Legendary Bengali Actor Soumitra Chatterjee died at the age of 85 at Belle Vue Clinic in Kolkata on Sunday. He was admitted to the hospital after he tested positive for COVID-19 on October 6. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.
“We declare with a heavy heart that Shri Soumitra Chatterjee breathed his last at 12:15 pm at Belle Vue Clinic today. We pay our homage to his soul,” said a statement from Belle Vue Clinic where he was admitted.
The Dadasaheb Phalke award-winning actor is best known for his collaborations with Oscar-winning director Satyajit Ray, with whom he worked in fourteen films. Soumitra Chatterjee is also the first Indian film personality conferred with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France’s highest award for artists. In 2017, he was honoured with France’s highest civilian award, the coveted Legion of Honor, exactly thirty years after director Satyajit Ray was conferred with the award.
Late Chatterjee made his debut as the adult Apu in Apur Sansar (The World of Apu, 1959), the third part of Apu Trilogy, he went on to work in several notable films with Satyajit Ray, including Abhijan (The Expedition, 1962), Charulata (The Lonely Wife, 1964), Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest, 1969); Ashani Sanket (Distant Thunder, 1973); Sonar Kella (The Fortress, 1974) and Joi Baba Felunath (The Elephant God, 1978) as Bengali detective Feluda; Hirak Rajar Deshe(1980), Ghare Baire (The Home and The World, 1984), Shakha Proshakha (1990) and Ganashatru (Enemy of the People, 1989). He is one of Bengal’s most celebrated actors.
In October, late Soumitra Chatterjee tested positive for Covid-19 and was admitted in Belle Vue Clinic, Kolkata. However, he tested negative after the second Covid-19 test conducted on October 14. However, his complications (urinary tract infection, fluctuations in sodium potassium levels, etc.) made his condition critical, and he had to be admitted to ITU.
President of India, PM Modi, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee were among a host of leaders who paid their hearty tribute to the Actor.
Soumitra Chatterjee’s performances won him several national and international awards including Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Padma Bhushan and Légion d’Honneur. Condolences to his family, the film fraternity and millions of fans across the world.
— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) November 15, 2020
Shri Soumitra Chatterjee’s death is a colossal loss to the world of cinema, cultural life of West Bengal and India. Through his works, he came to embody Bengali sensibilities, emotions and ethos. Anguished by his demise. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 15, 2020
Feluda’ is no more. ‘Apu’ said goodbye. Farewell, Soumitra (Da) Chatterjee. He has been a legend in his lifetime. International, Indian and Bengali cinema has lost a giant. We will miss him dearly. The film world in Bengal has been orphaned 1/2
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) November 15, 2020