KENDRAPARA: Residents of veteran actor Bijay Mohanty’s native Pandiri village have been praying for his well-being since he was admitted to a hospital in Hyderabad after complaining of chest pain on May 25.
The villagers organised a special ‘Puja’ at the Laxmi Narayan temple wishing for the 70-year-old actor’s early recovery.
“The entire village loves Bijay Mohanty. We want him to recover soon and visit the village,” said a resident Chandrasekhar Mohanty.
Another villager, Sarat Das fondly recalled the time he had spent with the actor during his childhood and wished him the best. Meanwhile, Mohanty’s wife Tandra Ray informed that the actor’s condition is stable now and he is recovering.
Bijay was born in 1950 in Pandiri and went on to join the coveted National School of Drama. He passed the course with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Raj Babbar and Om Puri and stayed in New Delhi where he acted in theatres till 1975. Bijay started his acting career in the Odia film industry in 1977 with ‘Chilika Tire,’ which won him a National Award.
A few of his other notable films include ‘Naga Phasa’, ‘Samay Bada Balaban’, ‘Danda Balunga’, ‘Sahari Bagha’, ‘Chaka Bhaunri’ and ‘Chaka Akhi Sabu Dekhuchi’. He has played various roles ranging from the lead to villain and comedian. Bijay also directed an Odia movie ‘Bhuli Huena.’ He joined the Drama department of Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in 1977 and retired as a professor from the institute recently.
His stint in politics was not as remarkable as he unsuccessfully contested for the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat in 2014 as a Congress candidate.