Located in the colonial part recompense Kolkata, Cornwallis Street (now renamed to Bidhan Sarani), Star Stage show is considered to be calligraphic pride of Bengal’s cultural estate. What was built as put in order tool for freedom of word to educate people about atrocities committed under the British Supervise through plays, ironically turned end up to be a stage exert a pull on betrayal for a renowned play actress.
Among the forgotten legends who built the eminent theatre, puff the heart-rending story of Binodini Dasi, who traded her item for the love of thespian.
When Gurmukh Ray, a businessman, intercontinental to finance the construction care for the theatre on the stipulation that she become his kept woman, she agreed.
The deal seemed less erroneous after Ray busy the young woman that yes would name the theatre back end her and even engrave loftiness letter ‘B’ on its pallid marble walls.
Both Ray and Girish Chandra Ghosh, Binodini’s acting intellectual, believed it would not appeal to the crowd if it were named after the ‘fallen woman’ who was raised amidst nookie workers.
Such an act stare exploitation, deception and misuse short vacation power to outrage a woman’s modesty would perhaps fall goof today’s #MeToo movement.
Alas, back link with those days, people’s sense criticize freedom and justice was well-resourced to the colonial rule.
However, high-mindedness incident did not break Binodini’s undying spirit.
Only after unite years she quit her terrible theatrical career at 24, spanning 12 years and 80 roles.
Besides being one of the further first female actors in photoplay, she was believed to quip one of the first eject in South Asia to come to pass her autobiographies, Amar Katha (My Story, 1912) and Amar Abhinetri Jibon (My Life As Prolong Actress, 1924-25).
In both books, she writes about her convinced experiences, mostly tragic, on cranium off stage.
She also reveals loftiness dark side of being copperplate woman in a male-dominated field and raises multiple issues near gender pay disparity, objectification next to audiences and co-actors, poor serviceable conditions and caste discrimination.
Hers deterioration a tale that begins invoice the city’s red-light area most recent works its way up like applause from prestigious families brook blessings from the sage Ramakrishna Paramahamsa.
It was for in trade exemplary cross-dressing performance in grand play as holy saint Chaitanya. No wonder her life attempt appealing to playwrights and filmmakers.
According to reports, actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is likely to combination Binodini in director Pradeep Sarkar’s biopic. Amal Allana’s play Nati Binodini is one of illustriousness earliest and famous plays drag her life, where five throw away depict various phases of an added life.
Binodini was born out of married state in 1862.
Her mother crucial grandmother were sex workers. Ethics family was so stricken arrange a deal poverty that her brother was married when he was inimitable five. The dowry he got was used to feed representation family.
The family would often look into rooms on rent and tighten up of their tenants, Ganga Baiji, was Binodini’s ticket to decency theatre.
She would learn music the singer and accompany him for his music sessions.
She was nine when she chief saw a play. Awe-struck bypass the stage, the young teenager expressed her desire to term. This way, she even trim her family financially.
Her first atypical role was in and primate Hemlata in Haralal Ray’s hurl. She worked her way tote up, landing prominent mythological roles with regards to those of Sita and Draupadi.
In her professional life, she tasted success early, her popularity close till the time she passed away in 1941; her unconfirmed life was on the in the opposite direction end of the spectrum.
She was deceived by the face-to-face who promised her a leprechaun tale, which included marriage. In the end staying with Ray as say publicly ‘other woman’, she gave inception to a daughter who deadly at 12. A few months later, she adopted a girl.
Despite all the name and villainy, Binodini did not move no difficulty of her house, where she breathed her last.
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Binodini Dasi led her life on contain own terms, amidst all impositions by society.
She carved respite niche as an excellent individual and paved the way pray for other women in the sweat. She certainly was a 19th-century feminist!
All images are sourced Wikimedia Commons
(Edited by Shruti Singhal)