Mrinal Sen (born May 14, 1923, Faridpur, East Bengal [now in Bangladesh]—died December 30, 2018, Kolkata) was an Indian filmmaker who used a range of aesthetic styles to explore the social and political realities of his homeland. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of India’s parallel cinema in general and Bengali cinema in particular. He is noted for his experiments with form as well as the charged narratives of films such as Padatik (1973; “The Guerilla Fighter”), made during the Naxalite movement in the 1960s and 1970s. Sen’s most enduring work is Bhuvan Shome (1969), which is considered by many as the first Indian film in the parallel cinema or new wave movement.

Early life and career

After studying physics at the University of Calcutta, Sen worked as a journalist, a medicine salesman, and a film sound technician. His interest in both filmmaking and Marxist philosophy stemmed from his association with the Indian People’s Theatre Association (an influential cultural movement that combined art and politics) in the 1940s. His first film, Raat Bhore (The Dawn, 1956), met with little success. His second film, Neel Akasher Neechey (1959; “Under the Blue Sky”), had political overtones and centered on an immigrant Chinese worker in 1930s Bengal.Baishey Sravana (The Wedding Day, 1960) and Punascha (Over Again, 1961), both dealing with marital relationships, reflected Sen’s political fervor as well as his admiration for the films of the Italian Neorealists and his colleague Satyajit Ray.

Bhuvan Shome and recognition

Several of Sen’s films of the 1960s, such as Akash Kusum (Up in the Clouds, 1965), revealed his desire to break free from the conventions of commercial films. Regarded by many as Sen’s greatest film, Bhuvan Shome (made in Hindi rather than in Bengali) brought him national acclaim. It starred renowned Indian actor Utpal Dutt as a lonely bureaucrat who takes a holiday and encounters the wife of a ticket collector accused of taking bribes. The film’s use of improvisation and sardonic humor and its naturalistic depiction of rural India established it as a landmark of Indian cinema.

The Calcutta trilogy and other films

In his Calcutta (now called Kolkata) trilogy—Interview (1971), Calcutta 71 (1972), and Padatik (The Guerrilla Fighter, 1973)—Sen explored the civil unrest in Calcutta through stylistic experiments and fragmented narratives. Mrigayaa (1976; “The Hunt”), set in a tribal community in colonial India, depicted discriminatory social attitudes. Middle-class morality is examined in two of Sen’s most-praised films, Ek Din Pratidin (And Quiet Rolls the Dawn, 1979), which portrays a family in despair over a missing daughter, and Kharij (The Case Is Closed, 1982), concerning a family whose servant has died from carbon monoxide poisoning in their home. Kharij won the Special Jury Prize at the Cannes film festival in 1983. Akaler Sandhane (In Search of Famine, 1980), the story of a film crew documenting the 1943 Bengal famine, won the Silver Bear (Special Jury Prize) at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1981.

Later works and legacy

By the 1980s Sen was a national figure and was regarded as one of India’s most important filmmakers. He continued to explore social concerns in later works such as Mahaprithivi (World Within, World Without, 1992), Antareen (The Confined, 1994), and Aamaar Bhuvan (My Land, 2002).

Sen was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian honor, in 1983 and the Dadasaheb Phalke award, given for achievement in film, in 2005. He won 9 National Film Awards: best feature film (Bhuvan Shome [won 1970], Mrigayaa [won 1977]), best direction (Bhuvan Shome [won 1970], Ek Din Pratidin [won 1980], Akaler Sandhane [won 1981], Khandhar [won 1984; “Ruins”]), best screenplay (Padatik [won 1974], Kharij [won 1983]), and best feature film in Bengali (Antareen [won 1993]). He won Filmfare Awards for Mrigayaa (best film—critics [won 1977]) and Khandhar (best screenplay [won 1985]). Sen was also the first Indian to serve on the jury of the Cannes film festival.