CM Mamata Banerjee advocates promoting Bengali in films, TV serials
Speaking at the 'Mahanayak Samman' award function on the death anniversary of matinee idol Uttam Kumar, the Banerjee said, 'Sob bhasai bhalo, sob gaan bhaalo (every language is good, every song is good), but we must make serious effort in promoting our mother tongue and make the younger generation respectful towards our culture." She said, 'Amidst the beautiful mosaic of different cultures in this country and the underlying message of unity in diversity, every state must cherish and protect its own spoken language and heritage. In West Bengal, we must protect our language and culture while being respectful to other languages." Asking everyone to give it a thought, the CM said, 'My request to those who produce serials — not to confine themselves within Hindi while using songs in their episodes, but also use Bengali tracks. They (Hindi songs) have their wide reach all over the country. Can't we use the talent of our people who pen amazing lyrics in Bengali, who add tunes to such lyrics? We take pride in our culture, which has so much sweetness and emotion." Banerjee called upon the makers of TV soaps not to spread messages that promote violence, suicide, and other harmful themes in their 'works for the sake of extending episodes indefinitely for TRP ratings," warning that such content can have an adverse effect on children.
'I am not saying it has become the practice for everyone, as there are many others who tread a different path. Why can't we dish out content which talks about simple things, simple joys and pleasures in life, spread positive vibes instead of toxicity?" she added.
'Give space to films made in other languages, but please give priority to Bengali works," she urged.
The CM spoke about the joys of listening to the golden age of Bengali songs — by icons like Hemanta Mukhopadhyay, Shyamal Mitra, Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, Nirmala Mishra, among others.
Paying tributes to the matinee idol, she said, 'We have neither been able to forget Uttam Kumar after 45 years nor will we be able to in the future. He remains the evergreen matinee idol forever." Banerjee said Uttam Kumar had effortlessly lip-synced to the timeless playbacks in his films, and it is difficult to match his level among the next generation of actors.
Ace director Goutam Ghosh was conferred the 'Mahanayak Srestha Samman' for his rich body of work spanning decades.
Singers Rupankar Bagchi, Iman Chakraborty, Gargi Roychoudhury, production designer Ananda Adhya, and makeup artist Somnath Kundu were also conferred the 'Mahanayak Samman' for their contributions in their respective fields.
'Giving this small recognition to Goutamda (Goutam Ghosh), an iconic director, on our part was overdue. Also, we are privileged to honour other personalities who have made the state proud," Banerjee said.
Several prominent film personalities from Bengal, including Prosenjit Chatterjee and Dev, were among those present on the occasion. PTI SUS MNB
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First Published:
July 24, 2025, 18:45 IST
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