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Barun Chanda
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Barun Chanda is an Indian Bengali advertising professional, actor and author based in the city of Kolkata.[1] He is most well-known for his leading role in Satyajit Ray's Seemabaddha.[2]
Key Information
Education Life
[edit]Chanda was educated at La Martinière Calcutta, where he was appointed House Captain of Macaulay house in his final year, and at St. Xavier's where he graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree (with honours). He further completed his post-graduate degree in English from Jadavpur University, Kolkata.
Biography
[edit]Chanda was born on the 17th of July, 1939, in Dhaka in present-day Bangladesh, but came to Kolkata at an early age to pursue higher education. Chanda acted in the 1971 Bengali movie Seemabaddha, directed by Satyajit Ray. After that he did not appear in any films for over twenty years. In 1992 he again acted in director Rituparno Ghosh's debut film Hirer Angti. Next he acted in Kalo Cheetah (2004). Since then he has acted in several movies like Tolly Lights, Antaheen, and Laptop. He recently played the role of the landlord father of Sonakshi Sinha in the Hindi film Lootera.[3]
In 2014, he did commercials for CESC Limited with some social messages.
In 2019, Barun Chanda starred in an independent psychological thriller, Rakkhosh, which has been touted as India's first POV film to be shot on cinema camera.[4] Chanda plays Dr. Idris Shah, a psychiatrist, in the film. The film made the official selection at Pune International Film Festival (PIFF), the Rajasthan International Film Festival (RIFF) and the Orange City International Film Festival (OCIFF) in 2019.[5]
Filmography
[edit]- Seemabaddha (1971)
- Hirer Angti (1992)
- Lal Darja (1997)
- Kalo Chita (2004)
- Anuranan (2006)
- Cholo Let's Go (2008)
- Tolly Lights (2008)
- Antaheen (2009)
- Flop-E (2011)
- System (2011)
- Laptop (2011)
- Elar Char Adhyay (2012)
- Hemlock Society (2012)
- Sector V (2012)
- Aborto (2013)
- Lootera (2013)
- Mishawr Rawhoshyo (2013)
- Swabhoomi (2013)
- Chotushkone (2014)
- Roy (2015)
- Bela Seshe (2015)
- Chorabali (2016)
- Kuheli (2016)
- Mentor (2016)
- Sohra Bridge (2016)
- Ebong Kiriti (2017)
- Rina Brown (2017)[6]
- Ek Je Chhilo Raja (2018)
- Rupkothar Kahini (2018)
- Bhobishyoter Bhoot (2019)
- Dil Bechara (2020)
- Bob Biswas (2021)
- Habu Chandra Raja Gobu Chandra Montri (2021)
- Shyam Singha Roy (2021)
- Danny Detective INC (2021)
- Toolsidas Junior (2022)
- Karnasubarner Guptodhon (2022)
- Commando (2022)
- Khela Jokhon (2022)
- One Way (2022)
- Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway (2023)
- Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga (2023)
- Trial Period (2023)
- Ujjhyo – The Unsaid (2023) (Award Winning Short Film)
- Nadaaniyan (2025)
- Re-Routing (2025)
- Dispersion (Upcoming)
Books
[edit]- Robibar
- Coke
- Murder in the Monastery
- Kidnap[7]
- Satyajit Ray: The Man Who Knew Too Much
References
[edit]- ^ "Barun Chanda's latest novel Murder in the Monastery is a gripping crime thriller". indulgexpress.com. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
- ^ "Coke & crime in Kathmandu". The Telegraph. India. Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- ^ Darius Cooper (13 January 2000). The Cinema of Satyajit Ray: Between Tradition and Modernity. Cambridge University Press. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-521-62980-5.
