Bengali superstar Prosenjit Chatterjee, who essays the lead role in the upcoming film 'Robibar', has said his foray into content-rich Bengali cinema was shaped by friend-craftsman filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh.
Chatterjee, whose first tryst with arthouse cinema was 'Chokher Bali' by the late auteur in 2003, told PTI on Wednesday that Rituparno had first tapped the "other Prosenjit" lying within his actor self and explored it.
"I had done many commercial (masala) films but it was Ritu (Rituparno Ghosh) who had brought out the other actor lying within me, an actor who can do roles beyond routine dancing, singing and fighting scenes which have helped me get popular with the masses," Chatterjee, who had acted for over three decades, said.
Stating that he still misses 'Ritu' everyday, the 57- year-old actor said, "Every actor needs one director in his/her life, a director who will motivate to do different kind of roles."
Iterating that doing a film with a great director is always cathartic for an actor, Chatterjee, who also acted in Ghosh's 'Sob Choritro Kalponik' said, "Till this date I use tips given by Ritu while dubbing. The way he had guided me."
Coming to 'Robibar', which will be released by this month, Chatterjee said, "The director Atanu Ghosh has shaped a film having characters of flesh and blood. Not cardboard type."
Speaking about his co-actor in the film 'Robibar', acclaimed Bangladeshi actor Jaya Ahsan, Chatterjee said, "She is very good, natural and instinctive."