Chandan Roy Sanyal is an Indian actor and director. He has mainly worked in Hindi and Bengali films.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Chandan Roy Sanyal was born on Wednesday, 30 January 1980 (age 44 years; as of 2024), in Karol Bagh, New Delhi. His zodiac sign is Aquarius. He did his schooling from Raisina Bengali Senior Secondary School in New Delhi. Later, he did an honours degree in Mathematics from Zakir Husain College, Delhi. [1]Facebook
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5âČ 7âł
Eye Colour: Black
Hair Colour: Black
Family & Caste
He was born in a middle-class Bengali family. [2]News 18
Parents & Siblings
His motherâs name is Bandana Sanyal. He has one brother, Abhishek Roy Sanyal who is a film director.
Relationships, Wife & Children
There is not much information about his love life.
Career
While he was doing graduation, he joined a theatre group, âSic Macayâ owned by Habib Tanveer in New Delhi. He has acted in the theatre plays like Mudara Rakshasa, A Midsummer Nightâs Dream, Sakharam Binder Retold, Jis Lahore Nahin Vekhya, and Charandas Chor.
In 2006, he debuted as an actor in the Bollywood film, ‘Rang de Basanti’ in which he played the cameo role of Batukeshwar Dutt. He has appeared in various Bollywood films, including ‘Kaminey’ (2009), ‘F.A.L.T.U’ (2011), ‘D-Day’ (2013), ‘Prague’ (2013), ‘Jazbaa’ (2015), and ‘Jab Harry Met Sejal’ (2017).
In an interview, when he was asked how did he get an offer to act in the Bollywood film, ‘Kaminey’ (2009), he said,
I had auditioned for Delhi Belly but didnât get the part. The casting director remembered me and asked me to audition for Mikhail in Kaminey when the screenplay was being written. So when I auditioned in front of Vishal sir, I didnât have a script and just improvised for about 20 minutes. Then some time later, I auditioned again in Vishal sirâs office and took off for San Francisco for my play. I didnât think I would get the part because a lot of big names were being considered for the role. 22 days later, the casting director called me and told me that everyone was frantically trying to get in touch me as I had been selected to play Mikhail. In fact, they had even incorporated what I had improvised in my first audition in the movie.”
Some of his Bengali films are ‘Mahanagar@Kolkata’ (2010), ‘Aparajita Tumi’ (2012), ‘Ganesh Talkies’ (2013), and ‘Rawkto Rawhoshyo’ (2020).
In 2012, he appeared in the English film, ‘Midnight’s Children.’ In 2019, he acted in the Hindi web-series, ‘Parchhayee’ and ‘Bhram.’
Favourite Things
- Actor(s): Sanjeev Kumar, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Philip Seymour Hoffma
- Actress(s): Kate Winslet, Monica Bellucci, Urmila Matondkar, and Drew Barrymore
- Film(s): Rangeela (1995), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Omkara (2006), and The Science of Sleep (2016)
- Music Band(s): Radiohead, Led Zeppelin, and Pink Floyd
Facts/Trivia
- His hobbies include writing poetry and travelling.
- When asked about his early life, in an interview, he said
My Mom worked hard. She has even worked door to door to put food on our plate â my brother and I â and also to pay our school fees at a very difficult time when my father fell sick.â My dad was posted with a job in Ludhiana, Punjab and Istayed with my maternal uncleâs family in Karol Bagh. My eldest mama (maternal uncle) was a librarian. My exposure towards literature, philosophy and even general knowledge happened through him. My second uncle worked in a factory. My youngest mama was a stylish and dashing young man, with long hair and fit body, quite unlike the typical face of a middle aged Bengali man. He introduced me to western music. With my grandmother, I enjoyed the Satyajit Roy and Ritwik ghatak films.â
- Reportedly, he wanted to get admission in the IIT after his schooling, but he failed to do so.
- In an interview, he shared that when he had dropped out of his studies his father did not talk to him, he said,
My dad did not talk to me for a couple of years. I wanted to get into an IIT and when that didnât happen, I joined (the late) Habib Tanveerâs acting classes. It was a very difficult phase of my life because there was a point when I felt that I had no one to come home to. If you know what I meanâŠthat sounds very scary for a struggler who is living everyday to get up and fight it out in the big, bad world of Bollywood.â
- He has learnt Chau, a dance form under the Bhumikeshwar Singhâs academy âTriveni Kala Sangam.â
- While he was in college, he formed a theatre group, âAntaraâ along with his friends.
- He studied Chemistry and used to give tuitions to the students for earnings while he was in college. In an interview, he shared the life of his college days, he said,
Early days were confused and hard and listless. I was studying mathematics (honors), teaching mathematics and science to school students and earning a meagre salary of 800 rupees a month to pay for my theatre classes, tickets, and films. I enrolled in a workshop with Habib Tanvir in Delhi and he found me enthusiastic and hard working and took me on in his group Naya Theatre, where I joined as an actor at a salary of 50 rupees per show and 40 rupees a day per diem, travelled to small places in a bus performing for a year. Soon I finished my graduation and headed to Bombay right away.â
- He considers the famous Indian director, Vishal Bhardwaj as his mentor and a father figure.
- His directorial theatre play, which is an adaptation of Vijay Tendulkarâs Sakharam Binder, won the âTHESPOâ award for the best play in 2004, and he won the best actorâs prize in the same event.
- He has got a tattoo inked of Lord Krishna on his right bicep.
- He follows a non-vegetarian diet.
- He is an animal lover and owns a pet cat, Rani, and a pet dog, Nimki.