The heroine who represented Bangladesh in the international films world for the first time, she is none other than Babita. The internationally-acclaimed artiste is best known for her performance in Satyajit Ray’s ‘Distant Thunder’, a novel adaptation about the Bengal famine of 1943, which won the Golden Bear prize at the 23rd Berlin International Film Festival in 1973.
However, today is the birthday of the multi-National Film Award winning actress Babita. DhakaLive has news that the actress is now in Bangladesh and will spend her birthday in her own style.
Though Babita was active in the 1970s through the 1990s as an actress in the film industry of Bangladesh, she has been absent from the big screen for many years. When asked will you not work in the new film any more, she replied, “There is no goodbye in an artiste’s life. The artistes can act until their death. I am intensely hopeful about our film industry that good days will come for all. Then again, I will return to acting if the story and character could fascinate me satisfactorily.”
Babita’s notable work includes ‘Shukhe Thako’, ‘Taka Anna Pai’, ‘Shorolipi’, ‘Manusher Mon’, ‘Pich Dhala Path’, ‘Noyon Moni’, ‘Jonmo Theke Jolchi’ and ‘Anarkoli’. Her acting gained the attention of the Indian director Satyajit Ray. In 1973, Ray cast Bobita in ‘Ashani Sanket’ (Distant Thunder). Babita appeared in the lead role of ‘Ananga’, the demure wife of the village doctor Gangacharan, who was played by long-time Ray favourite Soumitra Chatterjee.
She acted in a number of joint-venture movie projects in her career, such as Canada Bollywood-Bangladesh joint production ‘Door Desh’ in 1983 (Gehri Chot - Urf: Durdesh in Hindi) opposite Nadeem Baig (actor) and also Pakistan-Bangladesh joint venture film ‘Miss Lanka’ (Nadaani in Urdu) in 1985.
She also acted in ‘Arunodoyer Agnishakkhi’ (1972) by Subhash Dutta, ‘Quiet Flows the river Meghna’ (1973) by Alamgir Kabir, ‘Golapi Ekhon Trainey’ (1978) by Amjad Hossain, ‘Dahan’ (1986) by Sheikh Niamat Ali, and ‘Dipu Number Two’ (1996) by Morshedul Islam. l
Photo Courtesy l Golam Sabbir