देश
The interesting story of Uttam Mohanty’s first break in Ollywood with Sadhu Meher-directed ‘Abhimaan
The interesting story of Uttam Mohanty’s first break in Ollywood with Sadhu Meher-directed ‘Abhimaan’
Uttam Mohanty had an interesting journey to his first break in the Odia film industry. His debut film, Abhimaan, directed by Sadhu Meher, marked the beginning of his illustrious career in cinema.
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byThe interesting story of Uttam Mohanty’s first break in Ollywood with Sadhu Meher-directed ‘Abhimaan’
Bhubaneswar: Odia film superstar Uttam Mohanty, who passed away late last night while undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Gurgaon, had an interesting journey to his first break in the Odia film industry, popularly known as Ollywood. His debut film, Abhimaan, directed by Sadhu Meher, marked the beginning of his illustrious career in cinema.
Born in Baripada, Uttam Mohanty was pursuing Chartered Accountancy in Ludhiana in 1976 when director Sadhu Meher was preparing for Abhimaan. Many people from Baripada were associated with the film, as the town was emerging as a key centre for Odia cinema. The story of Abhimaan was written by Anand Shankar Das, who hailed from Baripada and was already familiar with Uttam Mohanty. Das suggested Uttam’s name for the lead role and even sent a letter to him. However, since Uttam was still focused on his studies, his elder brother tore up the letter, preventing him from considering the opportunity.
He was a prominent actor who delivered several hits to the Odia moviegoers of our generation. Ever since the man from the small, nondescript North Odisha township of Baripada made it big with his first hit in the 1977 Odia movie Abhiman, he never looked back. Uttam Mohanty, arguably the first-ever Odia superstar of the Ollywood Industry, died earlier today at the young age of 66.
I remember watching his first movie, ‘Abhiman,’ inside a cold, dingy theater named ‘Ravi Talkies’ on a winter night in 1977, hardly a mile from the BJB Flat where we lived in Bhubaneswar. Barely 9 years old then, and I mostly slept through this black-and-white movie. But I still remember a beautiful song by the leading Odia singer of the time, Akshay Mohanty, ‘BHASA MEGHA MUJE BHASI JAE DURE,’ from that movie.
If the longevity of artwork is measured by its contemporary relevance, Abhimaan (1973) makes it to the list with pride. Fifty years after its release, the Hrishikesh Mukherjee classic continues to speak to us. Its theme hasn’t aged, the characters remain believable and the music continues to strike a chord. Written by Nabendu Ghosh and Rajinder Singh Bedi (dialogues), who like Hrishikesh sharpened their skills under the sprawling umbrella of Bimal Roy, the story of how a self-centric singer’s ego destroys his tuning with his more talented wife finds an unmissable echo in modern relationships. Here is a love triangle where the male ego forms the significant other.
Often those looking for trivia calculate the reach of the story by looking only for where it came
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