Asit Sen: The Director Who Became an Unforgettable Comedian

Asit Sen and Tarun Bose in Bimal Roy’s Sujata

It all started with M N Sardana’s hearty compliments for the translated excerpt on the making of MAA from Eka Naukar Jatri/ Journey of a Solitary Boat, the autobiography of my father, Nabendu Ghosh. At the same time I compliment him on his astute observation about Asit Sen. Quite right Mr Sardana — he was indeed the closest associate of the legendary director Bimal Roy. Here’s Mr Sardana’s comment:

“My profound thanks to respected Ratnottamma Sengupta Ma’am & Antara Ji for sharing the priceless episode from the autobiography of great writer Shri Nabebdu Ghosh. Translation from Bangla is so flawless & so smooth and looks like original. Please bear with me for my observation. It is commonly believed that Mr Hrishkesh Mukherjee was the closest associate of Mr Bimal Roy, but in my humble opinion it was Mr Asit Sen. An exceptionally good director. Many decades ago I watched a free show of Parivar at a cinema hall in Chittaranjan during Pooja festival. It was such a breezy family movie, which mesmerized me and still I watch it on YouTube. Iconic Apradhi Kaun is my favorite movie, deftly directed by Mr Asit Sen. As director he could have given so much, to enrich our cinema, but sadly he chose an easy way and became a comedian. Hindi films gained a fine comedian, but in the bargain it lost a great director. His comedy was gentle, clean and amusing , but later it became monotonous & repetitious.”

Asit Kaku — as I have always addressed him ever since I gathered memory — was born the same year as Baba, in 1917. Being from Gorakhpur, he was proficient in Hindi. In fact, in my younger years, I remember him writing for Hindi magazines, just as I remember seeing some tantalizing photos clicked by him. Yes, photography was his profession, but command over Hindi was his strength when he joined New Theatres, which used to produce films in Hindi and Bengali simultaneously. In Pehla Aadmi (1950) Asit Kaku was chief assistant to Bimal Roy (Bimal Jethu* to me) whose Hindi was not his strongest point.

Asit Sen

Asit Kaku had risen from the rank of a fourth assistant who had to sound the clapboard at the start of a Take, keep notes, maintain continuity, arrive before everyone and leave after the last man. In Pehla Aadmi he acted in certain scenes just as he had in Jethu’s earlier, Bengali film Anjangarh (1948) — and in two films directed by Kartick Chatterjee, Ramer Sumati (1947) and its Hindi version Chhota Bhai (1949). They were all made under the banner of New Theatres.

Bimal Roy had a penchant for casting some of his team members in small roles, as side characters who built up the ambience and grounded the main characters in reality. That is how Asit Sen was subsequently seen in Maa (1952), Sujata (1958), Bandini (1964) while Nabendu Ghosh was seen as the Kulfiwala in Do Bigha Zamin (1953), and in the birthday scene of Sujata. Hrishikesh Mukherjee picked up this trait and in Majhli Didi (1968) he cast Asit Kaku as the public prosecutor while Baba, who had scripted the Sarat Chandra novel, was cast in a memorable cameo as the Defendant lawyer.

By this time, Asit Sen was well established as a comedian. What was his forte? Not merely his girth but the thin, high-pitched voice that was a contrast to his robust appearance. He modulated it well and yet, as Sardana Ji puts it, after a while it became predictable. Being typecast is the price one pays for popularity, I guess. And still, he was memorable in his double role as Sevak in Bimal Roy Pictures’ (BRP) Do Dooni Char (1968), directed by Debu Sen who was assistant to Bimal Roy when the legend passed away.

Kishore Kumar as Sandip and Asit Sen as Sevak in their double roles in Do Dooni Char (1968)

This was another remarkable feature: BRP gave a platform to Jethu’s assistants. That is how, after 13 years of association, Asit Kaku directed the two films mentioned by Sardana – Parivar (1956) and Apradhi Kaun (1957). But what gave rise to the ‘comedy of errors’ with his namesake (the other Asit Sen who directed Mamta (1966), Anokhi Raat (1968), Khamoshi (1969), Safar (1970), and Sharafat (1970) among others) was the fact that the title cards of Parivar (1956) and Apradhi Kaun (1957) also give his name as Asit Sen.

Title cards of Parivar (1956) and Apradhi Kaun (1957) give his name as Asit Sen

And the fact that he was closer to the master filmmaker is clear from the fact that Bimal Roy Productions offered Asit Kaku a platform to turn director. Other than him this gesture was enjoyed only by Arabind Sen — a first cousin of Bina Jethima. Hrishikesh Mukherjee himself produced Musafir (1956), which marked his directorial debut. The first film he directed for BRP was Chaitali (1975), made a decade after Bimal Roy had travelled into eternity.

Jaa tose nahin (Parviar, 1956) Salil Chowdhury / Shailendra / Lata Mangeshkar and Manna Dey

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Since both the films directed by Asit Kaku are less known and little seen by even my generation, allow me to give some details of the films.

