West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday voiced stern criticism of Bengali television serials, calling out their increasing focus on “poisoning, quarrels, hooliganism” and urging content creators to restore decency and positivity to the small screen.
Speaking at the Mahanayak Uttam Kumar award ceremony in Kolkata, the Chief Minister said such portrayals were adversely affecting impressionable minds and promoting despair.
“Serials are showing poisoning, quarrels hooliganism all the time,” she said. “Children are learning wrongly due to this, many are even choosing the path of suicide. Please, don’t teach anything bad. If making serials means showing chaos every day, that’s not right. There are so many good things—those stories deserve to be told too."
She urged writers, producers and directors to highlight inspiring narratives and avoid sensationalist storytelling that focuses solely on negativity and violence.
Extending her concerns beyond television, Mamata also raised alarm over what she described as “terrorism” against the Bengali language, claiming that speakers of Bengali are being unfairly targeted and criminalised in some regions.
“Today, if you speak Bengali, you have to be punished. We will not tolerate this. More than 30 crore people speak Bengali. We must now begin a new language movement,” she said, calling for collective cultural assertiveness.
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Paying tribute to legendary actor Uttam Kumar on his death anniversary, Mamata hailed him as a cultural icon whose cinematic elegance shaped the golden age of Bengali cinema.
“Uttam Kumar is the pride of our country. His ability to lip-sync to songs was remarkable; that was his charm. I carry the lifelong regret of never meeting him,” she said.
Recalling her childhood in Bhabanipur, Mamata fondly remembered trips to local cinema halls with her mother. “I would often fall asleep, but the songs stayed with me. Those old Bengali songs still play in my mind—such was their melody, sweetness, and culture.”
In a move to revive the state’s cinema-going culture, Mamata announced that actor Prosenjit Chatterjee is spearheading the construction of compact 40–50 seat theatres in 100 locations across West Bengal.
“As a result, we hope the demand for cinema halls in rural and remote areas will rise again,” she said, expressing hope that this would foster a resurgence of Bengali films and local storytelling.
As applause echoed through the venue, Mamata’s call to defend cultural purity and regional pride struck a resonant chord—reaffirming her commitment to nurturing Bengal’s identity on-screen and beyond.
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