Sharmila Tagore on doing more Bengali films: `If the role is worth it, I may…`

The chatter in the Bengali film industry is that the Bengal Tigress has roared again. When we mention this to Sharmila Tagore, she laughs, before saying, “The media sometimes called me ‘La Tagore’, and at other times, Bengal Tigress. Since I was married to Tiger Pataudi, the [latter] came easily to them.” 

One can understand the Bengali film industry and the audience’s exhilaration to see Tagore returning to Tollywood after 16 years. And with a brilliant film like Puratawn at that. Suman Ghosh’s directorial venture, also starring Rituparna Sengupta, explores a mother-daughter relationship as Tagore’s character slowly loses her grip on reality and shows first signs of memory loss. It is being hailed as among the senior actor’s best performances. “We were aiming for critical acclaim, and never thought that theatres would run house-full over weeks. It was surprising to know that it’s a success. When we make a film, we never think if it will be a success or not. We thought Puratawn is different from the usual movies as it doesn’t have the ingredients for a hit film.”

A still from Puratawn, which hit the theatres on April 11. Pics/PTI, Instagram

Since debuting with Apur Sansar (1959) over six decades ago, Tagore has prominently featured in Bengali films, cutting down on them only in the aughts. Did it take her a while to go back to speaking Bengali in front of the camera? “I’ve never lost touch with Bengali. I was so happy to speak entirely in my language after so many years in a movie,” she smiles.

In the past two years, it has been a pleasure to see the veteran actor back in the thick of things. With Gulmohar (2023), she returned to Hindi cinema after a 13-year hiatus, and followed it up with The Outhouse last year. It’s evident that she is enjoying cherry-picking her roles at this stage. “I’ve done all kinds of roles, including frivolous ones in the past. At this stage, I want to do roles that are real, like in Gulmohar and Puratawn. I’d love to play a comic role someday. If there is a role that speaks to me, has depth and makes me feel I can do it, I’ll say yes.”

Recently, she expressed that Puratawn may be her final Bengali movie. Is she bowing out of Bengali cinema? She reflects, “If the role is worth it, I may do it. [But] physically one gets exhausted on sets. In Puratawn, we had to climb three storeys as there were no lifts in the building; that was tiring. Ritu’s production house and Suman’s presence made it easier.”