Overview
Tapas Paul (29 September 1958 – 18 February 2020) was an Indian actor and politician known primarily for his work in Bengali cinema. He was widely recognised for his on-screen pairings with Mahua Roy Choudhury and Debashree Roy, and was a recipient of a Filmfare Award.
Paul rose to fame with his debut film Dadar Kirti (1980), a romantic drama directed by Tarun Majumdar. He went on to feature in several popular Bengali films, including Anurager Choyan (1980), Saheb (1981), Parabat Priya (1984), Bhalobasa Bhalobasa (1985), Amar Bandhan (1986) and Guru Dakshina (1987). He received the Filmfare Award for his role in Saheb (1981). He made his Hindi film debut with Hiren Nag's Abodh (1984), opposite Madhuri Dixit.
His second collaboration with Tarun Majumdar, Bhalobasa Bhalobasa (1985), paired him with Debashree Roy and proved successful, establishing one of the most bankable on-screen pairings of Bengali cinema in the 1980s. Their other notable films together include Arpan (1987), Surer Sathi (1988), Surer Akashe (1988), Nayanmani (1989), Chokher Aloy (1989), Shubha Kamana (1991), Mayabini (1992), Tobu Mone Rekho (1994) and Tumi Je Aamar (1994). He also worked with Buddhadeb Dasgupta in Uttara (2000) and Mondo Meyer Upakhyan (2002).
In politics, Paul was a Member of Parliament from Krishnanagar, having won the 2014 Indian general election on a Trinamool Cong