Tulsi Chakrabarti was a virtuoso comic actor in Bengali cinema

Bengali cinema

Bengali cinema refers to the Bengali language filmmaking industries in the Bengal region of South Asia. There are two major film-making hubs in the region: one in Kolkata, West Bengal, India and the other in Dhaka, Bangladesh .The history of cinema in Bengal dates back to the 1890s, when the first...

 in 1940s and 1950s. His most notable role could be the lead role in Parash Pathar

Parash Pathar

Parash Pathar was Satyajit Ray's first film apart from the Apu Trilogy. It was also his first comedy and first magical realist film...

, directed by Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...

.

Childhood

Chakraborty was born on 3rd March, 1899 in the small village called Goari. His father, Ashutosh Chakraborty, was an employee of the Indian Railways and the family had to move around various places in undivided Bengal. So, young Tulsi had to spend a lot of time in Calcutta staying with his paternal uncle Prasad Chakraborty. Prasadbabu was a talented tabla and harmonium player who was an employee of the renowned Star Theatre the legendary Bengali commercial theatre stage and production company. It was through his uncle's contacts that Tulsi was able to watch the finest actors of the generation at work and this fostered his own ambitions to become a singer-actor. H
He was known for his realistic acting. He never used any make-up or extra arrangements. Usually he was clad in a white dhoti accompanied by a sacred thread on his shoulder.

Career

One of Chakraborti's notable performances was in Sharey Chuattor

Sharey Chuattor

Sharey Chuattor was the 1953 comedy film, directed by Nirmal Dey, story by Bijon Bhattacharya, starring Tulsi Chakrabarti and Molina Devi, and co-starring Suchitra Sen and Uttam Kumar. Contemporary playback singers like Dhananjay, Dwijen Mukherjee, Shamol Mitra and Manabendra Mukherjee acted in...

, which was the debut film of the popular pair of Bengali Cinema: Suchitra Sen

Suchitra Sen

Suchitra Sen ; or Rama Dasgupta , is an Indian actress who acted in several Bengali films. In particular, the movies in which she paired opposite another legend in Bengali films, Uttam Kumar, became classics in the history of Bengali cinema. She now lives a life of a recluse rarely making any...

 and Uttam Kumar

Uttam Kumar

Uttam Kumar is one of the most famous names of Indian Bengali Cinema.Born Arun Kumar Chatterjee in 1926 at Ahiritola, North Calcutta he is widely known as Uttam Kumar and Mahanayak . He remains as much of a cultural icon as he had been in his lifetime...

. In Parash Pathar

Parash Pathar

Parash Pathar was Satyajit Ray's first film apart from the Apu Trilogy. It was also his first comedy and first magical realist film...

 directed by Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...

, he acted in the lead role. He unleashed yet another memorable role in a Uttam Kumar

Uttam Kumar

Uttam Kumar is one of the most famous names of Indian Bengali Cinema.Born Arun Kumar Chatterjee in 1926 at Ahiritola, North Calcutta he is widely known as Uttam Kumar and Mahanayak . He remains as much of a cultural icon as he had been in his lifetime...

-Suchitra Sen

Suchitra Sen

Suchitra Sen ; or Rama Dasgupta , is an Indian actress who acted in several Bengali films. In particular, the movies in which she paired opposite another legend in Bengali films, Uttam Kumar, became classics in the history of Bengali cinema. She now lives a life of a recluse rarely making any...

 starrer where Chakrabarti played a sceptical inn-owner. He also had a small role that of a village pandit in Pather Panchali

Pather Panchali

Pather Panchali is a 1955 Bengali drama film written and directed by Satyajit Ray and produced by the Government of the Indian state of West Bengal. Based on Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay's 1929 Bengali novel of the same name, the film was the directorial debut of Ray...

.
Satyajit Ray once said that had Mr. Chakrabarti been born in USA, he would have been awarded an Oscar for his acting.

Life

Chakraborti spent the latter part of his life in utmost poverty. His widow was also known to have lived in abject poverty as was revealed by a television programme. Due to his poverty he had to take a walk from Tollygunj studio to his home in Shibpur

Shibpur

Shibpur is a residential area located in the city of Howrah, West Bengal, India. It is well known for being the location of the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden, the Bengal Engineering College and the Hazar Hath Kaali Temple. The famous Bengali linguist Suniti Kumar Chatterji...

