Mithun Chakraborty : Journey from a Naxal to a Disco Dancer

Mumbai : Mithun Chakraborty may have been a very popular actor in the film industry for decades, but there was a time when he was in touch with the Naxalites. Born in East Pakistan, today’s Bangladesh, Mithun Chakraborty was in touch with the Naxalites before joining the film industry. In fact, at that time, he became friends with Naxalite leader Ravi Ranjan, who was known for his speeches at that time. But there was an incident which disturbed Mithun Chakraborty’s fascination with Naxalism and then he went to Bollywood. Mithun Chakraborty’s real name is Gaurang Chakraborty, but for the cinema, he changed his name.

When Mithun Chakraborty, who studied from Kolkata, came to Pune-based Film and Television Institute, it was his beginning to come out of Naxalism. But he was completely disillusioned when he lost his brother in an accident. In fact, during the Naxalite movement itself, his brother died due to electrocution in an accident. He was completely shattered by this incident and worried about his family. In such a situation, he thought of trying his hand in the film industry. However, here too the path was not easy for Mithun. It is said that he had to spend nights on the pavement. After lots of struggle, he could go somewhere and make a place in the industry.

Mithun Chakraborty made his debut in Hindi cinema in 1976 through the movie Mrigaya. For this, he also received the National Film Award for Best Actor. After this, when his film ‘Mera Rakshak’ released in 1978, he became a star overnight. After this, Mithun Chakraborty’s acting was also well-liked in low-budget spy movie ‘Suraksha’. After this, he worked as a lead actor in several films. Mithun Chakraborty has done more than 350 films in his career. There was a time when Mithun used to have 30 to 32 films simultaneously.

Not only this, Mithun Chakraborty was one of Bollywood’s highest tax paying stars during his successful career. Mithun Chakraborty started to like acting as well as dancing. His dance on the song ‘I Am a Disco Dancer’ from the 1982 film ‘Disco Dancer’ was well liked. Not only this, this song became so popular that many other songs were also composed later.