Utpal Dutt (, utpôl dôtto) (29 March 1929 – 19 August 1993) was an Indian actor, director and writer-playwright. He was primarily an actor in
Bengali Theatre, where he became a pioneering figure in Modern
Indian theatre, when he founded the 'Little Theater Group' in 1947, which enacted many English,
Shakespearean and Brecht plays, in a period now known as the 'Epic theater' period, before emerging itself completely in highly political and radical theatre. His plays became apt vehicle of the expression for his Marxist ideologies, visible in socio-political plays like,
Kallol (1965),
Manusher Adhikar,
Louha Manob (1964),
Tiner Toloar and
Maha-Bidroha. He also acted over 100
Bengali and
Hindi films in his career spanning 40 years, and remains most known for his roles in films like
Mrinal Sen’s
Bhuvan Shome (1969),
Satyajit Ray’s
Agantuk (1991),
Gautam Ghose’s
Padma Nadir Majhi (1993) and
Hrishikesh Mukherjee's breezy comedies such as
Gol Maal (1980) and
Rang Birangi (1983).
Mint , 3 July 2009. Shoma A Chatterji,
Screen , 20 August 2004.
Frontline , Volume 18 - Issue 12, Jun. 09 - 22, 2001.
The Telegraph , 26 August 2006.
He received
National Film Award for Best Actor in 1970 and three
Filmfare Best Comedian Awards. In 1990, the
Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy of Music, Dance and Theatre, awarded him its highest award the
Sangeet Natak......
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