Utpal Dutt stands among the most formidable figures in modern Indian theatre and cinema — celebrated in equal measure as actor, director, playwright, and political thinker. Though he won wide acclaim for his performances upon the Bengali and Hindi screen, his most abiding legacy lies elsewhere: in the transformation he wrought upon Bengali theatre, forging it into a potent instrument of political and social reckoning. In 1949 he founded the Little Theatre Group, a company that first turned its energies to English drama — Shakespeare and Brecht chief among its preoccupations — before the troupe's ambitions swelled into a fully realised, politically committed Bengali theatre. Through such major works as Kallol (1965), Louha Manab (1964), Manusher Adhikar, Tiner Toloar, and Maha-Bidroha, he gave voice to Marxist preoccupations with class struggle, colonial subjugation, and the pursuit of social justice.
Born into a Bengali Kayastha family in Barisal, in what is now Bangladesh, Dutt was the son of Girijaranjan Dutta. His schooling took him first to St. Edmund's School, Barisal, and thence to St. Xavier's Collegiate School, Calcutta, before he took Honours in English Literature at St. Xavier's College, University of Calcutta, graduating in 1949. He would later marry the theatre and film actress Shobha Sen, and their daughter, Bishnupriya Dutt, went on to become Professor of Theatre and Performance Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
It was through English-language productions that Dutt first made his mark upon the stage, founding The Shakespearans in 1947. So striking was his performance in Richard III that it caught the eye of Geoffrey and Laura Kendal, who recruited him for the Shakespeareana Theatre Company's tours across India and Pakistan — first between 1947 and 1949, then again from 1953 to 1954 — where his rendering of Othello drew particular critical praise. In time he reorganised his troupe into the Little Theatre Group, mounting productions of Ibsen, Shaw, Tagore, Gorky, and Konstantin Simonov. His association with the Gananatya Sangha and the Indian People's Theatre Association deepened his political commitments, and he went on to found the People's Little Theatre. Deeply marked by the example of Brecht, Dutt adapted the principles of Epic Theatre to the socio-political realities of India, and in 1948 established the Brecht Society, with Satyajit Ray presiding as its first president.From the mid-1950s, Dutt translated Shakespeare and Russian classics into Bengali while writing politically engaged dramas such as 𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘳, 𝘉𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦, 𝘌𝘣𝘢𝘢𝘳 𝘙𝘢𝘫𝘢𝘳 𝘗𝘢𝘭𝘢, and 𝘍𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘪 𝘍𝘢𝘶𝘫. His imprisonment in 1965 intensified his political commitment, inspiring plays including 𝘚𝘶𝘳𝘺𝘢-𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘬𝘢𝘳, 𝘓𝘢𝘢𝘭 𝘋𝘶𝘳𝘨𝘰, and 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘈𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘮. He also revitalised Bengali street theatre and popularised politically conscious Jatra.
Alongside theatre, Dutt appeared in more than one hundred Bengali and Hindi films, collaborating with filmmakers such as Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Ritwik Ghatak, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee, Gautam Ghose, and James Ivory. His notable performances include 𝘉𝘩𝘶𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 (1969), 𝘑𝘢𝘯𝘢 𝘈𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘢 (1976), 𝘎𝘰𝘭 𝘔𝘢𝘢𝘭 (1979), 𝘕𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘎𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘮 (1981), 𝘙𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘉𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘪 (1983), 𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘯 (1982), 𝘈𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘬 (1991), and 𝘗𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘢 𝘕𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘳 𝘔𝘢𝘫𝘩𝘪 (1992). His final screen appearance was as Sir Digindra Narayan in the 1993 television adaptation of 𝘉𝘺𝘰𝘮𝘬𝘦𝘴𝘩 𝘉𝘢𝘬𝘴𝘩𝘪.
Throughout his career, Dutt also devoted himself to street theatre of an avowedly political bent, both as playwright and performer. Many of these freewheeling dramas, staged in public spaces, were mounted in service of the electoral campaigns of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Among his most celebrated works for the street stage were Special Train (1961), Samajtantrik Chal (1965; Socialist Rice"), and Din Badaler Pala (1967; A Play for ChangeNotwithstanding the criticism such work invited, he regarded his theatre as a "weapon of political propaganda" capable of galvanizing social change among the masses.
Dutt received the National Film Award for Best Actor for 𝘉𝘩𝘶𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 (1969), three Filmfare Awards for Best Comedian for 𝘎𝘰𝘭 𝘔𝘢𝘢𝘭 (1979), 𝘕𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘎𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘮 (1981), and 𝘙𝘢𝘯𝘨 𝘉𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘪 (1983), and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (1990) for his lifetime contribution to Indian theatre.
He died in August 1993 following a heart attack after returning home from dialysis. His integration of artistic innovation with political commitment secured his enduring place in twentieth-century Indian cultural history.
Source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utpal_Dutt
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Utpal-Dutt