Rahul Bose

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
Rahul Bose

Bose at the 2008 premiere of Tahaan
Born 27 July 1967 (age 42)
Kolkata, India
Occupation actor, screenwriter, film director
Years active 1993–present

Rahul Bose (Bengali: রাহুল বসু; born 27 July 1967) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, social activist, and rugby union player.

Bose has appeared in Hindi films such as Pyaar Ke Side Effects and Jhankaar Beats. Time Asia magazine named him "the superstar of Indian arthouse cinema"[1] for his work in parallel cinema films like English, August and Mr. and Mrs. Iyer. He is also notable for his social activism: he participated in the relief efforts that followed the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami and is also the founder of the anti-discrimination NGO, The Foundation.[2] Bose is also a former member of India's international rugby team, the National Orange Indian Rugby Team.

Contents

[edit] Early life

Rahul Bose was born to Rupen and Kumud Bose on 27 July 1967. He describes himself as "half Bengali; one-fourth Punjabi and one-fourth Maharashtrian".[3] He spent his childhood in Kolkata, West Bengal and then moved to Mumbai with his family. His first acting role was at age six when he played the lead in a school play, Tom, The Piper's Son. As a child he took an interest in sports when his mother introduced him to boxing and rugby union.[4] He also played cricket and was coached by cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.[5]

He is an alumnus of the Cathedral and John Connon School in Mumbai. After being rejected by a number of American universities, Bose attended Sydenham College. While at the college he played on the school's rugby team and competed at the Western India Championships, winning a silver medal in boxing. After his mother's death in 1987, Bose began working as a copy writer at Rediffusion. Bose left his job as an advertising creative director to become a full-time actor after the release of his first film, English, August.[4]

[edit] Stage and film career

[edit] Early career: 1993–2003

Bose started his acting career on the Bombay stage in Rahul D'Cunha's Topsy Turvy and Are There Tigers In The Congo?. D'Cunha's aunt was the casting director for director Dev Benegal's film English, August and suggested that Bose should play the lead role. After filming a screen test, Benegal decided to cast him as civil servant Agastya Sen.[6] Based on the novel of the same name by Upamanyu Chatterjee, English, August was one of the first Hinglish films and gained Bose international recognition when it became the first Indian film to be purchased by 20th Century Fox and won several awards at international film festivals.[7]

After English, August Bose found work in television; he was offered a role in India's first English-language television serial, A Mouthful of Sky and also co-hosted BBC World's Style! with Laila Rouass. In 1998 he appeared in Kaizad Gustad's Bombay Boys with Naseeruddin Shah and starred in Dev Benegal's second film, Split Wide Open. To prepare for his role as a roving water vendor, Bose lived in Mumbai's slums and observed a drug dealer for two weeks.[8] He later cited this time as the beginning of the awakening of his social conscience. Although Split Wide Open was controversial in India because of its depictions of sexual abuse,[9][10] Bose received the Silver Screen Award for Best Asian Actor at the 2000 Singapore International Film Festival for his performance.[4] He also performed abroad in the Leicester Haymarket in England where he starred in the English version of Tim Murari's play, The Square Circle.[11][12]

In 1997, Bose was cast to play the role of Saleeem Sinai in the BBC adaptation of Salman Rushdie's novel Midnight's Children. The project was eventually canceled after the Indian and Sri Lankan governments refused to allow filming.[13] After seeing Bose in English, August, director Govind Nihalani cast him in the villain role opposite Ajay Devgan in the mainstream film Thakshak. The film was not a financial success,[14] although Bose received positive reviews.[15]

In 2001, Bose made his directorial debut with Everybody Says I'm Fine!. Starring Rehan Engineer and Koel Purie and featuring Bose in a supporting role, Everybody received mixed reviews from critics, but won Bose the runner-up John Schlesinger Award for best directorial debut at the 2003 Palm Springs International Film Festival.[16] In 2002, Bose starred opposite Konkona Sen Sharma in Aparna Sen's art film Mr. and Mrs. Iyer. The film, a critique of communal violence, was a critical success and won several awards at international film festivals as well as three National Film Awards.[17][18]

[edit] Mainstream success and regional cinema: 2003–present

In 2003, Bose entered mainstream Bollywood cinema with Jhankaar Beats in which he played one of two friends, R.D. Burman fans who are obsessed with winning a music competition. Boosted by a successful soundtrack, Jhankaar Beats was a surprise hit in urban multiplexes[19][20] and went on to win several awards for its music.[21] The same year, Bose appeared in another Bollywood film, Mumbai Matinee which saw a UK release. He also starred in Chameli opposite Kareena Kapoor. The film was not a box office success, but won several Filmfare and international awards.

