Roopa Ganguly

Personal life

Roopa Ganguly was born in Kalyani near Kolkata, West Bengal, India. She grew up in a joint family. She was a student of Beltala Girls' High School, from which she finished her secondary examination (Madhyamik Pariksha). Later, she obtained a bachelor's degree from the Jogamaya Devi College, an affiliated undergraduate women's college of University of Calcutta, in Kolkata.

Ganguly was married to Dhrubo Mukerjee from 1992 until 2006. They had one child in 1997. She was also in a live-in relationship with her singer companion, Dibyendu. The couple lived in Ganguly's Mumbai flat until the end of their relationship.

Debut and Breakthrough (1986 - 1989)

Ganguly rose to renown for her performance in the hit Bengali television series Muktabandha. She was featured in the much acclaimed Bengali t.v. series Streer Patra (1985) which won her huge accolades. She got her first national break in Ganadevta (1986), a Hindi television series. She shot to wider popularity after essaying the pivotal role of Draupadi, in B.R. Chopra's mythological TV series, Mahabharat (1988), which immediately got her huge mass attentions. In this TV series, she appeared for the first time on the thirty-fourth episode but it was the forty-seventh episode where the Vastraharan sequence was aired and her performance in it turned her into an exemplification of Draupadi over a long time. The dignity and vigour she displayed as Draupadi especially in the Vastraharan sequence is something that has been and will be a hard challenge to be replicated ever. The way she threw those invigorated words, "Aankhen jhukana kisi samasya ka samadhan nahi hai" captivated the hearts of millions and through the generations onward she has been impersonated as Draupadi.

She was consecutively paired with Chiranjeet Chakraborty in Prabhat Roy's Bengali films like Pratik (1988), Tufan (1989) and Agnitrishna (1989). She acted in Mrinal Sen's much acclaimed Hindi Film Ek Din Achanak (1989) and Basu Chatterjee's Hindi film Kamla Ki Maut (1989).

Flaccid Career (1990 - 2004)

In 1990, she appeared in Tariq Shah's Hindi film Baahar Aane Tak which was a box office debacle. Onwards she appeared in films like Kovelamudi Bapayya's Pyar Ka Devta (1991), Raj Sippy's Saugandh (1991), Rajkumar Kohli's Virodhi (1992) to name a few. In 1991, she acted in the blockbuster Kannada film Police Matthu Dada directed by Tulsi Ramsay and Shyam Ramsay. In the same year she appeared in its Hindi remake titled under Inspector Dhanush. The film flopped at box office. In 1992, she acted in A V Seshagiri Rao's Telegu film Inspector Bhavani where she played the character of a sincere police officer whose object is to bring an end to those who assassinated her fiancee. In the same year, she acted in Sukanta Roy's Bengali film Pitrireen where she played the character of Sathi, a photographer who enquires about her father's assassin.

In 1993, she appeared in Goutam Ghose's award-winning Bengali film Padma Nadir Majhi where she played the character of Kapila, a woman from the fishermen community who falls for her sister's huaband and finally leaves her family to settle with him in Moynadeep island. Her performance in this film was highly appreciated by the critics and media personalities. Utpal Dutt who was also a part of this venture, was recorded to comment on her performance, “Roopa has really lived the life of Kapila with those flawless body languages of a woman from the fisherman community.” In 1995, she appeared in Amal Roy Ghatak's Bengali film Ujan which won her the BFJA Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1996. In 1996, she appeared in Aparna Sen's award-winning Bengali film Yugant where she played the character of an obsessed dancer. Her performance in the film won favourable review. Apart from acting in feature films she went on appearing in numerous telefilms and television series, both in Bengali and Hindi, including Sukanya (1998).

In 2000, she appeared in Rituparno Ghosh's award-winning Bengali film Bariwali where she played the character of Sudeshna Mitra, an actress playing the character of Binodini in a film Chokher Bali directed by the male protagonist. In 2001, she appeared in a cameo role in Goutam Ghose's award-winning Bengali film Dekha. Though she made a cameo appearance in it, she garnered huge mass attention as the film was widely advertised on her enthralling dialogue, "Sagar dekhben naa, shudhu amake dekhun." In the film she rendered her character with a fine, seductive approach especially in the Eki Labonyo Purna Prate song sequence where the character played by Soumitra Chatterjee recalls up an earlier moment of Ganguly gazing back at him. In 2003, she appeared in Gautam Ghose's Bengali film Abar Aranye where she played the character of Shimul a buoyant woman who is grief-stricken at the deepest core of her heart for the probable loss of her husband. She appeared in a cameo role in Bow Barracks forever (2004) by Anjan Dutt.