, Howrah.

Movie List

• Maya Mriga (1960)

• Suno Baranari (1960)

• Gali Theke Rajpath (1959)

• Personal Assistant
  Personal assistant
  A personal assistant or personal aide is someone who assists in daily business or personal tasks. It is common in design to have a PDA, or personal design assistant....
  
   (1959) - Publisher

• Ajantrik
  Ajantrik
  Ajantrik is a 1958 Indian Bengali film written and directed by parallel filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak...
  
   (1958)

• Jalsaghar
  Jalsaghar
  Jalsaghar is the fourth feature film directed by Satyajit Ray. Jalsaghar is a narration of the end days of a Zamindar in Bengal. The landlord, Roy , is a just but other-worldly man who loves to spend time listening to music and putting up spectacles rather than managing his fields ravaged by...
  
   (1958) - Manager of Roy's Estate

• Joutuk (1958)

• Parash Pathar (1958) - Paresh Chandra Dutta

• Rajlakshmi O Srikanta (1958) - Ratan

• Sonar Kathi (1958)

• Chandranath (1957)

• Harishchandra (1957)

• Prithibi Amare Chaay (1957)

• Chore (1956)

• Ekti Raat (1956) - Gossainji

• Shyamali (1956)

• Pather Panchali
  Pather Panchali
  Pather Panchali is a 1955 Bengali drama film written and directed by Satyajit Ray and produced by the Government of the Indian state of West Bengal. Based on Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay's 1929 Bengali novel of the same name, the film was the directorial debut of Ray...
  
   (1955) - Prasanna, school teacher

• Aparadhi (1955)

• Bhalobasa (1955)

• Dujane (1955)

• Godhuli (1955)

• Kalindi (1955)

• Nishiddha Phal (1955)

• Shreebatsa Chinta (1955)

• Upahar (1955) - Ghatak

• Champadangar Bou (1954)

• Jadubhatta (1954)

• Jaydev (1954)

• Bana Hansi (1953)

• Nabin Yatra (1953)

• Sharey Chuattor
  Sharey Chuattor
  Sharey Chuattor was the 1953 comedy film, directed by Nirmal Dey, story by Bijon Bhattacharya, starring Tulsi Chakrabarti and Molina Devi, and co-starring Suchitra Sen and Uttam Kumar. Contemporary playback singers like Dhananjay, Dwijen Mukherjee, Shamol Mitra and Manabendra Mukherjee acted in...
  
   (1953) - Rajanibabu

• Darpachurna (1952)

• Meghmukti (1952)

• Pandit Mashai (1951)

• Mandanda (1950)

• Mejdidi (1950) - Nabin

• Rupkatha (1950)

• Sheshbesh (1950)

• Ashabari (1949)

• Bamuner Meye (1949)

• Bishnupriya (1949)

• Kavi (1949)

• Manzoor (1949)

• Anirban (1948)

• Banchita (1948)

• Purabi (1948)

• Samapika (1948)

• Biraj Bou (1946)

• Mandir (1946)

• Pratima (1946)

• Bhabikaal (1945)

• Dui Purush (1945)

• Kalankini (1945)

• Mane Na Mane (1945) - Nayeb

• Hamrahi (1944)

• Meri Bahen (1944) - Chaudhary

• Udayer Pathey (1944)

• Devar (1943)

• Garmil (1942) - Jamidar's uncle

• Pashan Devata (1942)

• Saugandh (1942)

• Pratisruti (1941)

• Uttarayan (1941) - Ramrup

• Kamale Kamini (1940) - Bachal

• Nimai Sanyasi (1940) - Adwaita

• Bamanabatar (1939) - Kashyap

• Janak Nandini (1939) - Janak

• Nara Narayana (1939) - Jambaban

• Bekar Nashan (1938) - Pitambar

• Prabas Milan (1937) - Nanda

• Kanthahaar (1935)

• Manmoyee Girls School (1935) - Damodar Chakraborty

• Dakshayajna (1934) - Brahma

• Sree Gouranga (1933)

• Punarjanma (1932)

• Deep Jwele Jai