Gautam Benegal

Some Lesser Known Facts About Gautam Benegal

• Did Gautam Benegal smoke?: Yes

  

• Did Gautam Benegal drink alcohol?: Yes

  

• Gautam Benegal was born in a Saraswat Brahmin of Calcutta, West Bengal (now Kolkata), India. His family includes many popular faces of Indian cinema like Shyam Benegal and Guru Dutt.

  

• Gautam Benegal was a popular Indian filmmaker, writer, cartoonist, and artist. He also worked as a freelance painter and journalist.

• Gautam Benegal, at the age of 14, published his first illustrated book called “Gabbus Gabba,” originally written by Arun De. After the book was published, he took a copy of it and went to 1/1 Bishop Lefroy Road, Satyajit Ray’s residence. Although Gautam went there without making any prior appointment, Satyajit Ray welcomed him to his house and read Gautam’s book after which Satyajit got so impressed by Gautam that he offered to illustrate for ‘Sandesh,’ a Bengali cult favourite children’s magazine. Thereafter, Gautam’s illustrations and articles regularly appeared in Sandesh and other publications.

  

• At the age of 18, Gautam Benegal thought of trying his hand at animation so as to extend his artistic skills. He received professional training in classical animation, and subsequently, he went on to make several animation films.

• Gautam Benegal was honored with the prestigious Rajat Kamal Award, the National Award for Best Animation Film for 2010: The Prince and the Crown of Stone. His films have been nominated for film festivals in Teheran, Belarus, Hiroshima, and Cairo among other places.

• In 2011, Gautam Benegal published a book titled “1/7 Bondel Road,” a short story book for teenagers. The book includes his own illustrations and has received wide critical acclaim.

• Gautam Benegal, in 2012, showcased his painting in Bombay’s Cool Chef Café exhibition themed “Irani Cafes – the vanishing old world charm of Bombay.”

  

• Gautam again showcased his painting in an exhibition in Carpe Diem, Majorda held in  2013, focusing on the memorable and timeless spaces of Bombay, and for the people who made it to those spaces. This time, the theme of the exhibition was “Continuum – The Enduring Spaces of Bombay.”

• In 2018, Gautam Benegal’s satirical cartoon drawing showing showcasing India’s politics and leaders captioned “A1 Chicken Sope” went viral. He published that cartoon on his Facebook and got a huge response after which he made a series of satirical cartoons.

  

• Gautam Benegal considered Satyajit Ray and Soumitra Chatterjee as his role models in his life. He described them as a combination of education, refined sensibilities, advanced aesthetics, profound humanism, and undoubtedly good looks, but of decent men.

  

• Gautam Benegal owned a YouTube channel named “Gautam Benegal,” where he shared his thoughts on various social issues.