Bose's second film pairing with Konkona Sen Sharma, 15 Park Avenue released in January 2006. Directed by Aparna Sen and filmed in English, 15 Park Avenue was screened at various international film festivals and was dubbed in Hindi by the cast for its Indian release.[22]

With his next effort, the romantic comedy Pyaar Ke Side Effects, Bose moved once more into mainstream Bollywood cinema. The film follows the rocky relationship of Bose's commitment phobic Mumbai DJ Sid and his Punjabi girlfriend, Trisha played by Mallika Sherawat. Critics noted the freshness of Bose's narration style which involves breaking the fourth wall, a device not commonly used in Indian cinema.[23] The film opened well in multiplexes[24] and was a moderate financial success, eventually ranking among the top-grossing films of 2006.[25] Both Bose and Sherawat received positive reviews for their performances and the film's success prompted a sequel, Shaadi Ke Side Effects, which will begin shooting in 2010.[26] Sherawat and Bose also starred together in another Bollywood comedy, Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam, which was a commercial and critical failure.[27]

In 2006, Bose also starred in the first of a trio of Bengali films, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's Anuranan. Anuranan was well received on the festival circuit and ran successfully for three months in Bengal. It was then dubbed into Hindi and released nationally.[28] Kaalpurush, Bose's second Bengali film, was released commercially in April 2008. Kaalpurush details a father-son relationship and earned writer-director Buddhadev Dasgupta a National Film Award for Best Film. Bose teamed with Chowdhury again in 2009 for Antaheen which tells the story of online relationships. Like Anuranan, Antaheen was released commercially in West Bengal and was screened at various film festivals, including the Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival (MIACC) and the International Film Festival of India (IFFI).[29][30]

Bose continued working in a mix of mainstream and arthouse films in 2008, with the English language film, Before the Rains. Before the Rains was released in the US and the UK and Bose's performance was praised by many critics, although the film received mixed reviews. Bose also appeared in Shaurya, a military court room drama modelled on the American film A Few Good Men. Bose's performance was well-received; critic Taran Adarsh said his "performance easily ranks as one of his finest works".[31] His appearance in Dil Kabaddi paired him with Konkona Sen Sharma for the third time, this time playing a husband and wife undergoing marital difficulties.[32]

He was scheduled to begin shooting his adaptation of Mohsin Hamid's novel, Moth Smoke in early 2010,[33] but the project was postponed after the film's financial backers pulled out.[34] The Japanese Wife, the third Aparna Sen film in which he has appeared, is scheduled for release in January 2010.[35][36] Bose's other upcoming projects include the horror film Fired, Mumbai Chakachak, I Am and Kuch Love Jaisa.

[edit] Sports career

In 1998, Bose was part of the first Indian national rugby team to play in an international event, the Asian Rugby Football Union Championship.[37] He has played both scrum-half and right-winger positions.[38] In an interview with Daily News & Analysis, Bose announced that he would not return to the team for the 2009 season.[39]

[edit] Activism

Bose assisted in the relief efforts in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands after the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami. As a result of this work, Bose launched the Andaman and Nicobar Scholarship Initiative through his NGO, The Foundation. The scholarship program provides for the education of underprivileged children from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.[40] He is also the founder and chairman of The Group of Groups, an umbrella organisation for 51 Mumbai charitable organisations and NGOs.[41] Bose is associated with several other charitable organizations such as Akshara Centre, Breakthrough, Citizens for Justice and Peace and the Spastics Society of India. In addition, he became the first Indian Oxfam global ambassador in 2007.[42] He is also an ambassador for the American India Foundation, the World Youth Peace Movement[43] and Planet Alert.[44] He was also a vocal proponent of Narmada Bachao Andolan and its efforts to halt the construction of the Narvada dam.[45][46] Bose has given lectures on gender equality and human rights at Oxford and during the 2004 World Youth Peace Summit.[1] He also recorded the Terre des hommes audio book Goodgoodi karna, gale lagana; Sparsh ke niyam sikhiye (English: Tickle and hugs: Learning the touching rules), which is designed to give children resources against sexual abuse.[47] In 2009, he toured Canada lecturing on global climate change under the auspices of Climate Action Network[48] and demonstrated with protesters at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.[49]

