Filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh's Death Shocks Industry

Kolkata: Rituparno Ghosh, one of the strongest Indian filmmakers in the post-Satyajit Ray period who excelled in analyzing human relationships and societal issues, died. He was 49.

Rituparno, who was suffering from pancreatitis, passed away at his South Kolkata residence in sleep around 7.30 a.m. following a massive cardiac arrest, film industry sources said.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rushed to his residence. "Rituparno's comparison is only Rituparno," said Banerjee, deeply mourning his death.

A bachelor, he was a versatile and innovative genius. While his films won 12 National Awards besides claiming the honours at national film festivals, Ghosh got acclaim for his acting in movies like "Memories in March", and wrote scripts, which were hailed by the critics.

Born Aug 31, 1963, in Kolkata, Ghosh started his career in the world of advertisement, and shifted to celluloid in 1992 with the Bengali movie "Hirer Angti".

But he shot into prominence with the 1994 offering "Unishe April", that bagged the National Award for best feature film and won Debashree Roy the honours in the best actress category.

His other National Award winning Bengali films are "Dahan", "Bariwali", "Asukh", "Utsab", "Shubho Mahurat", "Chokher Bali", "Dosar", "Shob Charitro Kalponik" and "Abohoman".

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