Eternally Uttam

Satyajit Ray had once lent words to what all Bengali film goers had always known of Uttam Kumar - There isn't - there won't be another hero like him.

Uttam Kumar, as Uttam Kumar himself said in a movie, is Uttam Kumar. The kind of mass adulation he received in his lifetime and beyond is unsurpassed and is likely to remain so. He has, at various times of his career, been called legend, a genre by himself and at times even a God :). His electric performances with Suchitra Sen and later Supriya Devi are stuff that makes history, and make history he did.

An hypnotic presence, an thoroughly disarming smile and just the right amount of impishness, he represents, I think, what every Bengali, who is a little romantic at heart, (and that would be almost everyone) would aspire to be. Whether he won the heart of his lady love in Agniparisha, became a saint in Sanyashi Raja or gave up his life in service to others in Agnishwar, he had the whole of Bongdom rooting for him all the way. He was and is for us the Only superstar, part of the set of essentials like Durgapuja, Football and Ilish Mach that makes us, us.

Saw an Uttam Movie last weekend, an adaptation of The Sound of Music, really enjoyed and hence this reverential tribute to the our Maha-Nayak.

Uttam and Suchitra

A couple of Uttam Links that I liked:
3to6A Movie Portal Tribute
Uttam Kumar