[edit] Personal life

Rahul Bose formerly dated Koel Purie, who he directed in his film, Everybody Says I'm Fine!. The couple also appeared together in the 2004 film White Noise.[50][51]

[edit] Work

[edit] Filmography

Year Film Role Other notes
1994 English, August Agastya Sen
1995 A Mouthful of Sky Sarkar, Pavan TV
1996 Bomgay The Lefty
1998 Bombay Boys Ricardo Fernandes
1999 Split Wide Open Kut Price
Thakshak Sunny
2001 Everybody Says I'm Fine! Rage
2002 Mr. and Mrs. Iyer Raja
2003 Jhankaar Beats Rishi
Ek Din 24 Ghante Virendra
Mumbai Matinee Debashish "Debu" Chatterjee
Chameli Aman Kapoor
2004 White Noise Karan Deol
2005 The Fall Short film
Scrum in the Mud with Rahul Bose Himself TV documentary
Silsilay Neel
15 Park Avenue Joydeep "Jojo" Roy
Ctrl+Alt+Del Kabir
2006 Anuranan Rahul Chatterjee
Pyaar Ke Side Effects Siddharth "Sid" Bose
The Other Side of Bollywood Himself Documentary
2007 Chain Kulii Ki Main Kulii Varun
2008 Before the Rains T. K. Neelan
Shaurya Major Siddhant Chaudhary
Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam Arjun
Dil Kabaddi Rishi
Tahaan Zafar
Kaalpurush Son
2009 Antaheen Abhik Choudhury
The Whisperers Sid
2010 Fired Releases 29 January 2010
Mumbai Chakachak Completed
Exchange Offer Completed
Baazi Dimaag Ki Host Announced
I Am Jay Completed
The Japanese Wife Snehamoy Chatterjee Completed
Kuch Love Jaisa Completed
Bits and Pieces Arindam Completed
Click and Marry Announced
Mobster Kamal Haasan Announced
Flick Announced

[edit] Playback singing

Year Film Song
2006 Anuranan "Akashe chhorano megher"

[edit] Writer/director

Year Film Notes
2001 Everybody Says I'm Fine!
2009 The Whisperers Script

[edit] Stage

Year Title Role
1989 Topsy Turvey
1993 Are There Tigers in the Congo?
1996 Art Mark
1999 The Square Circle Lakshmi/Lakshman
Seascape with Sharks and Dancer

