Kaushik Ganguly (born 4 August 1968) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor in Bengali cinema. Multiple National Film Awards winner Actor-Director, Kaushik Ganguly is known for making films that explore various aspects sexuality, like Ushnatar Janye (2003), which deals with a lesbian relationship, and Arekti Premer Golpo (2010), which examines transgender identity & Nagarkirtan (2017), an LGBTQ Movie. In 2019, Film Companion ranked Ridhi Sen's performance in Nagarkirtan which was directed by Ganguly, among 100 Greatest Performances of the decade.
Life
Ganguly was born in Kolkata on 4 August 1968. His father was guitarist Sunil Ganguly. He attended Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya, Narendrapur and later Jadavpur University where he worked on a degree in Bengali literature. While at university, he started a theatre troupe with his future wife actress Churni Ganguly and Suman Mukhopadhyay (who would later become a film director). In 1987, Ganguly began working as a screenwriter for Tollywood films. In 1995, he moved to ETV Bangla to direct telefilms like Ushnatar Janye, Ulka and Aatithi. These telefilms incorporated elements like lesbianism and sex determination that had not been depicted in Bengali television productions before.
Career
Kaushik made his directorial debut with Sex Education (2004). After his debut, over the years, he has directed more than 15 films and along the way has won several awards. Few of his most notable films include Laptop, which won the National Award for Best Background Music in 2011, Shabdo (2012), which won the National Award for Best Bengali Film and Chotoder Chobi (2015). His 2017 directorial venture includes Chaya O Chobi, a Bengali drama starring Abir Chatterjee, Koel Mallick and Ritwick Chakraborty, Nagarkirtan, an LGBTQ movie starring Riddhi Sen and Ritwick Chakraborty.
Filmography
Director
Notable acting roles
Television
Hariharan
Ulka
Aatithi
Shesh Kritya
Collage
Chhayachhobi
Chhadmabeshi (Starring Rudranil Ghosh, Jisshu Sengupta, Srabanti Chatterjee) Diagnosis De-Ray 2003: Ghare O Bairey 2003: Ushnatar Janye 2010: Bandhobi 2010: Bagh Nokh
Screenwriter
2005: Shunyo E Buke
2009: Jackpot
2010: Arekti Premer Golpo
2011: Rang Milanti
2012: Laptop
Awards
Kaushik Ganguly received multiple awards for his role in various films. 2012: 60th National Film Awards for Best Feature Film in Bengali: Shabdo 2013: IFFI Best Director Award for the film "Apur Panchali" at the 44th International Film Festival of India 2014: Nominated for Best Director for Shabdo in Filmfare Awards East 2014: Winner for Best Film Critic's Choice for Shabdoin Filmfare Awards East 2014: Nominated for Best Supporting Actor for Kangal Malsat in Filmfare Awards East 2015: National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues for Chotoder Chobi 2015: IFFI ICFT UNESCO Gandhi Medal Cinemawala at 46th International Film Festival of India 2017: 64th National Film Awards for Best Feature Film in Bengali: Bishorjan 2018: National Film Award - Special Jury Award (feature film) for Nagarkirtan 2021:67th National Film Awards for Best Original Screenplay for the film Jyeshthoputro 2021: 4th Filmfare Awards Bangla for Best Director for Jyeshthoputro