Noted Filmmaker Basu Chatterjee Passes Away

Renowned filmmaker Basu Chatterjee, known for his'common man' sensibilities that were reflected in films such as Rajnigandha,Baaton Baaton Mein, Ek Ruka Hua Faisla and Chitchor, has died at the age of 90.

Condolinghis death, filmmaker and Indian Film & TV Directors' Association presidentAshoke Pandit tweeted, "I am extremely grieved to inform you all the demise ofLegendary Filmmaker Basu Chatterjee ji . His last rites will be performed todayat Santacruz creamation at 2 pm. It's a great loss to the industry. Will missyou Sir. #RIPBasuChaterjee."

Startinghis career as an illustrator and cartoonist, the Ajmer-born Basu Chatterjeeknew how to find humour in the commonplace. He changed his career path afterassisting Basu Bhattacharya in the Raj Kapoor-Waheeda Rehman starrer TeesriKasam and made his debut with Sara Akash (1969) and soon earned the tag of'balcony class director'.

Thetwo Basus along with Hrishikesh Mukherjee formed the Hindi cinema triumviratewhose ethos lay firmly in the middle class and its day-to-day struggles at atime when most of Bollywood was focused on larger-than-life stories of angstand tragedy led by Amitabh Bachchan. Actors like Vidya Sinha, Amol Palekar andZarina Wahab were the stars that were favoured by Chatterjee to tell aspiringstories of the middle class.

Hiscinema was progressive for the times, unhurried and a slice of everyday life.He also directed few episodes of TV shows Byomkesh Bakshi, and Rajani forDoordarshan. He was also influenced by films such as Bicycle Thief and BillyWilder's socio-romantic comedies.