Tapas Sen Biography 
Tapas Sen was a highly accomplished stage lighting designer associated with Indian theatre in the second half of 20th century. This ace designer started his career in the late 1940s and went on to become a trendsetter of Indian modern theatre through his lighting techniques. In 1974 he was awarded with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1974, and he also received Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship in 2004, a couple of years before his death. Government of Madhya Pradesh honoured him with the prestigious Kalidas Samman in 1998. Tapas Sen's work represents the triumph of craft over technology, and is a development of contemporary style in Indian theatre. His light and sound shows in historic places like Red Fort, Purana Quila and at the Qutab Minar are also regarded as his best works.
Tapas Sen was born in 1924 in Dhubri, Assam. He started his theater journey in the year 1943 in Delhi as a part of Mrinal Sen’s shadow play for Indian Peoples' Theatre Association. He was in the lighting section when he was barely 19. His real apprenticeship began in 1945 when he worked in a puppet theatre with Pratap Sen, whom he regards as his mentor. He read Harindranath Chattopadhyaya's article "Black, The Colour of Magic", which was the real turning point of his career. Tapas believed that human body is an aspect of light and it was pointless lighting the body on stage. He was against the technique of extravagance with lights for stage plays.
Since his initial days, he spent more than 6 decades in the field of lighting. He was integrally connected to stage shows – from plays to dance forms and also associated with artists of different generations. He has made some tireless efforts in installing best lightning and on-stage facilities in Kolkata's Birla Theatre, Delhi's Siri Fort and Kamani, and Mumbai's Rabindra Natya Manch. He has lightened stage for many leading Indian artists like Alkazi, Utpal Dutt, Shambhu Mitra, Vijay Tendulkar, Sadhana Bose, Chandralekha, Birju Maharaj, Kelucharan Mahapatra and many more.
Published: N/A
Updated: April 03, 2016
