The Indian acting legend has passed away at the age of 85 after the actor tested positive for the killer virus and was admitted to a hospital in Kolkata city.
- November 16, 2020
AceShowbiz - Actor Soumitra Chatterjee has died.
The Indian star, famed for his work with Oscar-winning director Satyajit Ray, died from Covid-19 complications, confirmed BBC News. He was 85 years old.
The actor was admitted to hospital in Kolkata city on 6 October (20) after testing positive for the virus. He tested negative a few weeks after he was admitted to hospital, but his condition soon deteriorated and he was put on a ventilator in the last week of October. The star died on Monday (09Nov20) morning
Chatterjee, who starred in more than 300 movies and was also an accomplished playwright, theatre actor and poet, worked with Ray on a number of movies after making his debut in the third film in his famed "The Apu Trilogy, Apur Sansar" - about the life of a man who grew up in a Bengali village - which was released in 1959.
He would go on to star as the lead actor in 14 of Ray's films with critic Pauline Kael calling Chatterjee Ray's "one-man stock company" who moved "so differently in the different roles he plays that he is almost unrecognizable."
Over the years, Chatterjee worked with leading directors like Tapan Sinha, Mrinal Sen, Asit Sen, Ajoy Kar, Rituparno Ghosh, and Aparna Sen. In 1988, he worked with John Hurt and Hugh Grant in "The Bengali Night", a film set in Kolkata.
His death comes shortly after his wife of 60 years, Deepa Chatterjee, passed away earlier this year.
