Rahul Bose (born 27 July 1967) is an Indian actor and athlete who works in Hindi films. Bose is the president of Rugby India. He has appeared in Bengali films such as '' Mr. and Mrs. Iyer'', '' Kalpurush'', '' Anuranan'', '' Antaheen'', ''

Laptop A laptop computer or notebook computer, also known as a laptop or notebook, is a small, portable personal computer (PC). Laptops typically have a Clamshell design, clamshell form factor (design), form factor with a flat-panel computer scree ...

'' and '' The Japanese Wife''. He has also appeared in Hindi films such as '' Pyaar Ke Side Effects'', '' Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam'', '' Jhankaar Beats'', '' Kucch Luv Jaisaa'', '' Dil Dhadakne Do'', '' Chameli'' and '' Shaurya''. He also played the

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.Vishwaroopam'' (2013) and its sequel. In the early 2000s, ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' magazine named him "the superstar of Indian arthouse cinema" while ''

Maxim Maxim or Maksim may refer to: Entertainment *Maxim (magazine), ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine ** Maxim (Australia), ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition ** Maxim (India), ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition *Maxim ...

'' named him "the

Sean Penn Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He is known for his intense leading man roles in film. List of awards and nominations received by Sean Penn, His accolades include two Academy Awards, a Golden Gl ...

of Oriental cinema" for his work in

parallel cinema Parallel cinema, or New Indian Cinema, is a film movement in Cinema of India, Indian cinema that originated in the state of West Bengal in the 1950s as an alternative to the mainstream commercial Indian cinema. Inspired by Italian Neorealism, ...

films like '' English, August'' and '' Mr. and Mrs. Iyer''. He is also notable for his social activism: he participated in the relief efforts that followed the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami and is also the founder of the anti-

discrimination Discrimination is the process of making unfair or prejudicial distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong, such as race, gender, age, class, religion, or sex ...

NGO, The Foundation.

Early life and education

Rahul Bose was born to father Rupen and mother Kumud Bose on 27 July 1967. His father is Bengali while his mother is part Punjabi and part Marathi. His maternal grandfather was

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

S. P. P. Thorat. Bose's first acting role was at the age of six when he played the lead character in a school play, ''Tom, the Piper's Son''. As a child he took an interest in sports after his mother introduced him to

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

and

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

. He also played cricket and was coached by former India cricket captain Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. He is an alumnus of the

Cathedral and John Connon School The Cathedral and John Connon School is a co-educational private school founded in 1860 and located in Fort, Mumbai, Maharashtra.Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

. After being rejected by a number of American universities, Bose attended

Sydenham College Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics is a college located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is affiliated to the Dr. Homi Bhabha State University. The college offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in management. It was awarded a ...

. While at the college he played on the school's rugby team and competed in the Western India Championships, winning a silver medal in boxing. After his mother's death in 1987, Bose began working as a copywriter at

Rediffusion Rediffusion was a business that distributed radio and TV signals through wired relay networks. The business gave rise to a number of other companies, including Associated-Rediffusion, later known as Rediffusion London, the first ITV (TV network ...

and was later promoted to advertising creative director. Bose left the job to become a full-time actor after the release of his first film, '' English, August''.

Stage and film career

Early career: 1993–2003

Bose started his acting career on the

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

stage in Rahul D'Cunha's ''Topsy Turvey'' and ''Are There Tigers in the Congo?''. D'Cunha's aunt was the casting director for director Dev Benegal's film ''English, August'' and suggested that Bose should play the lead role. After filming a screen test, Benegal decided to cast him as civil servant Agastya Sen. Based on the novel of the same name by Upamanyu Chatterjee, ''English, August'' was one of the first

Hinglish Hinglish is the macaronic hybrid use of English and Hindi.Salwathura, A. N.Evolutionary development of ‘hinglish’language within the indian sub-continent. ''International Journal of Research-GRANTHAALAYAH''. Vol. 8. No. 11. Granthaalayah ...

films and gained Bose international recognition when it became the first Indian film to be purchased by

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

and won several awards at international film festivals. After ''English, August'' Bose found work in television; he was offered a role in India's first English-language television serial, '' A Mouthful of Sky'' and also co-hosted BBC World's ''Style!'' with

Laila Rouass Laila Rouass ( Abdesselam; born 22 June 1971) is a British actress. She is best known for her portrayals of Amber Gates in ''Footballers' Wives'' (2004–2006) and Sahira Shah in ''Holby City'' (2011–2012, 2021). She has also starred in ''Pri ...