- ^ "Rakkhosh – India's First Film with the Camera As The Hero Selected at Pune, Rajasthan And Orange City International Film Festivals". Bollyy. 7 January 2019. Archived from the original on 9 January 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ "Stills of movie 'Rakkhosh', which can be one of the classics to come out of India in 2019". photogallery.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 9 January 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
- ^ Hasan, Ziaul (21 January 2017). "Rina Brown brings back memories of war". New Age. Archived from the original on 30 November 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
- ^ "Amazon.in". www.amazon.in. Archived from the original on 5 December 2021. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
External links
[edit]- Barun Chanda at IMDb
Barun Chanda
View on Grokipediafrom Grokipedia
Early life and education
Birth and upbringing
Barun Chanda was born on 30 May 1945 in Dacca (now Dhaka), then part of British India and now the capital of Bangladesh.[2] He was raised in a Bengali family, though specific details about his parents and any siblings remain limited in public records. The socio-political landscape of pre-partition Bengal at the time was characterized by a rich cultural milieu, including the lingering influences of the Bengal Renaissance, which fostered literary and artistic pursuits amid rising communal tensions and the push for Indian independence. Chanda spent his early childhood in Dhaka, immersing himself in the everyday life of the city during a period of significant historical flux. The region's vibrant intellectual environment, with its strong tradition of Bengali literature and performing arts, provided a formative backdrop, though personal anecdotes from this phase are scarce. Chanda relocated to Kolkata with his family during his childhood due to his father's professional obligations, a decision influenced by the need for better economic stability and educational prospects in the years leading up to the 1947 partition of India. This relocation marked a pivotal shift, allowing the family to establish roots in West Bengal ahead of the widespread displacements caused by the partition. The move transitioned Chanda into the formal education system in Kolkata.[1]Academic background
Barun Chanda completed his undergraduate studies at St. Xavier's College in Kolkata, where he earned a B.Com Honours degree. During his school years at La Martinière Calcutta, he served as House Captain of Macaulay House, fostering leadership skills that contributed to his intellectual growth. He then pursued postgraduate studies in English literature at Jadavpur University, where he engaged with both Western classics and Bengali literature, influences that later informed his writing career. At Jadavpur, he gained early theatrical experience by performing as Hamlet in a college production, highlighting his exposure to Shakespearean drama.[9]Professional career
Advertising roles
After completing his Master's degree in English from Jadavpur University and a brief period as an English lecturer, Barun Chanda entered the advertising industry in Kolkata during the early 1960s, joining the creative department at a time when the city's media landscape was rapidly expanding.[4][10] He began his professional tenure in 1963 at Clarion, a prominent advertising agency in Calcutta that emerged as an offshoot of the British firm D.J. Keymer & Co., where he was recruited as an account executive the following year.[11][12] Over the next two decades, Chanda advanced through various executive positions, eventually rising to the role of Creative Director at Clarion McCann following the agency's merger affiliations.[13][12] Chanda's career in advertising spanned more than three decades, with his primary tenure at Clarion from 1963 to 1989, after which he continued in the industry until the early 2000s, during which he contributed to the agency's operations in a burgeoning Bengali and Indian market.[11] This long-term commitment allowed him to balance his advertising profession with occasional pursuits in acting and writing, while earning numerous industry awards for his creative work.[14] His roles at Clarion positioned Chanda as a key figure in Kolkata's evolving advertising scene, which drew from the legacy of D.J. Keymer—where Satyajit Ray had earlier worked—and emphasized innovative campaigns tailored to local audiences amid India's post-independence economic growth.[13][4]Acting career
Barun Chanda made his acting debut in the lead role of Shyamalendu Chatterjee, a conflicted advertising executive grappling with moral dilemmas, in Satyajit Ray's Bengali film Seemabaddha (1971), which established him in parallel cinema.[15] The performance, drawn from Ray's adaptation of Shankar's novel, showcased Chanda's ability to portray urban intellectual angst, earning critical acclaim for its nuanced depiction of ambition and compromise.[13] Following Seemabaddha, Chanda took a two-decade hiatus from acting to prioritize his advertising career, returning to the screen in 1992 with a supporting role in the adventure film Hirer Angti, directed by Rituparno Ghosh.[16] This comeback marked the beginning of a selective trajectory as a character actor, often in intellectual dramas and thrillers, where his background in advertising informed choices favoring complex, introspective parts over commercial leads.[17] In the 2000s and 2010s, Chanda gained prominence in Bengali cinema through roles like the enigmatic Brinda's father in Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's Antaheen (2009), the quirky philosophy professor in Srijit Mukherji's black comedy Hemlock Society (2012), and the multifaceted segment lead in the anthology Chotushkone (2014).