Mrinal Sen
Mrinal Sen | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 May 1923 |
| Died | 30 December 2018 (aged 95) |
| Alma mater | University of Calcutta |
| Occupation | Director |
| Years active | 1955–2002 |
| Works | Filmography |
| Spouse |
Gita Sen
(m. 1952; died 2017) |
| Awards |
|
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha (nominated) | |
| In office 27 August 1997 – 26 August 2003 | |
| 6th President of Film and Television Institute of India | |
| In office 9 April 1984 – 30 September 1986 | |
| Preceded by | Shyam Benegal |
| Succeeded by | Adoor Gopalakrishnan |
Mrinal Sen (/mrɪˈnɑːl/ Bengali pronunciation: [/mriːˈnal/]; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was a Bengali film director and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Bengali, and a few Hindi and Telugu language films. Regarded as one of the finest Indian filmmakers, along with his contemporaries Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak, and Tapan Sinha, Sen played a major role in India's parallel cinema movement, which offered a realistic, socially aware counterpoint to splashy Bollywood films, as well as in the country's New Wave cinema. He also served as the President of FTII from 1984 to 1986.
Sen received various national and international honors including eighteen Indian National Film Awards. The Government of India honored him with the Padma Bhushan, and the Government of France honored him with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, while Russian Government honored him with the Order of Friendship. Sen was also awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest award for filmmakers in India.
He was one of the few Indian filmmakers to have won awards at the big three film festivals viz., Cannes, Venice and the Berlinale. Sen was a self described "private Marxist".