Basuda, auteur of "sensitive" films dies at 62

The last rites were performed by his nephew Amitabh Bhattacharya while his wife looked after the arrangements.

Basu Bhattacharya started his career in early sixties as an assistant to veteran film-maker Bimal Roy. Basu, as he was affectionately called, made his debut as a director with the noted lyricist Shailendra’s first film, Teesri Kasam. Starring Raj Kapoor and Waheeda Rehman the film dealt with the touching tale of a love affair between a nautch girl and a cart puller.

Though the film was delayed in production due to financial constraints, it was well-received with rave reviews for its engaging emotional drama interspersed with lilting music.

The trilogy which followed — Anubhav (1971), Avishkar (1973) and Grihapravesh (1980) — reflected his personal life.

By mid-eighties his career graph started to descend, Panchavati flopped. Some of his films including Anand Mahal, Asampanna Kavita, Akhari Daku, Black Friday, Solar Energy were not even released. This almost put an end to his career. But true to his character, the master director bounced back with yet another man-woman relationship drama in Aastha. The film which was a roaring success, starring Rekha and Om Puri, depicted a married woman’s awakening to her sexuality but in the process falling into the trap of prostitution.

Om Puri played her professor-husband while Navin Nischol played the playboy. Basu’s daughter Anvesha played a key role in the film. The commercial success of the film made him to think of making it in English. However, he could not live long to fulfill his dreams. Among those who came to the funeral included Sunil Dutt, Gulzar, Shyam Benegal, Amol Palekar, Sudhir Mishra, Prakash Jha, Shakti Samanta, Pravin Nischol, Basu Bhattacharya’s son Aditya’s ex-wife Sanjana Kapoor, and Tanvir Ahmad. Sarika who worked in two of Basu’s films flew in from Madras to attend the funeral. A two-minute silence was observed before the last rites were performed as a mark of respect to the great director.

A condolence meeting will be held on Sunday (June 22) at 5 pm at Goldsmith, Carter Road, Bandra (W).

Filmography of Basu Bhattacharya

Movie name (Year) Cast

Teesri Kasam (1966) Raj Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman

Anubhav (1971) Sanjeev Kumar, Tanuja and Dinesh Thakur

Avishkar (1973) Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore

Tumhara Kalloo (1975) Kuldeep Bhaggi, Kajree, Somnath Mukherjee

Griha Pravesh (1980) Sanjeev Kumar, Sharmila Tagore and Sarika

Panchvati (1985) Dipti Naval Suresh Oberoi and Akbar Khan