Noted filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh has passed away. He was 49. He died of cardiac arrest at his south Kolkata residence.Winner of 12 national and some international awards, Ghosh was suffering from pancreatitis and died of a heart attack.Ghosh shot to fame with his direction of a children's film 'Hirer Angti' in 1994. His film 'Unishe April' was a national award winner in 1995.
His other widely acclaimed films include 'Dahan', 'Asukh', 'Chokher Bali', 'Raincoat', 'Bariwali', 'Antarmahal'
and 'Noukadubi'.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari has expressed deep shock at the tragic and premature death of renowned Bengali film director Rituparno Ghosh. In his condolence message, Mr Tewari said cinema has lost a visionary who was always innovative and bold in undertaking new themes for his films. The Information and Broadcasting Minister described Ghosh as a creative genius who gave a new dimension to film making with every film that he was associated with. Mr Tewari said his death has left a void which will be very difficult to fill.

An atmosphere of grief and sadness was seen not only in the entertainment industry but the whole country has been shocked by the sudden demise of Rituparno Ghosh this morning. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has condoled his death saying it was a very sad day for Bengal. She said that West Bengal has lost an eminent filmmaker. The Chief Minister visited Ghosh's residence this morning. The doyen of Bengali films, Soumitra Chatterjee, said the news came as a great shock to him and the void left after his death cannot be easily filled. Raima Sen, a lead actress in Rituparno Ghosh's Chokar Bali, said he was an unmeasurable genius and she is grateful to him for giving a new dimension to her career. Fellow national award winning director Kaushik Ganguly said he was left shattered by the news and it was a great loss for the film industry. State Industry Minister Partho Chattopadhyay said Ghosh was a great genius and the gap left after his death would not be easy to fill.