Monu Mukherjee, the veteran Bengali actor, died of a cardiac arrest at the age of 90 on Sunday morning, reported Bengali daily Anandabazar Patrika. The late actor was suffering from age-related ailments.
Mukherjee started his career with Mrinal Sen’s Nil Akasher Niche (1958) but he is most well known for his role as Machhli Baba in Satyajit Ray’s Joi Baba Felunath (1979), and also in Ray’s Ganashatru (1989).
Mourning his demise, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted, “Saddened at the passing away of veteran theatre and film actor Manu Mukherjee. We conferred on him the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Tele-Samman Awards 2015. My condolences to his family, colleagues, and admirers.”
The West Bengal Motion Picture Artist’s Forum too expressed condolences to the family of the artist in a Facebook post.
Director Atanu Ghosh, actors Sujan Nil Mukherjee, Saswata Chatterjee, and Rudranil Ghosh posted their fond memories and associations with the late actor on social media.
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Director Pratim D Gupta, who worked with Mukherjee in Ahare Mon (2018), shared his memories with the veteran actor and wrote on Facebook, “During the shooting of Ahare Mon, he held my hands and said: “Bhoole jeo naa kintu aamake. Aabar deko. (Don’t forget about me. Call me again) He was 88 and raring to go, asking after every shot if he’d got it right. They don’t make ’em like Monu Mukherjee anymore.”
During the shooting of Ahare Mon, he held my hands and said: “Bhoole jeo naa kintu aamake. Aabar deko.” He was 88 and…
Posted by Pratim D Gupta on Sunday, December 6, 2020
Mukherjee’s death comes a few weeks after the passing away of legendary actor Soumitra Chatterjee. They had acted together in the film Joi Baba Felunath. Talking to The Times of India, Mukherjee’s daughter Rina Mukherjee said that her father had cried while watching Chatterjee’s last journey. “Tears rolled down his cheek while he clasped my hand. After some time, he got up and went back to his bedroom. When I asked him if he wanted to see him one last time, he said no. Actually, my father could never see anyone on the deathbed. He always wanted to remember the happy moments,” she told the publication.
Mukherjee has worked in critically acclaimed films like Ashani Shanket, Ganashakti, Mrigaya, Patalghar, and many others along with television shows like Poush Phaguner Pala and more.