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Aparna Sen Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 28, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth25 October 1945

Age79 Years

BirthplaceKolkata, West Bengal

ProfessionFilmmaker, Screenwriter, Actress

NationalityIndian

Marital statusMarried

SpouseKalyan Ray (third husband); previously married to Sanjay Sen and Mukul Sharma

FamilyDaughters: Kamalini Chatterjee and Konkona Sen Sharma; Parents: Chidananda Das Gupta and Supriya Dasgupta

Aparna Sen Biography

Aparna Sen is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and actress from Kolkata. With a career spanning acting, direction and editorial work, she has received a[e

Early life and background

Aparna Sen was born Aparna Dasgupta on 25 October 1945 in Kolkata, West Bengal. Raised in a family connected to cinema—her father, Chidananda Das Gupta, was one of the founders of the Calcutta Film Society—she grew up in an environment that valued film and the arts. She attended South Point School and Modern High School for Girls in Kolkata, later studying English literature at Presidency College and earning a BA in English Literature.

Career

Sen began working in films as a teenager, making her screen debut at age 16 in Satyajit Ray’s Teen Kanya (1961). Over the following decades she built a dual reputation as both an actress and a filmmaker. As an actor she appeared in many Bengali films, including Aparachito, Basanta Bilap, Indira, Swet Patharer Thala, Ek Din Achanak, Antaheen and Chatushkon.

She moved behind the camera in 1981, making her directorial debut with 36 Chowringhee Lane. Her directorial work has frequently been recognised: she has won multiple National Film Awards for films such as 36 Chowringhee Lane, Paroma, Yugant, Paromitar Ek Din, Mr and Mrs Iyer and 15 Park Avenue. Her filmography as director also includes Paroma (1984) and Yugant (1995). In 2022 she directed a Hindi-language feature, The Rapist, starring Konkona Sen Sharma and Arjun Rampal.

Sen’s career has extended beyond film production and performance. From 1986 to 2005 she served as editor of the Bengali women’s magazine Sananda. She later worked as creative director at Kolkata TV for a year. In 2011 she became editor of Paroma magazine and in 2013 was part of the launch of a new magazine, Prothoma Ekhon, with the Paroma editorial team.

Public profile

Aparna Sen has been honoured repeatedly for both acting and direction. She received the Padma Shri in 1987 and has won numerous National Film Awards and BFJA Awards across acting, directing and screenplay categories. Internationally, she has served on juries: she was a member of the jury at the 16th Moscow International Film Festival in 1989, was elected to the International Jury of the Asia Pacific Screen Awards in 2008, and headed the jury of the second Ladakh International Film Festival in 2013.

Sen has spoken publicly about her political stance as issue-based rather than party-aligned and has described herself as secular and liberal. She has also made statements about public matters that have attracted media attention.

Personal life

Aparna Sen was born into a family with strong artistic ties. Her mother, Supriya Dasgupta, worked as a costume designer and later won a National Film Award for Best Costume Design. Sen’s elder daughter, Kamalini Chatterjee, pursued studies in the United States. Konkona Sen Sharma, her younger daughter from her first marriage, is an actress.

Sen has been married three times. Her second marriage, to Mukul Sharma, ended in divorce in 1985; Mukul Sharma passed away in 2019. She married for the third time on 29 July 1993 to Kalyan Ray.

Other activities and interests

Beyond film and publishing, Sen has cited interests in reading and literature; she has mentioned authors and filmmakers she admires and has spoken about having read the Mahabharata and finding Lord Krishna a fascinating figure. A notable early public image of her appears in photography: at age 14 she was photographed by Brian Brake for a monsoon-themed series, a picture that later appeared on the cover of Life magazine.

Latest updates

In 2022 Aparna Sen received the Best Director Award at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne for The Rapist, a Hindi film she directed that year. Earlier recognitions include a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013 and a long list of national and regional honours acknowledging her work across acting, direction and writing.
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Recent Work

The Rapist

Hindi film directed by Aparna Sen, starring Konkona Sen Sharma and Arjun Rampal

2022
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Career Highlights

  1. Debuted as an actress in Satyajit Ray’s Teen Kanya (1961)
  2. Made directorial debut with 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981)
  3. Recipient of the Padma Shri (1987)
  4. Multiple National Film Awards across acting, direction and screenplay categories
  5. Editor of Sananda magazine (1986–2005) and later editor of Paroma
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Aparna Sen born?

25 October 1945

What is Aparna Sen known for?

Filmmaker, Screenwriter, Actress

What is Aparna Sen’s marital status?

Married

Who is Aparna Sen married to?

Kalyan Ray (third husband); previously married to Sanjay Sen and Mukul Sharma