Bijay Mohanty

Bijay Mohanty
Mohanty in the set of Sahari Bagha (1985)
Born	(1950-04-08)8 April 1950 Pandiri, Kendrapada, Odisha, India
Died	20 July 2020 (aged 70) Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Nationality	Indian
Alma mater	National School of Drama
Occupation(s)	Actor, model
Years active	1977–2020
Spouse	Tandra Ray
Children	1

Bijay Mohanty (8 April 1950 – 20 July 2020) was an Indian actor in Odia Cinema.^[1] He starred in the film Chilika Teerey, which was honored a National Film Award.

Mohanty was born in 1950 in an aristocratic Karan family at Pandiri, Kendrapara and brought up in Baripada, Mayurbhanj, Odisha.^[2] He started acting during his school days while studying at M.K.C High School. After his graduation with BA, he joined the National School of Drama. He passed successfully from the NSD with classmates like Naseeruddin Shah, Raj Babbar, and Om Puri etc. He acted in the theatres and stayed in Delhi up to 1975. After returning to Odisha, he devoted himself to directing plays.

Bijay was married to Tandra Ray, an actress in the Odia film industry. The couple acted in a number of films opposite each other. They have one daughter.^{[citation needed]}

In 1977, Mohanty started upon his career in the Oriya film industry with the film Chilika Teerey which won the National Award for that year. Initially, he opted mostly for negative roles. Naga Phasa, Samay Bada Balaban, Danda Balunga, Dora, Sahari Bagha, Chaka Bhaunri, and Chaka Akhi Sabu Dekhuchi are some of his most notable films as this type of character. He acted in almost every manner of roles available to him; ranging from hero, villain, and comedian to character roles etc. In every field he left his incomparable mark. Mohanty's other notable films include; Arati (1981), Jaga Hatare Pagha (1985),Mamata Mage Mula (1985), Aei Aama Sansara (1986), Aama Ghara Aama Sansara (1991), Ki Heba Sua Posile, Bhisma Pratigya (1993), Bhai Hela Bhagari (1994), Suna Panjuri (1995), Jeeban Sathi (1996), Laxman Rekha, Rakhi Bhijigala Akhi Luhare and I Love My India.

He also directed the movie Bhuli Huena (1987).^[3]

He joined the Drama department of the Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in 1977 and retired as a professor from the institute in recent years.

Jugechha, a drama troupe that he formed in his native place of Baripada was a well-known troupe and staged plays in different parts of Odisha as well as throughout the country.

Some of his television serials aired on Doordarshan include; Asara Aloka, Sri Jagannath, Subhadra, Sara Akasa, Samaya Chaka, Sakalara Apekhya Re, Nadekhile Loka Dekhe, Mahayagyan and Bidhatara Khela.

Mohanty joined Indian National Congress on 27 February 2014. He stood for election to become a member of Parliament from Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat in 2014 Indian general elections and was defeated. Recently he declared his resignation from Congress citing that he was not actively involved in politics after the 2014 general elections.^[4][5]

Mohanty died in Care Hospital at the age of 70 on 20 July 2020 evening in Bhubaneswar.^[6] After his condition deteriorated in the evening, he was rushed to Care Hospitals. He, however, died while undergoing treatment.^[7]

• Chilika teeray - National Film Awards (1978) - Certificate of merit for best Odia film.
• Jayadev Award - 2014 (Odisha State Film Awards).^[8]
• He was honoured with National Award for his contribution to art and literature.^{[citation needed]}
• Won the Odisha State Film Awards six times for Arati (1981), Mamata Mage Mula (1985), Ei Aam Sansara (1986), Aam Ghara Aam Sansara (1991), Bhisma Pratingya (1993) and Bhai Hela Bhagari (1994).^{[citation needed]}
• Orissa Cine Critics Award in 1987 for "Best Actor of the Decade".^{[citation needed]}

• Bijay Mohanty at IMDb
• Bijay Mohanty Website