Kolkata/New Delhi: After Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Bengal icon Uttam Kumar ahead of the actor’s 100th birth anniversary celebrations on his Sunday ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio programme, CM Suvendu Adhikari expressed his gratitude to the PM calling Modi’s tribute “a matter of immense pride” for all of Bengal.In Mann Ki Baat, Modi said Uttam Kumar had become “deeply embedded in people’s hearts” through his acting. Recalling that film lovers believe Satyajit Ray wrote the entire script of Nayak with the ‘Mahanayak’ in mind, Modi cited Ray’s assessment that the actor combined “remarkable emotional depth” with dignity.He said Uttam Kumar was known for his “natural ease” and philanthropy and “worked very hard” to bring his characters alive.Modi recalled passing Uttam Kumar’s house during a Kolkata roadshow, when someone gifted him the star’s photograph. “Mahanayak Uttam Kumar cheerodin maanusher hridaye raj korben (will forever reign in people’s hearts),” he said in Bengali.CM Adhikari said, “It was deeply heartening and a matter of immense pride for all of West Bengal to hear our Prime Minister pay a glowing tribute to the Mahanayak of Indian and Bengali cinema, the legendary Uttam Kumar, on the landmark occasion of his 100th birth centenary which will be celebrated on Sept 3.”“PM Modi ji beautifully highlighted the unmatched cinematic genius, charisma and indelible artistic legacy of Uttam Kumar, whose timeless performances continue to define the cultural soul of Bengali cinema and inspire generations of storytellers and film lovers across the world,” Adhikari said.“On behalf of the people of West Bengal, I express our sincere gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji for celebrating the immortal legacy of our beloved Mahanayak on this national platform,” he added.The Bengal govt will celebrate Uttam Kumar’s 100th birth anniversary on Sept 3 with a host of events to be organised through the day. Major events and special cultural programmes are scheduled from Sept 3 to 6 to celebrate the occasion alongside heritage walks, an exhibition at Nandan, and a commemorative postal stamp.In July, on the occasion of Uttam Kumar’s 46th death anniversary, the CM had announced a film centre named after Uttam Kumar and the renovation of the existing Uttam Mancha in Kalighat, and said necessary financial provisions had been made in the state budget. He had also said that a wider fraternity consisting of personalities from the film and cultural fraternity was to be involved in the Mahanayak’s centenary celebrations.
