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Mithun Chakraborty

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Mithun Chakraborty
Born
Gauranga Chakraborty
Other namesMithunda
OccupationActor
Years active1976–present
SpouseYogeeta Bali (1982-present)

Mithun Chakraborty (Bengali: মিঠুন চক্রবর্তী Miṭhun Chôkroborti, Hindi: मिथुन चक्रवर्ती; born Gouranga Chakraborty on 16 June 1947) is a National Film Award-winning Indian film actor, social activist and entrepreneur. Chakraborty made his acting debut with the arthouse drama Mrigaya (1976), for which he won his first National Film Award for Best Actor. In his heyday during the 1980s, he had earned a huge fan following as a dancing star and went on to establish himself as one of the most popular and leading actors of India, particularly recognised for his role of street dancer Jimmy in the 1982 cult hit, Disco Dancer.

Altogether Chakraborty has appeared in more than 350 Bollywood films as well as a number of Bengali, Oriya and Bhojpuri films. Mithun also owns the Monarch Group which has interests in the hospitality sector.[1]

Biography

Personal life

He was born in Kolkata and educated at the renowned Scottish Church College in Kolkata, from where he earned his graduate degree in chemistry (BSc). After that he attended and graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune.

It is a little known fact that Mithun was a staunch Naxalite before entering the film industry. But tragedy struck his family when his only brother got accidentally electrocuted and killed in a freak accident. Mithun returned to his family and left the Naxalite fold, even though doing so posed a grave risk to his own life from the Naxalites, because this was considered a one-way road . This proved to be a turning point in his life and became one of the prime causes that led to his iconic status. Another lesser known fact is that he had undergone expert training in martial arts

Mithun is married to Indian actress Yogita Bali and has four children, three sons and one daughter. The eldest son, Mimoh Chakraborty is an actor in Bollywood, who made his debut in the 2008 film Jimmy, His second son, Rimoh Chakraborty who is playing Mithun's younger version the film Phir Kabhi. And Mithun's other two children Namashi Chakraborty and Dishani Chakraborty are still into their studies.

Numerous sources claim that Chakraborty had a relationship with actress Sridevi from 1986 to 1987, and that Sridevi ended the relationship when she found out that he had not divorced his first wife, Yogita Bali. Chakraborty and Sridevi were believed to have been secretly married and that the union was later annulled.[2]

Film career

Mithun made his film debut in the 1976 Mrinal Sen directed film Mrigaya for which he won the coveted National Film Award for Best Actor. After his debut he played some supporting roles in films such as Do Anjaane (1976) and Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan (1977) which did not gain him any recognition. He shot into prominence in the late 1970s with the low budget Ravikant Nagaich directed spy film Surakshaa (1979) and the early 1980s with leading roles in hit films such as Hum Paanch (1980) and Wardaat (1981) (a sequel to Surakshaa).

His breakthrough role finally came in the musical drama Disco Dancer (1982) which was a huge success due to its hit music and remains a cult favorite to this day. This film and other musical films such as Kasam Paida Karne Wale Ki (1984) and Dance Dance (1987) showcased him as a talented dancer.

He also starred in a number of successful romantic and family dramas during the 1980s, such as Mujhe Insaaf Chahiye (1983), Pyaar Jhukta Nahin (1985), Swarg Se Sunder (1986), and Pyaar Ka Mandir (1988). These films remain his most commercially successful films to date.[3]

He was widely recognised as an action hero in hit films like Wanted (1983), Boxer (1984), Jagir (1984), Jaal (1986), Watan Ke Rakhwale (1987) Commando (1988), Waqt Ki Awaaz (1988), Guru (1989), Mujrim (1989) and Dushman (1990). During the mid 1980s he was regarded as a rival to Amitabh Bachchan as he did dozens of films in the action and drama genre that showcased him as an angry young man at odds with the ills of society and corruption. This characterization was similar to Bachchan's one. Likewise, he has worked with some of the biggest actresses of his time and Bollywood in general, like Zeenat Aman, Padmini Kolhapure, Rati Agnihotri, Rekha, Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit and more.