. In 1998 he appeared in Kaizad Gustad's ''Bombay Boys'' with Naseeruddin Shah and starred in Dev Benegal's second film, ''Split Wide Open''. To prepare for his role as a roving water vendor, Bose lived in Mumbai's slums and observed a drug dealer for two weeks. He later cited this time—along with the 2002 Gujarat riots—as the beginning of the awakening of his social conscience. Although ''Split Wide Open'' was controversial in India because of its depictions of sexual abuse, Bose received the Silver Screen Award for Best Asian Actor at the 2000 Singapore International Film Festival for his performance. He also performed abroad in the Leicester Haymarket in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

where he starred in the English version of Tim Murari's play, ''The Square Circle''. In 1997, Bose was cast to play the role of Saleem Sinai in the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

adaptation of

Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie ( ; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern wor ...

's novel ''

Midnight's Children ''Midnight's Children'' is the second novel by Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie, published by Jonathan Cape with cover design by Bill Botten, about India's transition from British colonial rule to independence and partition. It is a pos ...

''. The project was eventually canceled after the Indian and Sri Lankan governments refused to allow filming. After seeing Bose in ''English, August'', director

Govind Nihalani Govind Nihalani (born 19 December 1940) is an Indian film director, cinematographer, screenwriter and producer, known for his works in Hindi cinema, particularly the movement of parallel cinema. He has been the recipient of six National Film Aw ...

cast him in the villain role opposite Ajay Devgan in the mainstream film '' Thakshak''. The film was not a financial success, although Bose received positive reviews. Bose also appeared as "Vikal" a villain in the 1998

Science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

TV series Captain Vyom In 2001, Bose made his directorial debut with '' Everybody Says I'm Fine!''. Starring Rehaan Engineer and Koel Purie and featuring Bose in a supporting role, ''Everybody'' received mixed reviews from critics, but won Bose the runner-up John Schlesinger Award for best directorial debut at the 2003

Palm Springs International Film Festival Palm Springs International Film Festival (sometimes stylized shortly as PSIFF) is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. Originally promoted by Mayor Sonny Bono and then sponsored by Nortel,here for Table of Contents it started in 19 ...

. In 2002, Bose starred opposite Konkona Sen Sharma in Aparna Sen's

art film An art film, arthouse film, or specialty film is an independent film aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made prima ...

'' Mr. and Mrs. Iyer''. The film, a critique of

communal violence Communal violence is a form of violence that is perpetrated across ethnic or communal lines, where the violent parties feel solidarity for their respective groups and victims are chosen based upon group membership. The term includes conflicts, ri ...

, was a critical success and won several awards at international film festivals as well as three

National Film Awards The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

Mainstream work: 2003–present

In 2003, Bose entered mainstream

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

cinema with '' Jhankaar Beats'' in which he played one of two friends, R.D. Burman fans who are obsessed with winning a music competition. Boosted by a successful soundtrack, ''Jhankaar Beats'' was a surprise hit in urban multiplexes and went on to win several awards for its music. The same year, Bose appeared in another Bollywood film, '' Mumbai Matinee'' which saw a UK release. He starred in '' Chameli'' opposite Kareena Kapoor, playing a wealthy chain-smoking Mumbai banker who is stranded in the

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in Atmosphere of Earth, atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annu ...

rains with a prostitute. The film was not a box office success, but won several Filmfare and IIFA awards. He was the screenwriter of Hero Bhakti Hi Shakti Hai of Hungama TV in 2005. Bose's second film pairing with Konkona Sen Sharma, '' 15 Park Avenue'' released in January 2006. Directed by Aparna Sen and filmed in English, ''15 Park Avenue'' won the 2006 National Film Award for Best Feature Film in English. I am hindi movie