Prime Flow in Career (2005 - 2015)

In 2005, she appeared in Rituparno Ghosh's award-winning Bengali film Antarmahal where she played the character of Mahamaya, a docile wife to an arrogant zamindar. Her performance in the film was hugely appeciated by film critics. Her Mahamaya is a worthy contender to lead any listing of memorable women characters from Ghosh’s abundant array of some seriously multi-dimensional female protagonists seen on celluloid in recent times. She rekindles memories of her fiery act of Draupadi in B R Chopra’s Mahabharat (1988 TV series) through her blow hot, blow cold performance. The film’s narrator may be the British artist, but hers is the character that drives its most dramatic moments and through whom the audience is warned about the catastrophe in waiting. From a jealous, wasted aging wife in the beginning, she seizes screen presence with her every appearance lacing it with new untapped facets to her personality. To her husband’s employees, she is like an incarnation of the goddess-provider, to Jashomati she is the nurturer and to the voyeuristic exploitative priests she is the ultimate sexual tease. In the zamindar’s ‘antarmahal’ abounding with women resigned to their fates, she is a thinking, living, sexual being, who sets her own agendas and seeks her own pleasures, almost like a man. She herself considered this role as a big challenge as it was inherently contrary to her personality. The film won her the BFJA Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2006. In the same year, she appeared in Sekhar Das's award-winning Bengali film Krantikaal (2005) where she played the character of Subarna who befriends a terrorist who broke into her house. She appeared in Raj Mukherjee's Bengali film Nagordola (2005) where she portrayed the character of an arrogant and rude woman who gets diagnosed as having throat cancer and realises that life is not like it has conventionally been and gives her full consent to her own unmarried daughter to give birth of her baby and to bring it up. The film was a major hit at box office for its contemporary social issue. Her performance in the film earn her an Anandalok Award nomination in the Best Actress in the Leading Role category in 2006. She acted in the much acclaimed Bengali film Ek Mutho Chabi (2005) produced by herself, where she played the character of an established actress who meets a car accident consequently losing her career. In December, 2005, Ganguly was named by The Telegraph in the list of Five Crowning Queens of 2005 alongside Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta, Konkona Sen Sharma and Vidya Balan.

In 2007, she again shifted her base to Mumbai and started working in Hindi TV series, with Karam Apnaa Apnaa (2007), moving on to Love Story (SAB TV series) (2007), and more recently in Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo (2009).

In 2009, she appeared in Sekhar Das's Bengali film Kaaler Rakhal. She appeared in Anjan Dutt's film Chowrasta the Crossroads of love (2009).

In 2011 she won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer for rendering her voice in Aditi Roy's Bengali film Abosheshey (2012) where she also acted. In the film, she portrayed the character of Suchismita. She appeared in Birsa Dasgupta's Jaani Dyakha Hawbe (2011) which after much commercial expectation proved to be a failure at box office. She acted in Anurag Basu's blockbuster film Barfi! (2012). She acted in Anjan Dutt's Dutta Vs Dutta (2012) where she played the character of Runu mashi who lives her life on her own term and inspires the protagonist to live the life he desires. She appeared in Riingo's Bengali film Na Hannyate (2012) where she played the character of Jui who is caught in a situation where she could save only one of her kids and leave the other to die. In 2013, she appeared in Utsav Mukherjee's hilarious social-satirical film Half Serious. She played the role of goddess Durga in the film. She appeared in Rana Basu's Bengali film Namte Namte (2013). She also appeared in Shekhar Das's Bengali film Nayanchampar Dinratri (2013). In 2014, she appeared alongside Soumitra Chatterjee in Souvik Mitra's Bengali film Punascha where she played the muse of an award-winning author, played by Chatterjee. The film earned her rave review including the statement made by The Times of India that the film belongs to her only. In 2015, she acted in Debesh Chottopadhyay's Bengali film Natoker Moto and Aparna Sen's Bengali film Arshinagar. She will be seen in the role of a foul mouthed politician in an upcoming Hindi film Babumoshai Bandookbaaz directed by Kushan Nandy.

Political career

In 2015, Ganguly joined Bharatiya Janata Party ahead of West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, 2016.

In West Bengal Assembly elections 2016, Ganguly lost from Howrah North to Trinamool Congress counterpart and cricketer Laxmi Ratan Shukla.

She was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in October 2016 in place of cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu who resigned earlier.

Awards

Ganguly had won numerous awards including a National Award, Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards for two times and Kalakar Awards for three times. In 2011, she was awarded the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer for rendering her voice in Aditi Roy's Bengali film Abosheshey. She was awarded for her husky and haunting voice in the songs Dure Kothay and Aji Bijan Ghare.

Recognition