#Rewind2020: From actors triumphing COVID-19 fight to shooting under 'New Normal' conditions; major events in Bengali TV industry

This year was quite eventful for Bengali television. While the pandemic has hit everyone, the entertainment industry had also faced the blow. We lost some legendary Bengali actors, shows were axed and many artists faced financial issues during the lockdown. TV industry resumed shoot keeping a pace with the ‘new normal’. There were controversies as well. Let’s take a look at the major events in Bengali TV this year. (Photo: Facebook)

The pandemic and lockdown left its effect on the entertainment industry as well. For almost three months, no shoot took place. Many artists, technicians, vendors faced financial crunch due to the lockdown. Bengali TV industry resumed shoot from June trying to cope up with the ‘new normal’. The cast and crew were asked to maintain COVID-19 protocols. Many shows were pulled off during the lockdown. Shows had to end abruptly post lockdown, too. Here's a photo from Alo Chhaya's shooting set.

Keeping safety gear and passion for work side by side, celebrities worked hard amid the COVID-19 scare. Despite taking precautionary measures, many celebrities including 'Dadagiri Unlimited' host Sourav Ganguly, Raj Chakraborty, Neel Bhattacharya, Vivaan Ghosh, Mika Singh, Akriti Kakar, Srikanta Acharya and many other actors tested positive for COVID-19. All of them recovered and resumed work with full enthusiasm. Abir Chatterjee recently tested positive for the virus too. (Photo: Facebook)

This year, Bengali entertainment industry lost many veteran actors. Legendary actors Soumitra Chatterjee, Monu Mukhopadhyay passed away while director Debidas Bhattacharya lost his battle with COVID-19. TV and theatre actor Prosenjit Bardhan also breathed last this year. (Photo: Facebook)

Bengali non-fiction show ‘Didi No. 1’, hosted by gorgeous actress Rachna Banerjee, completed 10 years of journey. The show is one of the most popular shows on Bengali television. It enjoys a huge viewership.

The latest season of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa has some new celebrity judges- Mika Singh and Akriti Kakar along with Srikanta Acharjee who was a part of the previous season. Iman Chakraborty, Raghab Chatterjee and Monomoy Bhattacharya are the mentors. Yet another show, ‘Super Singer’, which started its journey with Kavita Krishnamurty, Jeet Ganguly and Kumar Sanu as the judges, had some changes in the panel of judges. Later, after the lockdown, the show had Shaan and Abhijeet as the judges along with Lopamudra Mitra and Rupankar Bagchi. (Photo: Facebook)

The actress openly expressed her anguish after being ousted from the show ‘Mirakkel 10’. Sreelekha pointed fingers at the makers for not including her in the show. Actor Rajatava Dutta and Paran Bandyopadhyay are also not a part of the show as well. Mirakkel 10 has Paoli Dam, Soham Chakraborty, Kanchan Mullick as the judges. (Photo: Facebook)

Actors Devlina Kumar and Gourab Chatterjee got married this year. Manali Manisha Dey and Abhimanyu Mukherjee also took the leap of faith. Actor Arindya Banerjee also got hitched this year. (Photo: Instagram)

Director-producer Raj Chakraborty and actress Subhashree became parents this year. Actresses Sairity Banerjee, Ankita Majumder also embraced parenthood in 2020. (Photo: Facebook)

This year Bengali television saw many film stars on the small screen. Priyanka Sarkar, Parno Mittra featured in ‘Super Family’ and ‘Kora Pakhi’ respectively. Abir Chatterjee decided to host ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa’. Aryann Bhowmik made his TV debut with ‘Titli’. Soon, Adrit Roy will be playing the male lead in ‘Mithai’. Theatre personalities like Sohini Sengupta, Debesh Chattopadhyay are currently part of TV shows ‘Khorkuto’ and ‘Harano Sur’. Though Sohini earlier played a meaty role in ‘Thakumar Jhuli’, this is the first time, she is a part of a daily soap. Soon, Dev will be seen in 'Dance Dance Junior Season 2' as a judge alongside Mithun Chakraborty and Monami Ghosh. (Photo: Facebook)

Actress Srabanti Chatterjee’s marital issues became one of the most talked-about topics this year. The actress is reportedly having some issues with her hubby Roshan. Close friends of the couple suggest that they have been staying separately. (Photo: Instagram)

A serious scene from popular Bengali television serial ‘Krishnakoli’ reportedly became fodder for trolls after a section of netizens found an ‘uncanny resemblance’ between the automated external defibrillator shown in the scene and a scrubber pad. It instantly went viral inspiring meme creators in many ways. (Photo: Instagram)