[edit] Awards

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b World Youth Peace Summit (2003), Rahul Bose: Actor/Producer/Humanitarian, http://www.wyps.org/profile3.php, retrieved 2008-08-05 
  2. ^ Ayaz, Shaikh (23 November 2006), Rapid fire with Rahul Bose, http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1065705, retrieved 2008-08-05 
  3. ^ Vivek Fernandes (25 July 2002). "'ESIF is deep, dark, sexual, funny...'". Rediff. http://www.rediff.com/movies/2002/jul/25rahul.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  4. ^ a b c "Rahul Bose: Split wide open". Times of India. Asia Africa Intelligence Wire. 31 August 2003. http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-24240332_ITM. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  5. ^ Gupta, Richa (21 June 2007). "Bose, up close". The Indian Express. http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=242202. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  6. ^ "Hard work is never enough". Times of India. 13 September 2003. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/180010.cms. Retrieved 11 September 2009. 
  7. ^ Chatterjee, Saibal (29 November 1995). "On With The Offbeat". Outlook. http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?200282. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  8. ^ Bhattacharya, Roshmila (26 September 2003). "Like a Virgin". Screen Weekly. http://www.screenindia.com/old/fullstory.php?content_id=6157. Retrieved 11 September 2009. 
  9. ^ Peer, Basharat (31 March 2001). "'Not for me a process that is illegal!'". Rediff. http://www.rediff.com/entertai/2001/mar/31dhriti.htm. Retrieved 11 September 2009. 
  10. ^ Desai, Jigna (2004). "Sex in the Global City: The Sexual and Gender Politics of the New Urban, Transnational and Cosmopolitan Cinema in English". Beyond Bollywood: the cultural politics of South Asian diasporic film. Routledge. pp. 197–8. ISBN 0415966841. http://books.google.com/books?id=dLb33fhgsjcC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved 10 September 2009. 
  11. ^ Chris Arnot (10 November 2009). "Bollywood it ain't". Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/1999/nov/10/artsfeatures5. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  12. ^ "Going Solo". Indian Express. 16 February 2000. http://www.expressindia.com/news/ie/daily/20000216/ien16054.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  13. ^ Rushdie, Salman (2002). Step across this line: collected nonfiction 1992-2002. Random House. p. 77. ISBN 0679463348. 
  14. ^ "Second coming". Indian Express. 6 April 2000. http://www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/20000406/ien06075.html. Retrieved 5 December 2009. 
  15. ^ Bella Jaisinghani (9 December 1999). "Dark horse". Indian Express. http://www.expressindia.com/news/fe/daily/19991209/fle05079.html. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  16. ^ Uma DaCunha (27 February 2003). "Mani, Madhuri and Rahul Bose...". Screen Weekly. http://www.screenindia.com/old/fullstory.php?content_id=1664. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  17. ^ Patrick Frater (11 September 2002). "India's Madhu takes international rights on Mr And Mrs Iyer". Screen Daily. http://www.screendaily.com/indias-madhu-takes-international-rights-on-mr-and-mrs-iyer/4010460.article. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  18. ^ "Devgan, Konkona bag National Film Awards". Rediff. 26 July 2003. http://www.rediff.com/www/movies/2003/jul/26award.htm. Retrieved 2 December 2009. 
  19. ^ Roshmila Bhattacharya (4 July 2003). "Small Wonders". Screen Weekly. http://www.screenindia.com/old/fullstory.php?content_id=4820. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  20. ^ Sushmita Biswas (10 December 2005). "The new melody moguls". Calcutta Telegraph. http://www.telegraphindia.com/1051210/asp/weekend/story_5563284.asp. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  21. ^ "Cinema unplugged, music unleashed". Indian Express. 17 January 2008. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/cinema-unplugged-music-unleashed/262371/0. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  22. ^ Subhash K. Jha (5 January 2006). "15 Park Avenue to be dubbed in Hindi". Sify. http://sify.com/movies/fullstory.php?id=14115084. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  23. ^ Raja Sen (15 September 2006). "Mallika's hot in Pyaar Ke Side Effects". Rediff. http://www.rediff.com/movies/2006/sep/15pyaar.htm. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  24. ^ Taran Adarsh (22 September 2006). "Tough competition!". Bollywood Hungama. http://entertainment.oneindia.in/bollywood/box-office/competition-220906.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  25. ^ "Box Office 2006". BoxOffice India. http://www.boxofficeindia.com/showProd.php?itemCat=212&catName=MjAwNg==. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  26. ^ Taran Adarsh (15 September 2006). "Pyaaar Ke Side Effects - Movie Review". IndiaFM. http://entertainment.oneindia.in/bollywood/reviews/2006/pyaar-ke-side-effects-150906.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  27. ^ "Rahul's going great!". Times of India. 28 August 2008. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_Buzz/Rahuls_going_great/articleshow/3411716.cms. Retrieved 7 Novmeber 2009. 
