Santosh Dutta was a Bengali character actor and immortalized in the character of Jatayu in
Satyajit Ray`s Feluda movies, including
Sonar Kella and Joi Baba Felunath. Santosh Dutta despite being a comedian and, has elevated comedy acting to the varied levels of character roles. After `
Sonar Kella`, he became deeply rooted with the role of "Jatayu" that
Satyajit Ray later remodeled the appearance of Jatayu and made the sketches of Jatayu accordingly in Feluda novels. After the death of this unmatched actor, Ray once said that there would be no further movies in the Feluda series, as the role of Jatayu cannot be thought of without Santosh Dutta.

Apart from playing Jatayu, Santosh Dutta also paid vital roles in Satyajit Ray`s masterpiece films for children like
Goopy Gayen Bagha Bayen and
Hirak Rajar Deshe. In `
Goopy Gayen Bagha Bayen`, Santosh Dutta played the roles of kings of "Halla" and "Shundi". He played the role of a scientist along with a small appearance for the same `King of Shundi` in `
Hirak Rajar Deshe`, which is a sequel to the film `
Goopy Gayen Bagha Bayen`.
Another milestone in Santosh Dutta`s career was playing the character of Gopal Bhar in the movie of same name, Gopal Bhar. His humorous character is known for centuries in India, particularly in the state of
West Bengal. Santosh Dutta is also seen acting in important roles for the films like Ogo Badhu Sundari, Paras Pathar, Teen Kanya, Streer Patra, Kapurush O Mahapurush, Jana Aranya, Marjina Abdallah, Char Murti and Gana Devata.
Filmography of Santosh Dutta
| Film |
Year |
Film |
Year |
| Ogu Bodhu Sundari |
1981 |
Marjina Abdulla |
1973 |
| Heerak Rajar Deshe |
1980 |
Streer Patra |
1972 |
| Ganadevata |
1979 |
Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne |
1968 |
| Joi Baba Felunath |
1978 |
Mahapurush |
1965 |
| Jana Aranya |
1976 |
Teen Kanya |
1961 |
| Sonar Kella |
1974 |
|
|