With his next effort, the romantic comedy '' Pyaar Ke Side Effects'', Bose moved once more into mainstream Bollywood cinema. The film follows the rocky relationship of Bose's commitment phobic Mumbai DJ Sid and his Punjabi girlfriend, Trisha played by Mallika Sherawat. Critics noted the freshness of Bose's narration style which involves breaking the fourth wall, a device not commonly used in Indian cinema. The film opened well in multiplexes and was a moderate financial success, eventually ranking among the top-grossing films of 2006. Both Bose and Sherawat received positive reviews for their performances. Sherawat and Bose also starred together in another Bollywood comedy, '' Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam'' (2008), which was a commercial and critical failure. In 2006, Bose starred in the first of a trio of Bengali films, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury's '' Anuranan''. ''Anuranan'' was well received on the festival circuit and ran successfully for three months in

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

. It was then dubbed into Hindi and released nationally. '' Kaalpurush'', Bose's second Bengali film, was released commercially in April 2008. ''Kaalpurush'' details a father-son relationship and earned writer-director Buddhadeb Dasgupta a

National Film Award for Best Feature Film The National Film Award for Best Feature Film is one of the categories in the National Film Awards presented annually by the National Film Development Corporation of India, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in I ...

. Bose teamed with Chowdhury again in 2009 for '' Antaheen'' which tells the story of online relationships. Like ''Anuranan'', ''Antaheen'' was released commercially in

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

and was screened at various film festivals, including the Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival (MIACC) and the

International Film Festival of India The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is an annual film festival currently held in Goa, on the western coast of India. The festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excel ...

(IFFI). ''Antaheen'' went on to win several National Awards including one for Best Film. Bose continued working in a mix of mainstream and arthouse films in 2008, with the English-language film, '' Before the Rains''. ''Before the Rains'' was released in the US and the UK and Bose's performance was praised by many critics, although the film received mixed reviews. Bose also appeared in '' Shaurya'', a military court room drama modelled on the American film ''

A Few Good Men ''A Few Good Men'' is a 1992 American legal drama film based on Aaron Sorkin's 1989 play, produced by Castle Rock Entertainment, financed and distributed by Columbia Pictures. It was written by Sorkin, directed by Rob Reiner, and produced ...

''. Bose's performance was well-received; critic Taran Adarsh said his "performance easily ranks as one of his finest works". His appearance in ''

Dil Kabaddi ''Dil Kabaddi'' is an Indian Hindi film directed by debutante Anil Sharma. The film stars Irrfan Khan, Rahul Bose, Konkona Sen Sharma, Soha Ali Khan, Payal Rohatgi, Rahul Khanna, and a special appearance by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. Plot Set in con ...

'' paired him with Konkona Sen Sharma for the third time, this time playing a husband and wife undergoing marital difficulties. '' The Japanese Wife'', with Japanese actress Chigusa Takaku, the third Aparna Sen film in which he has appeared, released on 9 April 2010. He also appeared as a contestant in the reality show '' Khatron Ke Khiladi'' where he was eliminated in the 12th round. He hosted the second series of Bloomberg UTV reality show ''The Pitch''. His role as a gay man harassed by the police in '' I Am'' was appreciated by critics. He appeared in

Deepa Mehta Deepa Mehta, (; born 15 September 1950) is an Indian-born Canadian film director and screenwriter, best known for her Elements Trilogy, Fire (1996 film), ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth (1998 film), Earth'' (1998), and ''Water (2005 film), Water'' (2 ...

's version of ''

'' where he played the role of General Zulfikar. He also played the villain in the 2013 Tamil film '' Vishwaroopam''. Naren Weiss who was 19 years old at the time, acted opposite Bose in all of his scenes for '' Vishwaroopam'', and credited Bose for working with him during filming. He was scheduled to begin shooting his adaptation of Mohsin Hamid's novel, '' Moth Smoke'' in early 2010, but the project was postponed after the film's financial backers pulled out. In 2013, he also played opposite Konkona Sen Sharma again in Suman Mukhopadhyay's '' Shesher Kabita''. In 2017, he directed, produced and acted in the biopic ''Poorna'' about the youngest girl to climb

Mount Everest Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...

