Arundhati Nag | |
|---|---|
 Arundhati in 2010 | |
| Born | Arundhati Rao 1955 or 1956 (age 69–70)[1] |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1973–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives |
|
Arundhati Nag (néeRao; born 1955/1956[1]) is an Indian actress. She has been involved with multilingualTheatre in India, for over 25 years, first inMumbai where she got involved withIndian People's Theatre Association (IPTA), and did various productions inGujarati,Marathi, andHindi theatre, and then inKannada,Tamil,Malayalam and English, inBangalore.
They stayed inChintamani, Karnataka for a few years.
Following her marriage to Kannada actor-directorShankar Nag (1980–1990), her association with theatre continued in Bangalore, where she performed several plays in Kannada: Girish Karnad'sAnju Mallige,27 Mavalli Circle based on the famous playWait Until Dark,Sandhya Chayya (Jayant Dalvi), Girish Karnad'sNagamandala, and Bertolt Brecht'sMother Courage asHulaguru Huliyavva. She also worked in several Kannada movies:Accident (1984),Parameshi Prema Prasanga (1984) andNodiswamy, Navirodu Heege (1987).[3]
Nag built a theatre space in BangaloreRanga Shankara: .[4][5][6][7] She is a recipient of theSangeet Natak Akademi Award (2008), the Padma Shri (2010) and the National Film Awards (57th) in 2010.[8][9]
Nag's career spans over 40 years of theatre, film and television. She is the founder and the Managing Trustee of theSanket Trust, established in 1992, which runs Ranga Shankara, a theatre space in Bangalore.[10][11]
The annualRanga Shankara Theatre Festival, now in its twelfth year, has become a regular feature on Bangalore's cultural calendar.[12]
Nag continues to be actively involved in theatre: her most recent works include Girish Karnad's "Bikhre Bimb" (Hindi) and "Odakalu Bimba" (Kannada).
Her last major movie wasThe Man Who Knew Infinity (2016), in which she played the mother of the mathematical wizard Ramanujan. She has also appeared in Hindi movies includingPaa (2009), "Sapnay" (1997) and "Dil Se" (1998), Kannada movies includingGolibar (1991),Jogi (2005) and "Andar Bahar", and MalayalamDa Thadiya (2012) andDrama (2018 film)
Nag was born in 1956 inDelhi, stayed in Netaji Nagar. Her family moved toMumbai when she was 10. At 17, she metShankar Nag, also a theatre artist.[13] Six years later, the two got married and moved toBangalore. Shankar became a well-known film actor, and later a director, most remembered for his TV adaptation ofR. K. Narayan'sMalgudi Days (1987).[7] They had a daughter together, Kaavya.
In 1990, Shankar died in a car accident. Arundhati continued to act in theatre, and began to work towards realising her dream of a theatre space, which in 2004, finally materialised intoRanga Shankara, which is today one of India's premier venues for theatre.
| Year | Film | Role | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 22 June 1897 | Marathi | ||
| 1983 | Nodi Swamy Navirodu Hige | Jaya | Kannada | |
| 1984 | Accident | Maya Rani | Karnataka State Film Award for Best Supporting Actress | |
| 1985 | Parameshi Prema Prasanga | Ramamani | ||
| Poi Mugangal | Tamil | |||
| 1993 | Golibar | Bharathi Devi | Kannada | |
| 1996 | Shiva Sainya | Shiva's mentor | ||
| 1997 | Minsaara Kanavu | Mother Superior | Tamil | |
| 1998 | Dil Se.. | AIR station director | Hindi | |
| 2003 | Ek Alag Mausam | Aparna's mother | ||
| 2005 | Jogi | Bhagyakka | Kannada | Karnataka State Film Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2007 | Chaurahen | Nandakumar Nair | Hindi | |
| 2009 | Paa | Vidya's mother/Bum | National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress | |
| 2012 | Da Thadiya | "Knight Rider" | Malayalam | |
| 2013 | Andhar Bahar | Kannada | ||
| 2016 | The Man Who Knew Infinity | Srinivasa Ramanujan's mother | English | |
| 2018 | Drama | Rosamma John Chacko | Malayalam | |
| 2022 | Escaype Live | Lakshmi Amma | Hindi | Webseries |
| Medium Spicy | Nissim's aunt and author | Marathi |
