Sombhu Mitra (22 August 1915 – 19 May 1997) was an Indian film and stage actor, director, playwright, reciter and an Indian theatre personality, known especially for his involvement in Bengali theatre, where he is considered a pioneer. He remained associated with the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) for a few years before founding the Bohurupee theatre group in Kolkata in 1948. He is most noted for films like Dharti Ke Lal (1946), Jagte Raho (1956), and his production of Rakta Karabi based on Rabindranath Tagore's play in 1954 and Chand Baniker Pala, his most noted play as a playwright.[1][2][3][4][5]
Born in Calcutta (now Kolkata), India, on 22 August 1915, Sombhu Mitra was the sixth child of three sons and four daughters born of Sarat Kumar Mitra, an employee of the Geological Survey of India, and Satadalbasini Mitra. His mother died when he was 12 years old.[7]
He started his schooling in Chakraberia Middle English School, Calcutta and later continued in the Ballygunge Government High School, Calcutta, where he developed interest reading Bengali plays and became active in school dramatics. He joined St. Xavier's College of the University of Calcutta in 1931, and soon started attending the local theatre.[7]
His first appearance in Bengali theatre was in Rangmahal Theatre in north Kolkata in 1939, thereafter he moved to the Minerva, Natyaniketan and Srirangam theatres.
In 1943, he joined Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA). In 1944, several old theatrical conventions were broken when the play Nabanna written by Bijon Bhattacharya and co-directed by Sombhu Mitra for IPTA was staged. In 1948, Sombhu Mitra formed a new theatre group, Bohurupee in Kolkata, which ushered in the group-theatre movement in West Bengal.
He married Tripti Mitra née Bhaduri, who was also a celebrated personality in the Bengali theatre. Their daughter, Shaoli was a noted actress, director and playwright.[8][9]
Under Sombhu Mitra's direction, the Bohurupee staged several successful productions. In December 1950, the Bohurupee presented three plays in the New Empire theatre – Tulsi Lahiri's Pathik and Chenda Tar and Sombhu Mitra's own creation, Ulukhagra. In 1954, Rabindranath Tagore's Rakta Karabi was staged by the Bohurupee, followed by his Bisarjan, Raja and Char Adhyay. Other notable productions include Bidhyak Bhattacharya's Tahar Namti Ranjana and Kanchanranga. Under his direction, this group also presented the Bengali adaptations of several well-known dramas from the world stage. Henrik Ibsen's Putul Khela (Doll's House), Dashachakra (An Enemy of the People) and Sophocles' Raja Oidipaus (Oedipus Rex) are notable amongst them.
In these productions he performed as RahimuddininChenda Tar, AtininChar Adhyay, BinodinUlukhagra, TapaninPutul Khela, Dr. Purnendu GuhainDashachakra, OidipausinRaja Oidipaus.
He wrote the story and screenplay of Jagte Raho (1956) and also co-directed it along with Amit Maitra. He also directed a Bengali movie, Shubha Bibaha in 1959.
^History of Indian Literature : [2].1911–1956, struggle for freedom : triumph and tragedy, by Sisir Kumar Das, various. Published by Sahitya Akademi, 1995. ISBN81-7201-798-7. Page 163.
^Shombhu MitraPop culture India!: media, arts, and lifestyle, by Asha Kasbekar.
Published by ABC-CLIO, 2006. ISBN1-85109-636-1. .
^Shobhu MitraNot the other avant-garde: the transnational foundations of avant-garde performance, by James Martin Harding, John Rouse. University of Michigan Press, 2006. ISBN0-472-06931-4. Page 203-205.
^"Padma Awards"(PDF). Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. 2015. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
