Happy birthday, Riddhi Sen: Notable roles of National Film Awardee
Hindi-Bengali actor Riddhi Sen, who is celebrating his 25th birthday today, has an exceptional distinction attached to his name: he is the youngest recipient of the National Film Awards for Best Actor. In over a decade-long career, Sen has made a mark through his range and proved that his work is worth keeping an eye out for. Here are some of his notable projects.
'Children of War'
Children of War came out in 2014 and featured an ensemble comprising Raima Sen, Tillotama Shome, Indraneil Sengupta, the late Farooq Sheikh, Rucha Inamdar, and Victor Banerjee, among others. Based on the 1971 Bangladesh Genocide, the film was released both in India and Bangladesh and told three intertwined stories that finally merged during the climax. Mrityunjay Devvrat directed it.
'Nagarkirtan'
Nagarkirtan turned out to be a life-changing project for Sen, one that helped him clinch the National Film Award. Directed by Kaushik Ganguly, the Bengali drama saw Sen as Parimal, a trans woman from Bengal. It was a layered, complex role, but Sen aced it and how! Nagarkirtan also won the National Award for Best Costume Design, Makeup, and the Special Jury Award.
'Helicopter Eela'
Helicopter Eela, directed by Pradeep Sarkar and co-starring Kajol, catapulted Sen to national-level fame and earned him a fanbase amongst the Hindi-speaking audience. The 2018 comedy-drama film revolved around an aspiring singer and a single mother Eela (Kajol), and her camaraderie and sweet moments with her son Vivan, played by Sen, became the talking points of the drama. Catch it on Disney+ Hotstar.
'Bismillah'
In Bismillah, Sen played the titular role of Bismillah/Bishu, who is exceptionally gifted at playing the flute and is influenced and inspired by Lord Krishna, which creates problems since he is a Muslim. Indraadip Dasgupta helmed the drama, in addition to composing the songs of the film. Bidipta Chakraborty, Subhashree Ganguly, Aparajita Auddy, and Gaurav Chakrabarty co-starred in the movie.
