Nandita Das The Individual And The Actress

The popularity and reach of Nandita Das - her acting and her films - is not just limited to India but has found a niche internationally also. She can be called the modern young woman who tries to make a better world by altering the old norms of society in her own way. By presenting unconventional roles and choosing unusual movies, she tries to throw light on dilemmas, feelings and unnoticed problems in the social set up.

Nandita Das entered film industry through Parinati, an Oriya film, in 1996. But people started noting her after she portrayed a role in Fire by Deepa Mehta. Through the character of Sita, she openly enacted a homosexual person. The dilemmas of this woman who is disregarded by her partner, has been easily portrayed by her in this movie. She gets her companion in her sister-in-law who also lives in the same family, who undergoes similar situation. Their need for comfort and mental space makes them accept their relationship and they move out together.

She has a close association with movies that made a difference, which looked at the age old concepts and ideology from a different angle. Her thorough knowledge of the social set up and the judiciary came from her degree in social work and the experience she got while working with non-profit organizations. Through the various roles like Kannaki, Nandini Mitra, Shanta, Shyama, Sanwari, Sajani, she portrays different female characters. Many of her movies are based on problems and has complex themes.

She was grief stricken after the Gujarat riots (2002), seeing the changed life of people of many religions and responses. Based on several true stories connected with the tragic incident, she directed Firaaq, her debut film as a director. The film depicts the lives of people who are shocked by the riot, who have lost someone or who are searching for their loved ones and dear ones. This movie got best film and best screenplay honors in several international and national award functions.

Nandita Das is well-known for her acting talent in Hindi, Telugu, Urdu, Bengali, English, Malayalam, Oriya, Kannada, Tamil and Marathi. She was lucky to work with reputed filmmakers like Deepa Mehta, Shyam Benegal, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, Mani Ratnam and Mrinal Sen. Apart from being an actress, she takes classes in various colleges on topics like AIDS, violence against women and on child problems and participates actively in bringing about social change. Children's Film Society of India is headed by her.

Nandita Das is the daughter of Jatin das, an acclaimed painter and Varsha, a writer. When she finished her studies, she joined a theatre group in New Delhi where she was residing, apart from teaching. She got married to Subodh Maskara and both have a son named Vihaan.