Gautam Ghose, (1950) Bengali director born in Faridpur, East Bengal (now Bangladesh). Father was a professor of English literature. Active in student politics in Calcutta. Freelance journalist and fringe theatre director. Made early documentaries as extension of his photojournalism. Influenced in this early practice by documentarist Sukhdev, who inspired him to do his own screenplays, camerawork, music and editing (in his early films). First feature, Maabhoomi, based on the Telangana uprising of 1941, imbues fiction with semi-documentary mode influenced by Solanas/Getino? films of the 60s and by the folk Burrakatha form. Later moved to more conventional forms. Often places his stories in conditions of extreme social marginality, presented through his actors as physical, primitive and elemental battles of survival (Dakhal, Paar). Worked with the writings of Bengali novelist Kamal Kumar Majumdar (e.g. Antarjali Jatra). Most recent film Padma Nadir Majhi is an ambitious and expensive Indo-Bangladesh co-production adapting a classic novel by Manik Bandyopadhyay. Also directed a TV series adapting famous Bengali short stories (1986). Acted in Buddhadev Dasgupta’s Grihajuddha (1982), playing the reporter Sandipan who is killed, and composed the music for Agni Sanket (Sanjib Chattopadhyay, 1988).
FILMOGRAPHY: 1973: New Earth (Doc); 1976: Hungry Autumn (Doc); Chains of Bondage (Doc); 1979: Maabhoomi; 1981: Dakhal; Development in Irrigation (Doc); 1984: Paar; 1985: Parampara (Doc); 1986: The Land of Sand Dunes (Doc); A Tribute to Odissi (Doc); 1987: Ek Ghat Ki Kahani (Doc); Antarjali Jatra/Mahayatra?; 1989: Sange Meel Se Mulaqat (Doc); 1990: Mohor (Doc); 1991: The Bird of Time (Doc); 1992: Padma Nadir Majhi; 1993: Patang.