Shomu Mukherjee was a film director, screenwriter, and producer from India. Born to Padma Shri award-winning Hindi film producer Sashadhar Mukherjee, the owner of Filmalaya studios, he followed in the footsteps of his father, uncles, and older brothers in pursuing a career in the film industry. He began collaborating with family members, casting his two older brothers, Joy and Deb Mukherjee, in his first film as a producer, ‘Ek Baar Muskura Do,’ alongside his future wife Tanuja. Later, he began producing and directing his own films, and he collaborated with other notable performers in the industry, like Rajesh Khanna, who starred in his films ‘Chhailla Babu’ in 1977 and ‘Fiffty Fiffty’ in 1981. In the 1980s, his films became more scarce, and he began to work with younger actors such as Rajiv Kapoor and Meenakshi Seshadri in ‘Lover Boy’ (1985) and Jackie Shroff, Sridevi, and Poonam Dhillon in ‘Pathar Ke Insan’ (1988). (1990). His wife Tanuja, daughters Kajol and Tanisha, and grandchildren Nysa and Yug survive him. He died of a heart attack in 2008 at the age of 64.
Career of Shomu Mukherjee
Shomu Mukherjee made his Bollywood debut in 1972, producing the Bollywood drama film ‘Ek Baar Muskura Do,’ directed by his cousin Ram Mukherjee and starring his two brothers Joy and Deb Mukherjee, as well as his future wife Tanuja and future mother-in-law Shobana Samarth. The film was a commercial success, with O.P.Nayyar’s soundtrack serving as a highlight. In 1973, he cast Tanuja as the lead actress in his second film, ‘Nannha Shikari,’ for which he also authored the story and directed. He subsequently went on to work with Rajesh Khanna in his next two films, ‘Chhailla Babu’ in 1977 and ‘Fiffty Fiffty’ in 1981, both directed by Khanna. Chhailla Babu was a huge success, generating more over Rs.4 crores.
Following that, he produced and directed two films: ‘Lover Boy’ (1985) and ‘Pathar Ke Insan’ (1990). Both films bombed at the box office, and Shomu Mukherjee never produced or directed another film after ‘Pathar Ke Insan.’
Personal Experiences of Shomu Mukherjee
Shomu Mukherjee was born in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India, on June 19, 1943, to Sashadhar Mukherjee and Sati Devi. His father was a well-known Hindi film producer who was one of the founding members of Filmistan Studio before going on to form Filmalaya. His mother was the sole sister of the famous Ganguly brothers, Ashok Kumar, the senior cinema star, Kishore Kumar, the great singer and actor, and actor Anoop Kumar. He was the fourth child of his parents, and he had three older brothers: director and composer Late Rono Mukherjee, as well as actors Late Joy Mukherjee and Deb Mukherjee; one younger sister Shibani, and one younger brother Subir. Rani Mukerji, a leading Bollywood actress, is his niece, while director Ayan Mukerji is his nephew.
On the sets of his first film, ‘Ek Baar Muskura Do,’ which he produced in 1972, he met actress Tanuja, the daughter of actress Shobana and filmmaker Kumarsen of the Samarth family. The following year, they married. His wife participated in both leading and supporting roles in his later films. Kajol and Tanisha, both actors, are his two daughters from his marriage to Tanuja. Ajay Devgan, an actor, is Kajol’s husband.
Shomu Mukherjee’s marriage to his wife lasted only a few years. They reared their two girls together despite their agreement to disagree. Despite the fact that they lived apart, they visited their daughters at their boarding schools once a month. Following his divorce from his wife, he continued to reside in Grotto Villa with his family, while Tanuja moved into the Usha Kiran apartment with her daughters.
In the 2000s, he had been ill for a long time. His daughter Kajol is said to have stayed away from her family to care for him, keeping a close eye on his meals and medication. However, he died of a major heart arrest on April 10, 2008 in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
He passed away just days before the release of his son-in-law Ajay’s directorial debut, ‘U Me Aur Hum,’ in which Kajol and Ajay both star. Prior to the release of the film, the entire family was in a festive mood, but it was cut short by his tragic death. In an interesting sequence in the film, his daughter Kajol, who plays an Alzheimer’s patient, mentions her separated parents, expressing how much she misses her father, who recently passed away.
Shomu Mukherjee’s Net Worth
Shomu Mukherjee’s net worth is estimated to be $1-5 million at the age of 76, according to Wikipedia, Forbes, IMDb, and other online sources. As a professional film director, Shomu Mukherjee earned the money. Shomu Mukherjee is an Indian journalist.