  28. ^ Alaka Sahani (23 January 2008). "Rumblings of success". Indian Express. http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Rumblings-of-SUCCESS/264589/. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  29. ^ "I want to do an action film, says Rahul Bose". Press Trust of India. 28 November 2009. http://www.ptinews.com/news/398489_I-want-to-do-an-action-film--says-Rahul-Bose. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  30. ^ "'Bombay Summer' rules New York film fest, bags three awards". Deccan Herald. 20 November 2009. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/36926/bombay-summer-rules-york-film.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  31. ^ Taran Adarsh (4 April 2008). "Shaurya". Bollywood Hungama. http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/review/13758/index.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  32. ^ Sneha Mahadevan (21 November 2008). "The game of life!". Screen. http://www.screenindia.com/news/The-game-of-life-/388249/. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  33. ^ Sharma, Ritesh (26 June 2009). "Interview: Rahul Bose". Glamsham.com. http://www.glamsham.com/movies/interviews/26-rahul-bose-interview-060921.asp. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  34. ^ Jha, Subhash K. (4 August 2009). "Rahul Bose puts direction plans on hold". Times of India. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4855367.cms. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  35. ^ "'The Japanese Wife' most splendid film of my life: Rahul Bose". Press Trust of India. Yahoo! News. 21 April 2009. http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20090421/1430/ten-the-japanese-wife-most-splendid-film.html. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  36. ^ Joginder Tuteja (29 October 2009). "Horror, thriller, romance, drama - It's a new beginning for Rahul Bose". Bollywood Hungama. http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/features/2009/10/29/5617/. Retrieved 7 December 2009. 
  37. ^ Natarajan, H (17 November 1998). "Bose leads Bombay Boys to Singapore". The Indian Express. http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19981017/29050794.html. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  38. ^ "Rage for RUGBY". The Hindu. 10 May 2004. http://www.hindu.com/mp/2004/05/10/stories/2004051002800400.htm. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  39. ^ Bhowmik, Aveek (9 June 2008). "Rahul Bose's rage for Rugby". Daily News & Analysis. http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1170005. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  40. ^ Rahul Bose launches scholarship scheme, 22 November 2006, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/521529.cms, retrieved 8 May 2008 
  41. ^ "Citizens’ groups, NGOs chalk out action plan for elections". Express News Service. 20 March 2009. http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/citizens-groups-ngos-chalk-out-action-plan-for-elections/436818/. Retrieved 7 April 2009. 
  42. ^ Rahul Bose appointed Oxfam's global ambassador, 31 July 2007, http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2245882.cms, retrieved 5 August 2008 
  43. ^ Singh, Shalini (20 January 2007), 'Being outraged isn’t enough', http://www.tehelka.com/story_main25.asp?filename=Cr012007Being_outraged.asp, retrieved 5 August 2008 
  44. ^ "India's Swades Movement to Combat Climate Change, "Planet Alert" Launches with an 18 Hour Radio-thon across 45 Cities on June 5th, World Environment Day". Radio and Music.com. 6 June 2009. http://www.radioandmusic.com/content/editorial/news-releases/indias-swades-movement-combat-climate-change-planet-alert-launches-with-18-hour-radio-th. Retrieved 10 June 2009. 
  45. ^ "Take a break!". Times of India. 10 August 2005. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1197252.cms. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  46. ^ Mukherjee, Amrita (5 June 2006). "Aamir is 25 times more famous than me: Rahul". Times of India. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1621178.cms. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  47. ^ "When to shun that tickle, hug". Times of India. 24 September 2009. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/news/city/delhi/When-to-shun-that-tickle-hug/articleshow/5048286.cms. Retrieved 28 September 2009. 
  48. ^ Urvashi Sarka (8 November 2009). "Ace player, actor and activist". The Hindu. http://beta.thehindu.com/arts/movies/article45351.ece. Retrieved 7 November 2009. 
  49. ^ "Rahul Bose and Danish model join hands". Indiatimes. 13 December 2009. http://movies.indiatimes.com/News/Rahul-Bose-and-Danish-model-join-hands/articleshow/5333260.cms. Retrieved 14 December 2009. 
  50. ^ "No hot moments with Sameera: Rahul Bose". 2004. http://123india.santabanta.com/cinema.asp?pid=4679&down=1. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  51. ^ "Short and sexy bollywood heroes". Times of India. 21 August 2007-09-21. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_Buzz/Short_and_sexy_bollywood_heroes/articleshow/2387150.cms. Retrieved 16 December 2008. 
  52. ^ "The Changing Climate". Businessworld. ABP Group. 30 November 2007. http://www.businessworld.in/index.php/Science-Technology/The-Changing-Climate.html. Retrieved 1 December 2008. 
  53. ^ "IBN network gives away citizen journalist awards". Thaindian News. 17 October 2008. http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/ibn-network-gives-away-citizen-journalist-awards_100108193.html. Retrieved 4 November 2008. 
  54. ^ "Jodhaa Akbar bags top honours at Indian 'Oscars'". Asian News. 18 June 2009. http://www.theasiannews.co.uk/entertainment/film_and_tv/bollywood/s/1121360_jodhaa_akbar_bags_top_honours_at_indian_oscars. Retrieved 19 June 2009. 
  55. ^ "Rahul, Priyanka, Hrithik bag youth icon awards". Times of India. 27 September 2009. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/Rahul-Priyanka-Hrithik-bag-youth-icon-awards/articleshow/5062118.cms. Retrieved 28 September 2009. 

[edit] External links

Search Wikiquote Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Rahul Bose
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rahul_Bose"