Rani, Bips and Konkona – can they replicate topless Dimple Kapadia in “Sagar”
Juhi Singhal
Feb. 24, 2005

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There is a lot of talk these days on the Bengali parade of beautiful girls in Bollywood. But none of them have been able to outperform the norm. Rani, Sush, Bips, Konkona are all there and more are coming. But all are failing to create the sizzle that Dimple Kapadia created in Sagar by dropping the towel and providing a glimpse of topless scene in eighties. Rani tried somewhat to create the effect with Kamal Hasan but all these efforts fell short of remarkable “something”.

But they have excelled any way!

What do Rani Mukherjee and Konkona Sen Sharma have in common apart from the obvious fact that both of them are fine actors and have made garnering rave reviews a bit of a habit?

The two young women belong to Bengal, a region that has produced some of Hindi cinema’s most gifted leading ladies since the days of Devika Rani. But that was then. Times have changed and the Bengali coquette has mutated beyond recognition since Sharmila Tagore, Raakhee and Jaya Bhaduri blazed a trail of glory on the Mumbai movie firmament with a mix of solid acting ability and intrinsic charm. This is the era of the likes of Bipasha Basu, Koena Mitra, Riya Sen and Rimi Sen. These sassy glamour gals ooze sex appeal, flash skin and gyrate to a heady beat.

So when they shed their clothes and inhibitions, it is all in a day’s work. Contrast that with the time Sharmila set the Hooghly on fire and raised eyebrows when she dared to slip into a swimsuit for An Evening in Paris. Passion and panache may make a good combo, but the focus of the Bengali brigade is still, mercifully, primarily on the good old fundamental values that drive good actors.

Rani Mukherjee has, of course, pulled away way ahead of the competition with her latest triumph, Black. But her superb performance in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film has not come as a surprise. Rani’s rise has been enviably steady. In the last couple years, she has made rapid strides as a performer. Her roles in Shaad Ali’s Saathiya and Mani Ratnam’s Yuva, besides the minuscule appearance in Yash Chopra’s Veer-Zaara, were clear indications that she was, all the while, preparing for greatness. She is finally there: she has at last emerged from the shadows of her hitherto more celebrated cousin, Kajol.

Another Bengali actress in the Black cast, Nandana Sen, despite a much smaller role, has made a deep impact, pointing to the immense potential that she possesses. Playing the deaf-blind female protagonist’s sister, Nandana captures with great skill and subtlety the emotions of a girl who feels that her parents neglect her. Not surprising at all coming from a professional who, among other things, attracted positive notices a couple of years ago for her performance as British poet Beatrice Hastings in the Broadway play, Modigliani.

Konkona Sen Sharma already has a Best Actress National Award behind her. And now with her restrained interpretation of a cub reporter in Madhur Bhandarkar’s Page 3, she has become hot property in mainstream Bollywood too. She has emerged as an actress who has ‘Quality Assured’ written all over her. That makes her a rare bird indeed.

Another Bengal export that has been making waves not just for screen presence but also for the way she handles her stardom is the incomparable Sushmita Sen. She is unlike any of the other beauty queens (Aishwarya Rai included) in the business today. She may not have delivered too many Bollywood blockbusters but that has been more out of choice than compulsion.

There is one essential respect in which the current crop of Bengali actresses differs from the earlier generation – Suchitra Sen, Sharmila, Jaya, Raakhee and Moushumi Chatterjee. Most of these divas of yore had one foot firmly planted in the city of their origin – Kolkata. All of them debuted in Bengali films before heading for Mumbai.

Today’s Bengali actress is, in essence, far more cosmopolitan, having grown up in an ethos that is a mix of her cultural moorings and external influences. Not surprisingly, most of these girls began their careers in non-Bengali films.

Rani Mukherjee, a niece of Bengali star Debashree Roy, has always been a Mumbai girl.

Konkona Sen Sharma, daughter of actress and filmmaker Aparna Sen, spent her formative years in New Delhi.

Sushmita Sen has never been a Kolkata resident.

Nandana Sen, daughter of Nobel laureate Amartya Sen, is at home in the world.

Even Bong bombshells Bipasha Basu and Koena Mitra, who grew up in Kolkata, have built their careers as models and actresses outside of their hometown.

It is certainly the mixed upbringing of these Bengali actresses that is reflected in the wide range that they represent – from the eclectic Nandana to the ravishing Koena, from the steady Rani to the mercurial Bipasha, from the quietly confident Konkona to the flighty Rimi Sen. But, interestingly, none of these girls is ever in the danger of being stuck in a groove. They are pleasantly malleable.

Nandana, who began her acting career in the now-forgotten Goutam Ghosh film, Gudiya, will be next seen playing the romantic lead opposite Ajay Devgan in Mani Shankar’s thriller, Tango Charlie.

Bipasha has already announced her intention to break free from the B-grade sultry siren rut and look for more substantial big-ticket assignments. In the very year that Rimi Sen was seen seducing Abhishek Bachchan in the skimpiest of attires in Dhoom, she made a mark as an actress by playing a Bangladesh migrant on the run from Gujarat in Bengali auteur Buddhadeb Dasgupta’s Swapner Din (Chased by Dreams).

Members of the contemporary Bengal brigade are beyond tags. They are neither just oomph symbols nor girls next door. There is more to them than mere slots. They seem capable of springing surprises at every turn of their careers.

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