Four of the five wives in Parivar: (L to R) Usha Kiron, Kamal, Kumud and Sabita Chatterjee

Parivar, as the title indicates, is about a joint family of five brothers comprising a retired businessman (Bipin Gupta), a lawyer (Jairaj), an engineer (Anwar Hussain), a doctor (Sajjan) and a musician (Ashim Kumar),  who live together as one happy joint family and claim credit for all the harmony in the family. Their wives, who get along famously under the wings of the eldest sister-in-law Durga Khote decide to teach the smug brothers a lesson about family unity and create a mock argument over a glass of milk.  Their objective is to make it clear to the brothers that peace in the household is ensured by women. The brothers are taken in by the prank and the fracas leads to a division in the household but the unity among the five wives stays unhindered. This mould, most identified with Sarat Chandra, was effectively used by Hrishikesh (Bawarchi) and Raj Khosla (Do Raaste).

Apradhi Kaun was cast in the totally different mould of a murder mystery. It was based on the Bengali novel Kaalo Chhaya (1948), which had been directed in Bengali by the author Premendra Mitra. Best remembered as the Bengali poet who created the character of Ghanada, Mitra had forayed into Bombay Talkies too but hastily gave up to serve literature instead. (His short story Sansar Seemantey was filmed by Tarun Majumdar in Bengali — with Soumitra Chatterjee and Sandhya Roy in the cast. And Sachin Bhaumik adapted it, without acknowledgment, as Raja Rani — played by Sharmila Tagore and Rajesh Khanna.)

Abhi Bhattacharya, Mala Sinha and Tarun Bose in Apradhi Kaun

A brief synopsis of Apradhi Kaun? – runs thus.

Srinath (Gajanan Jagirdar in a double role), a wealthy zamindar of Jitpur, who lives in a big mansion with his doctor (Tarun Bose in his debut role) and servants, one day gets a surprise visitor — his lookalike, long lost elder brother Dinanath, who is now a poor, ailing derelict and walks with a limp. Srinath allows his brother to stay in the home but meets up with the lawyer to claim his father’s will back. When the lawyer demands more money, Srinath tries to steal the will. In the scuffle, the lawyer is shot by Srinath’s revolver going off.

In the meantime, Shobha (Mala Sinha), a lady from Jitpur, visits Detective Rajesh Nath (Abhi Bhattacharya) to ask him to steal something for her. Rajesh turns down her request.

Rajesh receives a telegram from Srinath who fears his life is in danger and hires the detective for ensuring his security. But soon after Rajesh reaches the house, Srinath is murdered.

Rajesh, in collaboration with the police, keeps an eye on the room where Srinath was stabbed to death. He catches Shobha, the lady who had gone to him with the proposal of theft, stealing a will from the safe in the room. Shobha then recounts Srinath’s murky past and how he had poisoned his father’s mind and made him throw out his two other brothers — Dinanath and Pitambar, from the home to claim the whole property for himself. But the mystery deepens — who killed Srinath?

Koi dekhe to kahe tujhko (Apradhi Kaun, 1957) Salil Chowdhury / Majrooh Sultanpuri / Asha Bhosle

“As a director, he could have given so much more to enrich our cinema, but sadly, he chose an easy way and became a comedian,” Sardana has observed. I can hazard the reason for this. In the 1960s the tone, the tenor, the ethos, the entire economics of Hindi films changed. Bimal Roy, as producer, had a rollercoaster ride: none of the films save those directed by him garnered as much fame or monetary success. With his very second film, Anari, Hrishikesh Mukherjee found a sound producer in L B Lachhman, so he could continue as director while occasionally editing films for other directors. In such uncertain times Asit Kaku could fall back on the security of his second career — acting, especially since it was gaining him the love and admiration of millions.

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(Clockwise) With Kanhaialal in Parakh, Asit Sen in Anand and with Uttam Kumar in Anandashram

Asit Kaku, in real life, was not a ‘joker’. He was a person with a serious bent of mind. At home he would mostly be seen reading or writing; at parties he usually chose a quiet corner. But there was something about him and his verbal delivery that endeared him to viewers. This something wasn’t his bulky frame nor the long-drawn delivery in his uncharacteristic thin voice. This was his ability to react to the situations and to his coactors. Not surprisingly the list of films he acted in runs into hundreds. And, not all of the roles he played were comic.

Asit Sen as Gopichand Jasoos with Biswajit in Bees Saal Baad

In particular, through the 1960s and 1970s he was seen in almost every other film — directed not only by a Hrishikesh or a Shakti Samanta. The duration could be long or short. The role could be a supporting character or it could be in passing. Either way, he fleshed them out in such a way that, a quarter century or more after the release of Bees Saal Baad, a full-length feature film was made titled after the character he played — Gopichand Jasoos.

