Kolkata: Widely regarded as Bengal's cabaret queen, Arati Das — more famous as Miss Shefali, who also acted in two of Satyajit Ray's cult films — died at her home in North 24-Parganas district's Sodepur on Thursday following a cardiac arrest, family and film fraternity sources said.
Shefali, 76, was suffering from kidney ailments for long, and returned home after a hospital stay sometime back. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condoled her death.
She tweeted: "Saddened at the passing away of actress Arati Das, famous under her screen name, Miss Shefali. She appeared in two of Satyajit Ray's films, Pratidwandi and Seemabaddha. Condolences to her family and her admirers."
Her lissom dance steps and provocative gyrations had made Ms. Shefali an integral part of Kolkata's nightlife in the 1960s and 1970s when she performed to packed audiences in the city's leading five star hotels and night clubs. Her dance skills were captured in two films of Ray — Pratidwandi (1970) and Seemabaddha (1971) — where she acted. She was also seen on screen in Bahniskha (1976) and Pennam Kolkata (1992).
Shefali had a long association with the city's professional stage, where too her cabaret was chief attraction.
She was also proficient in dance forms like twist, can can and charlestone. In New Year parties, Shefali's belly dancing was a prime public attraction. From Bengali matinee idols Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen to countless youths of those times, Shefali had a huge fan base that remained intact for decades.
Born in then East Bengal, Shefali's parents crossed over to India after Partition, and her childhood was a story of poverty and sufferings.
She had to work as a maid in an Anglo-Indian family at the age of 11, where she got attracted to dancing by observing the foot tappings and gyrations in the daily evening parties.
Helped by an invitee in one of those parties, Shefali got a chance to perform at the then famous Firpo's restaurant, and never had to look back since. However, Shefali's financial problems returned in the last stages of her life. Suchitra Sen had approached Samaresh Basu to write the script of Fariyad, a Bengali feature film based on the life of Shefali. Sen was the central character in the film which was released in 1971. Her biography titled Sandhya Rater Shefali penned by Sirsho Bandyopadhyay is a well-read book.