[1] He ventured into Hindi films with the authoritative patriarch Deshpande in Vikramaditya Motwane's period romance Lootera (2013), followed by the judicial figure Judge Abhijit Dutta in the biographical drama Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway (2023).[18] Chanda's recent work reflects his versatility across languages and formats, including the elderly mentor Nana in the comedy Trial Period (2023), the grandfather in the heist thriller Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga (2023), the patriarch in the Telugu supernatural drama Shyam Singha Roy (2021), the scholarly Maan Kapoor in the BBC adaptation series A Suitable Boy (2020), the lead in the award-winning short film Ujjhyo – The Unsaid (2023), appeared as Dhanraj Jaisingh in the family drama Nadaaniyan (2025), and recent roles in the thriller Murderbaad (2025) and the drama Ranna Baati (2025).[19][20][2]Literary career
Barun Chanda's literary career began in the 2000s, drawing on his master's degree in English literature from Jadavpur University and his three-decade experience as a creative director in advertising, which honed his skills in concise storytelling and narrative innovation.[21][17] His initial foray into writing consisted of Bengali novels, starting with Shaaper Jhaanpi (2008), followed by Kidnap (2009) and Robibar (2013), which established him as a pioneer in the adult thriller genre within Bengali literature.[21] These early efforts were influenced by his exposure to Western and Indian classics, as well as the creative demands of advertising campaigns that required sharp, engaging prose.[17] Chanda's thematic focus primarily revolves around crime thrillers that explore moral ambiguities, social satire on urban life and ambition, and later, personal memoirs reflecting on cultural icons.[21] His novels often feature detectives like Avinash Roy navigating complex cases involving greed, infidelity, and societal pressures, as seen in Robibar, a mind-bending novella acclaimed for its tight plotting and emotional depth, and Gholate Jol (2023), a collection of ten adult mystery tales delving into layers of love, betrayal, and cruelty.[21][22] Transitioning to English publications marked a significant evolution, with Coke (2015) as his debut in the language—a high-octane thriller praised for its smart dialogues and pacing, followed by Murder in the Monastery.[21] This shift broadened his audience while maintaining his signature blend of suspense and social commentary.[17] A pivotal milestone came with his first non-fiction work, Satyajit Ray: The Man Who Knew Too Much (2022; also published in Bengali as Satyajit Katha), a tribute to his mentor from the 1971 film Seemabaddha, blending personal anecdotes with insights into Ray's filmmaking genius, music, and editing techniques.[23][17] Motivated by Ray's centenary and a desire to preserve untold stories, the book received acclaim for its dispassionate yet affectionate tone and unique structure.[17] Chanda's writing process typically involves pen-and-paper drafting, extensive research—including interviews and archival materials—and spans 18-24 months per project, often completed during periods like the COVID-19 lockdown.[21][17] He balances this with his acting career by pursuing writing as a parallel passion, selectively taking on film roles to allow time for creative output, resulting in a body of work that has been critically well-received for revitalizing Bengali thrillers without notable literary awards to date.[21][17]Works
Filmography
Barun Chanda's filmography features prominent roles across Bengali and Hindi cinema, television series, and short films, beginning with his debut in Satyajit Ray's Seemabaddha (1971).[2] The following table presents a selective chronological catalog of his major credits, including notable roles where applicable.[2]| Year | Title | Role | Language/Medium |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | Seemabaddha | Shyamalendu Chatterjee | Bengali film |
| 1992 | Hirer Angti | - | Bengali film |
| 2004 | Kalo Cheetah | - | Bengali film |
| 2008 | Tolly Lights | - | Bengali film |
| 2009 | Antaheen | - | Bengali film |
| 2012 | Laptop | - | Bengali film |
| 2013 | Lootera | Zamindar Soumitra Roy Chaudhary | Hindi film |
| 2019 | Rakkhosh | - | Hindi film |
| 2019 | Borunbabur Bondhu | - | Bengali film |
| 2020 | A Suitable Boy (TV series) | The Rai | English/Hindi TV series |
| 2021 | Shyam Singha Roy | Sayan Sarkar | Telugu/Hindi film |
| 2021 | Bob Biswas | Priest | Hindi film |
| 2022 | Toolsidas Junior | - | Hindi film |
| 2023 | Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway | Judge Abhijit Dutta | Hindi film |
| 2023 | Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga | - | Hindi film |
| 2023 | Trial Period | Nana | Hindi film |
| 2023 | Ujjhyo – The Unsaid | - | Bengali short film |
| 2024 | Waack Girls (TV series) | Dadu (Subroto Mitra) | English/Hindi TV series |
| 2025 | Nadaaniyan | Dhanraj Jaisingh | Hindi film |
| 2025 | Murderbaad | - | Hindi film |
| 2025 | Ranna Baati | - | Bengali film |
Fiction
Bengali
- Kidnap (2009, Patra Bharati, crime thriller)[24]
- Saper Jhapi (2011, Patra Bharati, mystery thriller)[25]
- Kok (2011, Patra Bharati, crime thriller)[26]
- Robibar (2013, Patra Bharati, novella)[27]
- Gholate Jol (2023, Patra Bharati, story collection)
English
- Coke (2015, BEE Books, crime thriller)[28]
- Murder in the Monastery (2019, Rupa Publications India, crime thriller)[29]
Non-fiction
English
- Satyajit Ray: The Man Who Knew Too Much (2022, Om Books International, tribute and memoir)[30]
Bengali
- Satyajit Katha (2024, Patra Bharati, memoirs)[31]