Veteran actor Biswajit thrilled with IFFI honour

Veteran actor, director and singer

Biswajit Chatterjee

will receive Indian Personality of the Year Award at the 51st edition of the

International Film Festival

of India, Goa. After Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar announced the news at the inaugural ceremony of the festival on Sunday, the veteran actor expressed his joy to us from Mumbai over a telephonic chat. Read on…

Congratulations! Who gave you the news?

It was Prakash Javadekarji, who called me personally from Goa to give me the news. He said that he announced my name. He also asked me if I was free on the closing ceremony day, so that I could be present there. Before that Babul Supriyo, who is like a dear brother, called.

Will you go?

Of course, I will go. I am free on that day. As a matter of fact, I went to the festival a few years ago. I watched all the films there.

How do you feel?

(Laughs) I am getting a lot of phone calls from Kolkata and other places. It feels great. This is a prestigious award and I am getting it from the government of India. It is special. I am told that Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan were conferred this awards before.

Whom would you like to dedicate this award?

Ma. My parents. If I really have to thank someone, I’ll thank them. There is nothing bigger than them, and then I would like to thank my wife.

You have been in this industry for decades now. Do you think you got the honour you deserve?

I always felt that the real honour for an artiste comes from the audience. I got the audience's love in abundance. Not just from Bengal, I received good wishes and love from Mumbai and even from abroad. Audience’s love is the greatest treasure for me. Earlier, in 1962, my film Dada Thakur won the top award at the 10th National Film Awards, ahead of Satyajit Ray’s Abhijan. I received the gold medal from Dr Radhakrishnan at Vigyan Bhawan. That was my first prize from the government. I got many awards later.

Any plans to visit Kolkata?

I attended the

Kolkata International Film Festival

when it celebrated 100 years of Bengali cinema. I was there with Soumitra (Chatterjee) and Jaya (Bachchan). There was a beautiful exhibition at Nandan. I really enjoyed it. I went there again another year. But that’s all. I don't know when I am going next.