Mithun achieved not only commercial success but also tremendous critical acclaim. His performances in Mrigaya, Tahader Katha and Swami Vivekananda, were widely appreciated and won him National Film Awards. He also won two Filmfare awards: The Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for his performance in the 1990 film Agneepath, and the Filmfare Best Villain Award for his performance in Jallad. Apart from it, he was praised for his performances in films like Pyaar Ka Mandir (1988) and Mujrim (1989).

In the mid '90s he took a break from Mumbai and relocated to Ooty where he set up his hotel business and literally became a "One Man Industry" for a decade as he starred over 80 plus films over 10 years as he shifted his focus from mainstream Hindi cinema and went into starring in low-budget B-grade movies. These movies were mainly produced to cater to the audiences of Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, where Mithun has a cult-following even today. He was the highest tax payer in the country for five consecutive years as well, from 1994 to 1999 in the mean period.

He made a comeback to the mainstream Hindi film industry in 2005 with the film Elaan which was not successful. After a few supporting roles in films such as Lucky: No Time for Love (2005) he won acclaim for his performance in Kalpana Lazmi's Chingari (2005). In 2007 he starred in Mani Ratnam's hit film Guru for which he received much critical acclaim. Guru was the first film of his to be commercially successful since his comeback. Mithun has had 9 releases in 2008 including Bengali and Bhojpuri films. His Heroes done very well and the comedy was well praised in Don Muthu Swami. In 2009, his Zor Lagaa Ke...Haiya! won multiple International awards.[4] His upcoming films are Zindagi Tere Naam, plus films like Veer with Salman Khan, Raakh, and Kannada flick Manikya. Mithunda's latest releases Soham Shah directed Luck with Sunjay Dutt has taken a good opening and settled as Average earner and Chal Chalein was appreciated by critics for its bold theme. His latest release Baabarr done well in northern Single screens. His Phir Kabhi with Dimple Kapadia had the premiere through direct to home(DTH) in September 2009.

Parallel to his Bollywood career, Mithun Chakraborty had chalked up an array of successful and not-so-successful films in his native Bengali, as well as in realistic or arthouse movies, where his trained acting has resulted in him getting quite a few awards and accolades. Troyee, made in 1982 with Debashree Roy and Anil Chatterjee, was a big success. After the move to Bombay, and his popularity as a star in mainstream Hindi movies, there was a lull in Mithun's appearances in mainstream Bengali movies, but he continued to appear in arthouse movies like eminent director Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Tahader Katha in 1992 which got him the second National Award in 1993. A third National Award followed in 1995, this time for the Best Supporting Actor , for his awesome portrayal of Ramakrishna Paramhansa, in G V Iyer's Swami Vivekananda. He also got accolades for Goutam Ghose's Gudia in 1999. He also appeared in Rituparno Ghosh's critically and commercially appreciated Titli in 2002, starring with the real-life mother-daughter pair of Aparna Sen and Konkona Sen Sharma. Recently, the Fatakeshto series of popular entertainers have been widely successful in West Bengal. In 2008, he collaborated again with Dasgupta for the critically acclaimed Kaalpurush, with Rahul Bose and Sameera Reddy.

Television Shows

Mithun is the Grand Judge of the show Dance India Dance and Dance Bangla Dance on Zee TV.

Sports

Mithun Chakraborty has also been involved in promotion of Football in his native Bengal. The Bengal Football Academy is his brainchild and Mithun raised the necessary funds for the launch of this academy.

Mithun Chakraborty is also the co-owner of Royal Bengal Tigers, a cricket team of the Indian Cricket League[5].

Awards

National Film Awards

Filmfare Awards

Star Screen Awards

Stardust Awards

Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards

Selected Filmography

Main article: Mithun Chakraborty filmography

References

  1. ^ Times of India article
  2. ^ "The Truth About Mithun and Sridevi". Stardust. Stardust International. May 1990.
  3. ^ "boxofficeindia.com". Career's biggest hits. Retrieved 7 July 2008.
  4. ^ "Zor Lagaa Ke... Haiya Movie Preview". Retrieved 15 Sept., 2009. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  5. ^ The Telegraph, India - Mithun: No clash with Shah Rukh

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