a sharp private investigator (Sonar Kella, 1974 and Joy Baba Felunath, 1979). These chapters also bring out the differences between the two men. The book is full of anecdotes that might surprise even the most devoted cinephile. For instance, writing about why Chatterjee did not collaborate with Ritwik Ghatak, one of the most celebrated art house Bengali film directors in the 1960s, Chakraborty describes an incident when the actor and the director came to fisticuffs. Quoting from an interview of Chatterjee, Chakraborty describes a public meeting where Ghatak and Chatterjee were guests. Quite characteristically, Ghatak turned up inebriated and started abusing Ray. 'I did not get provoked since I did not hold a brief to defend Ray,' says Chatterjee. 'Maybe he got frustrated at my nonchalance and he threw a swear word at me.' Flying into a rage, Chatterjee held Ghatak by the collar and landed a blow on his face. From the vantage point of half a century, it is somewhat amusing to witness, through Chakraborty's narration, two revered figures of Bengali cinema engaging in such behaviour. Such incidents remain with the reader long after the book has been put away. Chakraborty also analyses Chatterjee's work with filmmakers like Tapan Sinha, Asit Sen, Ajoy Kar, Tarun Majumdar, Dinen Gupta and Saroj De, locating it within the specific context of Bengali cinema. The sharp writing provides context to the cinema of the 1930s-40s, which Chatterjee watched while growing up, as well as his contemporary films. She also relates Chatterjee's complex relationship to Bengali cinema's reigning heartthrob, Uttam Kumar. While Chatterjee was a self-proclaimed Uttam Kumar fan, there was also considerable rivalry between the two, especially during a period of labour unrest in the industry in the late 1960s, when they found themselves in opposing camps. Some of this owes a debt to film scholar Sharmistha Gooptu's history of the Bengali film industry, Bengali Cinema: An Other Nation (2011). Though Chakraborty quotes from Gooptu, the book under review would have benefitted from more engaged editing, which would have ensured more rigorous citations. The book could have also included Chatterjee's family tree, bringing out his exact relation with such illustrious figures as poet and film critic Sourindra Mohan Mukhopadhyay, singer Suchitra Mitra or the freedom activist Jatindranath Mukherjee, better known as Bagha Jatin. Perhaps, these will be addressed in the next edition. Much of the writing on Indian cinema, both scholarly and popular, has focused on Bollywood. Besides Gooptu's groundbreaking work, there is very little scholarship on Bengali popular cinema. Film scholars and historians writing on Bengali cinema have focused mostly on Ray or his art house contemporaries, Mrinal Sen and Ritwik Ghatak, or more recently, Rituparno Ghosh. Sayandeb Chowdhury's Uttam Kumar: A Life in Cinema and Maitreyee B Chowdhury's Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen: Bengali Cinema's First Couple are rare exceptions. Chakraborty's book, therefore, explores new ground. It will hopefully be an inspiration to more scholars and writers to examine the history of a remarkable film culture. Uttaran Das Gupta is an independent writer and journalist.
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Time of India
Illegal stall razed in Coffee House bldg
Kolkata: KMC on Thursday demolished a stall illegally constructed on the ground floor of the Indian Coffee House building on College Street. KMC will conduct a drive against three more illegal stalls that were locked on officials said space for the stalls was carved out of the century-old building's thick, load-bearing walls, hollowed out in sections. The stalls also encroached on the pavement. A month ago, Coffee House regulars spotted the wall being demolished and alerted cops, who stopped the work. A complaint was filed with KMC, which issued a stop-work notice and filed a police complaint. The building on 15, Bankim Chatterjee Street has a Grade I heritage tag as the Indian Coffee House is located there. The Graded List mentions that "no external change will be permissible" in a Grade I structure. According to locals, after Chuckervertty, Chatterjee and Co Ltd, a shop on the ground floor facing College Street, vacated the premises, the new owner began scooping out the thick walls to create space for small stalls.A civic official said the new owners did not seek KMC's permission for the work. "Any work in a Grade I heritage building requires permission from the KMC heritage conservation committee. Not only was this not sought, but the stalls that were constructed were also illegal," the official said.
