Indrani Halder, Rachna Banerjee: Senior actresses who rule Bengali TV; challenge industry’s ‘obsession’ with young artists

In showbiz, which welcomes new talents almost every day, competition is cut-throat. It is fiercer in the small screen industry where the makers are more ‘interested’ in casting young and fresh faces, especially as the female leads. Indian daily soaps are largely dominated by 20 something or even teenagers playing protagonists. And Bengali television isn’t an exception. Makers are keen on casting actresses in early or late 20s. Post 30, actresses mostly play other characters. As a show host, makes prefers young actresses too. The trend is a bit different in case of male actors. In their late 30s, they still bag lead roles paired opposite young actresses. Thanks to senior artists like Indrani Halder, Deboshree Roy, Rachna Banerjee and others, there is a welcoming change. They are ruling Bengali TV and TRP charts with elan. With sheer talent and brilliant performances, they’ve challenged entertainment industry’s ‘obsession’ with younger actors. Let’s take a look… (Photo: Facebook)

She did it again! Indrani played the lead roles in ‘Goyenda Ginni’ and ‘Seemarekha’. ‘Goyenda Ginni’ was an instant hit, ‘Seemarekha’ also managed to impress the audience. Indrani’s current show ‘Sreemoyee’ proved to be a game-changer for many reasons. When 'Sreemoyee', starring Indrani, Sudip Mukherjee was launched at 7 pm slot, the rival channel had its no.1 show starring an actress in her 20s. Indrani was a bit ‘hesitant’ anticipating viewers’ reactions. Writer Leena Gangopadhyay, however, was very much confident that ‘Sreemoyee’ will manage to strike a chord with the audience. Proving Leena's prediction to be true, ‘Sreemoyee’ saw huge success, and even managed to replace ‘Krishnakoli’ a few times on the TRP charts. Tota Roy Choudhury's entry as Rohit Sen, made the show even more popular. The success prompted the makers to remake it in Hindi (Anupamaa), Kannada, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu as well. With her brilliant performance, Indrani yet again proved that content and performances are everything. (Photo: Facebook)

Rachna is certainly ‘Didi No. 1’. The evergreen actress is enjoying a very successful inning on television after giving several hit films in many regional languages besides Bengali movies. Her popularity is unparalleled and no wonder, ‘Didi No. 1’ continues to enjoy a huge fan base. (Photo: Facebook)

The national-award winning actress had to face ageist comments ever since the first promo of her new TV show ‘Sarbojaya’ went on-air. Social media was flooded with memes and posts targeting the actress who was recently turned 60. She maintained a dignified silence and allowed her show do all the talks. ‘Sarbojaya’ had a very good response in terms of TRPs in the very first week and it scored well this week as well. With her performance, Deboshree proved not age but performance has everything to say and she is a true crowd puller. (Photo: Facebook)

Koneenica, who stepped into showbiz at a young age, has been a part of many TV shows, telefilms and movies. Her last TV show ‘Andarmahal’ received a good response; thanks to Konineeca’s performance as Parameshwari. The actress, who is in her 40s, will soon be seen in the upcoming show ‘Aye Tobe Sohochori’, playing the titular role. (Photo: Facebook)

National-award winner Ananya is one of the most talented actresses of this industry. She is equally convincing in every character and proved her acting brilliance time and again. The actress, who is in her 40s, played the lead role in ‘Jai Kali Kalkattawali’ and impressed the viewers. She is certainly one of those actresses who challenged the industry’s ‘obsession’ with young actresses. (Photo: facebook)

Monami is a true diva of Bengali TV. She stepped into showbiz at a young age and entertaining the audience since then. Bengali television doesn’t have many actresses in their mid-30s who still play lead roles. But Monami rules the small screen with elan. She is one of the most popular actresses of this industry and can make guys go weak on their knees with her undeniable charm. (Photo: Facebook)