Remembering Harindranath Chattopadhyay

Harindranath Chattopadhyay juggled many roles in his lifetime. He was a renowned poet, dramatist, singer, songwriter, Member of the Parliament and actor. Movie lovers of a certain vintage will remember Chattopadhyay from his roles in Seemabaddha and Bawarchi.

Born on April 2, 1898, in Hyderabad, Chattopadhyay belonged to an illustrious family. His father was a scientist. His mother was a singer. His elder sister, Sarojini Naidu, would go on to become one of the major leaders of the Indian independence movement. His first collection of poems, The Feast of Youth was published in 1918. The following year, Chattopadhyay married Kamaladevi Dhareshwar, the future pioneer of craft and textile preservation, and moved to London to work as a research scholar. He got admission into Fitzwilliam College and began research on the poet William Blake. While studying in Britain, his poems were published in the Indian Magazine (the journal of the National Indian Association) and Britain and India (the journal of the Theosophical-influenced Britain and India Association). Chattopadhyay also wrote a play Tukaram (1929), based on the poet-saint of Maharashtra, which was performed to critical acclaim and established his name back in India. He had a prolific output in poetry, including the titles The Magic Tree (1922), Poems and Plays (1927), Strange Journey(1936), The Dark Well (1939), Edgeways and the Saint (1946), Spring in Winter (1956), Masks and Farewells (1951), Virgins and Vineyards (1967),and Life and Myself (1948).
In 1962, Chattopadhyay made his debut as an actor in the Guru Dutt-produced Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam. His character is called Ghari Babu, a man who keeps an eye on the clock and reminds inhabitants of the palace where the film is set of its ominous ruin. He followed the role with cameos in Satyajit Ray’s Bengali films, playing a magician in Goopi Gyne Bagha Byne (1969), an avuncular man in Seemabaddha (1971), and a wiseacre in Sonar Kella (1972).

Chattopadhyay kept his appearances brief in Hindi and Bengali films, taking on character roles that allowed for eccentric behaviour. He struck gold when he was cast in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Bawarchi (1972). Playing the role of a dotty patriarch of a joint family, Chattopadhyay is best remembered for his one-liners that mock members of his brood.
Chattopadhyay also sang in the movie Aashirwad (1968) with co-actor Ashok Kumar. In this video, the two engage in a vocal duel, singing gibberish. They also sing the duet “Kanoon Ki Ek Nagri”, but more famously, Ashok Kumar sings the ever-popular children’s ditty “Rail Gaadi”, written by Chattopadhyay.

The government honoured Chattopadhyay with the Padma Vibhushan award in 1972. The man who never wanted to grow up died on 23 June 1990.
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