Indian Express
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Soumitra Chatterjee is a legend, by no means forgotten
I was a child when I witnessed the phenomenon known as Soumitra Chatterjee by watching his movies. It has remained a mystery to me how or why he was not that well-known outside Bengal, especially in today's world dominated by Bollywood stars. Sanghamitra Chakraborty's detailed and well-researched biography, Soumitra Chatterjee and His World, explores this, and like the eponymous character of Feluda, once played by the actor, tries to solve this mystery. Chakraborty went through the actor's writings — essays, diaries, letters, plays and poetry — and his interviews, as well as interviewed his children, and the people who knew him, to systematically put together his life story. As she mentions in the Introduction chapter, she was inspired by the message that actor-director Sisir Bhadhuri, one of Chatterjee's mentors, had told him: 'Read your lines like a detective'. The book starts with Chatterjee's birth in a north Calcutta home to a mother who is obsessed with Rabindranath Tagore, which influences Chatterjee's interest in Tagore and Bengali literature. As he wrote, 'My own heart and mind, in some way, have also been shaped by him.' The family moved to Krishnanagar later, and Chatterjee was entranced by the writing of his grandfather, Lalit Kumar, and the tales of his uncle and grandfather being jailed, and met various freedom fighters who would drop into their home. This made the young boy crave adventure and he got the acting bug at a young age. After matriculation, Chatterjee moved back to Calcutta. He became the ringleader of a group of students and frequently visited the bookshops on College Street as well as the Coffee House. Reading, meeting with friends, debating and reciting poetry, he soon became a part of a vibrant group of like-minded people, one of whom took him to watch the play Alamgir. That play and its producer and director Bhaduri inspired him to the extent that Chatterjee started learning the theory of theatre as well. It was in the mid-1950s that he started a theatre group, Chhayanot, and started acting in plays, including in one that Bhaduri staged Prafulla. He also worked at All India Radio and during that period auditioned for a lead in a Bengali film,only to be rejected. Despite the rejection, Chatterjee didn't give up and when a friend asked him if he wanted to audition for the role of Apu in Aparajito (1956), the sequel to Pather Panchali (1955), Soumitra agreed to meet with the director, Satyajit Ray. Though he was again not chosen for that role, that meeting was pivotal because the legendary filmmaker remembered him and did eventually cast him for Apur Sansar (1959), changing the course of his life. Apur Sansar was a box-office hit and generated rave reviews for its actors. Chatterjee had by then started getting recognised on the streets and in Coffee House, a sure sign of being a celebrity! He went on to collaborate with Ray on many other memorable movies, including Devi (1960), Samapti (1961), Kapurush (1965), Charulata (1964), Ghare Baire (1984), to name a few. The later sections of the book describe Chatterjee's breakthrough into commercial cinema through Jhinder Bondi (1961), his forays into a diverse roles with parallel cinema directors and his return to the theatre. He was steadfast in wanting to stay in Kolkata, and thus, the city is sometimes as much a character in this book as the actor. He stayed resilient and creative until the end. In fact, in 2020, seven of his new films were released. He remained an icon of Bengali culture and that is why there was an outpouring of grief and obituaries at a global scale on his demise in November 2020. Soumitra Chatterjee and His World is a delight to read for cinema and history lovers. There were many aspects of his life that had stayed unknown, and reading this book gave me insight into those as well as a world that is fast-disappearing, and therefore must be remembered.
Time Out
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Local serves summer at the table
If there's one thing Local has got us used to, it's colourful, well-balanced dishes, a menu packed with brunch, lunch and dinner options, and a delicious twist on healthy eating. Another staple? The seasonal menu change – a ritual that ensures quality, freshness, and ingredients at their seasonal best. The new Summer menu has arrived – and it doesn't disappoint. Start with the salmon and turbot ceviche, served with Odemira sweet potato purée and macadamia nuts (€13.10). For a vegetarian option that's just as refreshing, the gazpacho (€5.90) is the perfect pick. Moving on to mains, there are new highlights like the octopus with avocado 'mayonnaise' (€22.80), now paired with a new sweet potato recipe, fennel, and delicious kale. Alternatively, try the oven-baked turbot, a new addition, served with white bean purée and Mediterranean vegetables (€23.50). Vegetarians and plant-based food lovers haven't been forgotten: the pad thai (€13.90) brings together rice noodles, Asian vegetables, edamame, bean sprouts and crunchy peanuts for extra texture. As for the house classics, like the quinoa with hummus or feta (€12.60), and the hot honey halloumi salad (€14.50), they're still on the menu – now with a few seasonal twists to match the warmer days. An honourable mention on the summer menu goes to the balsamic duck, served with burrata, nectarine, pistachios and homemade pesto over a bed of mixed greens (€22.20) – a fresh combination that's sure to surprise. As the end of the meal approaches, it's time for the part there's always room for: dessert. New arrivals include the tiramisu (€12.30) and stuffed Medjool dates (€2.70), as well as a brand-new coffee blend, specially developed by Delta Cafés' Coffee House. Making a return are the passion fruit cheesecake (€4.80) and the berries with cashew cream (€6.70). Group menus are still available, priced between €37 and €49 per person. You can choose from three options, all of which include a variety of starters, a main course, dessert and a drink. The ever-popular poké bowls are still going strong on the menu, alongside the ultra-fresh juices. And since great service goes beyond just the food, there's now a new way to order via biip: simply scan the QR code on your table to access the digital menu, place your order quickly, and even add extra items.
South Wales Argus
28-04-2025
- Business
- South Wales Argus
The Coffee House Newport given five-star hygiene rating
The Coffee House, located at Liberty Church, Gaer Park Drive, Newport, was inspected on March 27. The food safety officer found the café to be "very good" in the categories of hygienic food handling and management of food safety, with the cleanliness and condition of facilities and building found to be "good". These ratings evaluate different aspects of food safety and hygiene standards. The hygienic food handling rating considers the preparation, cooking, re-heating, cooling, and storage of food. The management of food safety rating takes into account the system or checks in place to ensure that food sold or served is safe to eat, evidence that staff know about food safety, and the food safety officer's confidence that standards will be maintained in future. The cleanliness and condition of facilities and building rating includes the layout, ventilation, hand washing facilities, and pest control measures. The Food Hygiene Rating Act 2013, which became law in Wales on March 4, 2013, requires all businesses selling food in Wales to display their hygiene ratings in a prominent place. The ratings, which range from zero to five, are updated on the Food Standards Agency website and are based on inspections carried out by local authority officers. A five-star rating indicates that the standards are excellent. Businesses that are inspected have the right to appeal against their ratings if they believe that the rating does not reflect the standards at the time of inspection. The Coffee House is classified as a restaurant, café, or canteen, according to the inspection results. The café's new rating reflects the excellent standards of food hygiene and safety that are being maintained. They are now a leading example of high standards within the industry.