That was not all. His comedy, more often than not, studied life. Think of the hypochondriac patient of Dr Banerjee in Anand who needed ‘medicines’ for imagined ailments. And contrast it with the doctor he played in Junglee. Think of the man who always feared his wife. Or the despicable casteist Pandit Sharma of Sujata. Think of the alcoholic Motumal of Mera Gaon Mera Desh. Or the insane Bhains ko danda kyun maara in Pagla Kahin Ka. Or, the Dead Man in Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi.

These characters gave rise to laughter, yes. But that laughter was not always a ‘ha-ha-ha’. You smiled, you smirked, you giggled, you could get angry too… I certainly was furious to see him transformed into a Mahant in Dagdar Babu which Baba was directing with Dharmendra and Jaya Bhaduri in the lead: Asit Kaku was the wicked head of a religious math who tried to molest a trusting devotee!

Nanda and Asit Sen as villagers in Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke

Note a couple of things as you list the films Asit Sen was seen in.

A) He played a servant perhaps for the maximum number of times on screen – be it in Kabuliwala, Anandashram, Do Dooni Chaar or in Aradhana — and could yet be convincing as a Kunwar Saheb.

B) He acted with generations of actors ranging from Bharat Bhushan and Balraj Sahni to Kishore Kumar and Dilip Kumar; from Dharmendra and Jeetendra to Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan.

Asit Sen as Sevak in Do Dooni Chaar

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I first heard about Parivar and Apradhi Kaun from Rupa, Asit Kaku’s daughter who was born a year after me, in September of 1956. We were very close friends since I can remember, perhaps because Mukul Kakima and Kanaklata — the two mothers — were very good friends too. As for the fathers — need I add that, ever since they boarded the Bombay Mail that brought Bimal Roy to Mumbai in 1951, they had lived together at Van Vihar; shared meals at the same table served by Manobina Roy, their Boudi, our Jethima; been on the floors together and, together, drawn their salaries from Bombay Talkies.

Rupu, like me, was the only sister of two brothers. Abhijit aka Bappa Dada, elder to her by a few years, was about the same age as my younger brother Shubhu. While Subhankar trained at FTII to become a director, Abhijit Sen imbibed Asit Kaku’s training and rose to be a villain of the Bengali screen, remembered in particular for Swayam Siddha (1975), featuring Ranjit Mullick and Mithu Mukherjee.

Abhijit Sen in Swayam Siddha (1975)

Mithu was the pet name of Asit Kaku’s second son Sujit, who was younger to Rupu. He grew up to assist Babu Uncle — better known as Baburam or B R Ishara. He was a major support to Basu Da (Bhattacharya) during the making of his debut film Teesri Kasam — especially when Basu Chatterjee left as chief assistant to mark his debut in direction.

In turn Babu Uncle would go on to open a chapter in ‘bold’ Hindi films with Chetna (1968). The film dealt with the taboo theme of rehabilitation of prostituted women — and its poster became a milestone in flaunting an ‘A’ certificate in the days when that meant pornography. It introduced Rehana Sultan, a fine actress who unfortunately came to be typecast and eventually married the director.

Babu Uncle also introduced another famed actress, Parveen Babi, and he gave a break in music direction to Bappi Lahiri who, with his father Aparesh Lahiri and mother Bansuri, was another regular visitor to Van Vihar. To us, then college goers, Babu Uncle was a wonder who could wrap up productions within a month. Indeed, we would ask him, “So what’s the next monthly, Babu Uncle?” We were allowed to be cheeky: after all Babu Uncle, like Rupu’s Chhoto Mama, lived in the same house, Van Vihar — almost carrying forward a cherished tradition established by Bimal Roy.

Asit Sen in western wear with Chand Usmani and Bharat Bhushan in Amanat 1955

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The major attraction at Asit Kaku’s was his wife, Mukul Kakima. As a child I used to wonder how a woman could be so named — because my Thakuma used to call Baba by that name! But as I grew in years I was drawn to Kakima because she was always smiling. Never did I hear a single foul word spoken by her against anybody, ever. This, in an industry that thrived on gossip!

Kakima did have loads of stories to share in the years when there was no Facebook, WA, or TV channels. Because, unlike the mothers in most households then, she was always accompanying Asit Kaku when he went to Shimla or Manali, Srinagar or Darjeeling for a shoot.

And then, she would ply me with dresses: most times we met, she would give me a frock saying, “Tui porish, you wear this, Rupu’s outgrown it even before I could take it out of the packet!” On hindsight I’m certain it was a ploy that passed muster because Rupu’s thyroid combined with her genes to make her grow big.

Kakima left us early. Rupa succumbed to cancer before her daughter’s marriage. Bappa Dada was claimed by his heart. Mithu continued to be a technician in Bollywood. But once Asit Kaku was gone, Van Vihar too lost its charm.

* Jethu – Bengalis address the elder brother of the father as Jethu

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