Director Kumar Shahani, who made National Award winning films like 'Maya Darpan' and 'Tarang', is no more. He was admitted to AMRI Hospital in Kolkata and was suffering from old age related diseases. 83-year-old Shahani was known for making parallel cinema.
Actress Mita Vashishtha confirmed his death. He had worked with Shahani in films like 'War War Wari', 'Ghayal Gatha' and 'Kasba'. After Shahani, his family now consists of his wife and two daughters. Shahani had made classic films like 'Maya Darpan' (1972), 'Tarang' (1984), 'Ghayal Gatha' (1989) and 'Kasba' (1990). Apart from being a director, Shahani had also made his mark as a writer and teacher.Shahani was born on 7 December 1940 in Larkana. After partition, he came to Mumbai with his family. Graduated from Pune Film Institute. Here he was a student of fame filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak. After this he went to France to complete further studies under the French Government Scholarship. There he helped French filmmaker Robert Bresson in his film 'Une Dame Douce'.
‘Maya Darpan’ is considered a cult classic
After returning to the country, he started making films based on the story of Nirmal Verma. In 1972 he released his first feature film 'Maya Darpan'. This film received the National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi and the Filmfare Award for Best Film Critic.
Funding for 'Tarang' for up to 12 years
After this he spent 12 years funding his next film and made 'Tarang' in 1984. This film starring actors like Amel Palekar, Smita Patil, Girish Karnad, Om Puri and Shriram Lagoo also received the National Award. Shahani's last film was 'As the Crow Flies' released in 2004.
Awards
National Film Award (1972, 1984 and 1991), Filmfare Critics Award - Best Film (1972, 1990 and 1991), The International Film Festival of Rotterdam - FIPRESCI (1990), Prince Claus Award (1998) Shahani stopped making films in the year 2004. Gave it and started reading and writing. Shahani has written books like 'The Shock of Desire and Other Essays'.