5 min readKolkataSep 4, 2026 06:58 AM IST First published on: Sep 4, 2026 at 06:58 AM ISTForty-six years may have passed since his death. But, for quintessentially argumentative Bengalis, there is rare, near-unanimous consensus that Uttam Kumar is the greatest Bengali cine star in history. And now, the actor — popularly known as “Mahanayak (mega star)” — is at the centre of the BJP government’s outreach, even as the party looks to solidify its control over the Bengali film industry, known as Tollywood after the Tollygunge neighbourhood of Kolkata where it is based.On Thursday morning, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a video statement commemorating Uttam Kumar’s birth centenary, the BJP-led state government organised a special tribute ceremony at the matinee idol’s statue near the Tollygunge metro station, which was attended by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and a host of big names from the industry. Among them were film star Prosenjit Chatterjee; veteran actor Ranjit Mallick, whose daughter Koel was appointed a Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP, but who resigned; rebel Trinamool MP and film star Deepak Adhikari, or Dev, who is now part of the Nationalist Citizens Party of India; and director Gautam Ghosh. BJP MLAs Rudranil Ghosh and Papiya Adhikari, and actor Rituparna Sengupta.