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Subhash Dutta: a director par excellence

HARUN UR RASHID
HE is one of those few great filmmakers who dedicated themselves in establishing cinema as an eloquent medium of art in Bangladesh. And in this enterprise, he made a good number of films that immensely contributed to the making of a golden era of Bangla cinema. He has retired from the tinsel town since long. But he is still as vibrant with passion for the medium as ever. He is Subhash Dutta.
While entering Subhash Dutta's flat on the RK Mission Road at Motijheel, what would attract one's attention is Subhash's faith in truth. He names his house 'Satyasroyee', a Bangla word for 'one living on truth'. A follower of Sri Ram Krishna and Swami Vivekaanda, Subhash lives a quiet pious life. And it is really amazing, this actor-turned-director who once amused his audience with witty comic acting, maintains vow of silence (mounobrata) till 10 in the morning everyday. 'This keeps my nerves and senses in rest and helps me concentrate in my works', says Subhash.
Subhash believes he is a 'commercial artist' in the first place. 'I went to Bombay in the early 1950s to study art', he says. After he returned to Bangladesh in '53 and founded an advertising firm that produced posters, banners, headings etc. for different organisations. When the first ever feature film in Bangla Mukh O Mukhosh (The face and the Mask) was made in 1956, Subhash got the oppurtunity to work for its publicity. And with this his life was tied to the silver screen. It never occurred to him that one day a great filmmaker would emerge in him.
Some time in '57, Subhash learnt that the Indian High Commission would screen acclaimed director Satyajit Ray's film Pather Panchali. He had heard of the film by then and come to know of its excellence. He was surprised to think what Satyajit Ray, who was also a commercial artist, could have done in the cinema. He watched the film and took a very crucial decision of his life: 'Let me make films.'
Moved immensely by the artistic nature of Ray's work, Subhash wondered if that was the language of film! 'I had never seen a movie like that before!' Subhash is still amazed by the great work.
But Subhash has never let whim control his life. He understood one thing very well that he needed to learn the craft first. 'I started studying books on film and related things like camera operation, editing etc. at the British Council and USIS,' he reminisces.
The connection with the cinema of the wannabe director, however, commenced through acting in a film by Ehtesham. One day, while discussing the contract of publicity for E Desh Tomar Amar by the renowned director, Subhash expressed his desire to see how the shooting takes place. Ehtesham, in reply, rather offered him a role in the film--that of a Nayeb. And when the film was released, the new actor became very popular among the spectators. 'The character was a comic one', says Subhash, and obviously people welcomed the new comedian. For, Subhash performed in quite a few films until '62 when he came up with his first directed film.
Subhash's attempt in direction is also very striking. He made his first film Abirbhab with a tragic end. 'A lot of my acquaintances told me that people won't like a tragic film from a comedian', Subhash tells. The film, however, earned huge praise and won an award at the Frankfurt Festival.
Later, when it was sent to the Cambodian Film Festival in '69, the Queen of the country presented Subhash a silver cup as her appreciation. 'The wife of king Sihanouk was all tears when she called for me after the show, although she did not understand the Bangla dialogues', recalls Subhash. 'The film didn't have the English subtitle.'
Subhash is proud of one thing: 'I haven't tried anything that I don't know.' For any role Subhash used to study people of that profession or kind, and then created the character very realistically. In his film Binimoy, Subhash cast Kabori in the character of a dumb girl. 'Satya Saha [the producer of the film] opposed strongly the idea of having the most popular heroine of the time in such a role', says Subhash, 'but I took the risk. I attended a school for the dumb, and made my character convincing'. The audience accepted the film with great applause in the end. 'Films in recent times are very unrealistic and unconvincing because these practices don't occur now', says a sighing Subhash.
At present, Subhash Dutta is directing a drama serial named Shesh Kotha being aired on ATN Bangla every Tuesday. He has also performed in a commercial. Besides, he is working as an instructor of film technology at the University Of Development Alternative (UODA).
Subhash Dutta is also the chairman of a jury panel that includes actors Alamgir, Bobita and musician Subol Das; they are working for the upcoming Kala Music Performance Awards for 2004 to be held in New York next April. Each year the awards are given to 70 performers from Bangladesh and West Bengal.
Talking about his experience of films produced in the country last year, Subhash informs that not many films have participated in the competition. 'The producers of films containing "bad elements" have themselves told me that theirs are not for awards!' says Subhash.