Filmography

Playback singing

Writer/director

Producer

Television

Stage

Awards

* 2007 – "Artiste for Change" Karmaveer Puraskaar award * 2008 – IBN Eminent Citizen Journalist Award * 2009 – Youth Icon Award for Social Justice and Welfare * 2010 – Green Globe Foundation Award for Extraordinary Work by a Public Figure *2012 – Hakim Khan Sur Award for National Integration – Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation *2012 – Lt. Governor's Commendation Award for services to Andaman & Nicobar Islands *

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

– Filmfare OTT Awards for Best Supporting Actor in a Web Original Film for '' Bulbbul''

Sports career

In 1998, Bose was part of the first Indian national rugby team to play in an international event, the Asian Rugby Football Union Championship. He has played both scrum-half and right-winger positions. In an interview with ''Daily News & Analysis'', Bose announced that he would not return to the team for the 2009 season.

Activism

Bose assisted in the relief efforts in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. As a result of this work, Bose launched the Andaman and Nicobar Scholarship Initiative through his NGO, The Foundation. The

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

program provides for the education of underprivileged children from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Bose is associated with several charitable organizations such as Teach for India, Akshara Centre, Breakthrough, Citizens for Justice and Peace and the Spastics Society of India. He is closely associated with the Teach For India movement to eradicate inequity in education. In addition, he became the first Indian Oxfam global ambassador in 2007. He is the founder and chairman of The Group of Groups, an umbrella organisation for 51 Mumbai charitable organisations and NGOs. He is also an ambassador for the

American India Foundation The American India Foundation (AIF, founded 2001) is a nonprofit American organization working in India. It is one of the largest secular, non-partisan American organizations supporting development work in India. It also runs the ServiceCorps Fel ...

, the World Youth Peace Movement and Planet Alert. He was also a vocal proponent of

Narmada Bachao Andolan ''Narmada Bachao Andolan'' (NBA, , 'Save the Narmada River Movement') is an Indian social movement spearheaded by native tribals (''adivasis''), farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against a number of large dam projects across ...

and its efforts to halt the construction of the

Narmada dam The Sardar Sarovar Dam is a concrete gravity dam built on the Narmada River near the town of Kevadiya, in Narmada District, in the Indian state of Gujarat. The dam was constructed to provide water and electricity to the Indian states of Guj ...

. He also recorded the Terre des hommes audio book ''Goodgoodi karna, gale lagana; Sparsh ke niyam sikhiye'' ( English: ''Tickle and hugs: Learning the touching rules''), which is designed to give children resources against sexual abuse. Bose has given lectures on

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality, gender egalitarianism, or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making, an ...

and human rights at

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

and during the 2004 World Youth Peace Summit. In 2009, he toured Canada lecturing on global climate change under the auspices of Climate Action Network and demonstrated with protesters at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit. In 2011, he worked in conjunction with Bhaichung Bhutia to raise funds for victims of the Sikkim earthquake. At the 8th convocation of BRAC University Bangladesh on 17 February 2013, Bose delivered the convocation speech.

Personal life

Bose has one elder sister, Anuradha, who is married to Tariq Ansari, the owner and director of Mid-Day Multimedia. She had a cameo role in '' Everybody Says I'm Fine!'' (2001). Bose is single. On his relationships, Rahul said, "I've had five very long relationships in my life, the last one finished seven years ago. I've had a life full of romantic love. Would I like another relationship, or five, or ten? Of course, I mean

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

said it best, 'all you need is love.' I would love to be in love, it would be fantastic."

References

External links

* * *
Rahul Bose environmental blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bose, Rahul 1967 births Living people Indian rugby union players Indian male journalists Male actors from Mumbai Bengali male actors Male actors from Punjab, India Male actors in Hindi cinema University of Mumbai alumni Rugby union wings Cathedral and John Connon School alumni Indian atheists 20th-century Indian male actors Journalists from Maharashtra Rugby players from Mumbai Contestants on Indian game shows Participants in Indian reality television series People of Bengali descent People of Punjabi descent People of Marathi descent