Amitabh Reza Chowdhury

Amitabh Reza Chowdhury (Bengali: অমিতাভ রেজা চৌধুরী) is a Bangladeshi filmmaker. In his career, he has directed nearly fifteen hundred (1500) television commercials (henceforth TVCs).[1][2] Amitabh has also directed a few television films to critical acclaim. He founded the production house 'half stop down', which mainly produces TVCs. Amitabh's directorial debut in theatrical feature film is Aynabaji which was released on 30 September 2016.[3][4][5][6][7][8]

Amitabh Reza Chowdhury
Chowdhury in 2015
OccupationFilmmaker
Years active2001–present
Spouses
  • Nowrin Jahan Khan Jenny (divorced)
  • Zakia Rashid Meem (divorced)

Early life

Chowdhury was born to a middle-class family in 1976. His hometown is Kishorganj, Bangladesh. He went to Pune, India to study economics. While there, he studied literature on his own to aid his dream about making films.

Career

After returning to Bangladesh, Chowdhury made a television film named Hawa Ghar (1999) under Maasranga Production which gained popularity. After Hawa Ghar he directed the first 20-episodes of the TV series Bondhon (2001-2002) under Maasranga Production. Following the success of Hawa Ghar and Bondhon, he received offers from agencies to make television commercials. He is now one of the leading directors of TVCs in Bangladesh. A number of his productions have been screened in other countries as well.[9][10] He, his sister Mahjabin Reza and Md Assaduzzaman are owners of the production company "Half Stop Down". Under his production house he made more than 12 television films, followed by his first theatrical feature film. He has also worked as adjunct faculty in the Television, Film & Photography Department of the University of Dhaka.[11]

Personal life

Chowdhury married Bangladeshi actress Nowrin Jahan Khan Jenny in his early life, but the marriage did not last for long. After 4 years, they separated and Amitabh married Mim Rashid, the younger sister of singer Mithila and ex-sister-in-law of Tahsan. Reza and Mim divorced in 2017. [12]

Filmography

Chowdhury's debut film as a director was Aynabaji (2016).[13][14][15] Starring Chanchal Chowdhury, Masuma Rahman Nabila and Partha Barua.[16] The film was a major success in the box office, and it was screened in movie halls across the country for next few months. However, it was not profitable for the producer.[17] His upcoming films include "Rickshaw Girl" and "Punorujjibon".[18] Aynabaji was screened at Marché du Film at 69th annual Cannes Film Festival, where it scored well. Aynabaji has won the award of the best film at United States's 11th Seattle South Asian Film Festival.[19] His next film is Munshigiri, which will be released digitally by Chorki in 2021.[20]

Films
Title Year Director Producer Screenwriter Notes
Hawa Ghar 1999 Yes Yes Yes
Aynabaji 2016 Yes Yes Yes
Munshigiri 2021 Yes Yes Yes

TV and web series
Title Year Director Producer Screenwriter Notes Ref.
Bondhon 2001-2002 Yes Yes Yes released on Hoichoi
Dhaka Metro 2016 Yes Yes Yes
Bodh 2022 Yes Yes Yes
Shon Shon Yes Yes Yes A Binge Webfilm [21]

Recognition and awards

Chowdhury received a number of national and international awards for his work. He was awarded with the Meril-Prothom Alo Best Film Director Award in 2017. He also received the Best Film Award in Seattle South Asian Film Festival in 2016 for Aynabaji.

References
  1. "Amitabh Reza". The Daily Star. 2019-08-31. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  2. "Amitabh Reza debuts as film director". New Age. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  3. "Conversations over coffee with team Money Honey". The Daily Star. 2019-09-25. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  4. "A documentary on Bangabandhu". The Daily Star. 2019-09-21. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  5. "Poster of Amitabh Reza's Rickshaw Girl released". Dhaka Tribune. 2019-08-25. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  6. "Amitabh Reza Chowdhury on digital content". The Daily Star. 2018-12-07. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  7. "Trailer of 'Dhaka Metro' unveiled". Dhaka Tribune. 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  8. "Amitabh Reza's short films set to premiere on Iflix". Dhaka Tribune. 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2019-10-03.
  9. "Amitabh Reza". priyo.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  10. "The Daily Star Web Edition Vol. 5 Num 946". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  11. ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষক হলেন অমিতাভ রেজা. NTV (in Bengali). Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  12. "Documentary film awarded". bdnews24.com. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  13. আয়নাবাজি চলচ্চিত্র নিয়ে অমিতাভ রেজা - দৈনিক পূর্বকোণ. dainikpurbokone.net (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  14. অমিতাভ রেজা’র প্রথম চলচ্চিত্র আয়নাবাজি. The Daily Inqilab (in Bengali). Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  15. সেলফিতে অমিতাভ রেজা ও 'আয়নাবাজি'. priyo.com (in Bengali). Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  16. "আয়নাবাজি" দিয়ে চলচ্চিত্রে পার্থ বড়ুয়া. bdmorning.com (in Bengali). Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  17. ‘আয়নাবাজি’ করে আমি ধ্বংসের মুখে পড়েছি: অমিতাভ রেজা. www.banglatribune.com (in Bengali). Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  18. আয়নাবাজির পর অমিতাভ রেজা ‘পুনরুজ্জীবন’. Manob Kantha (in Bengali). Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  19. "'Aynabaji' wins best film award at Seattle festival". theindependentbd.com. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  20. Mahmud, Rashel. "People will invariably have good and bad things to say : Purnima". Prothom Alo English. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  21. Shon Shon | Releases on 29 Sept | A Binge Original, retrieved 2023-07-21
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