Rituparno Ghosh, Indian film director (born Aug. 31, 1963, Calcutta [now Kolkata], India—died May 30, 2013, Kolkata), featured complex and sensitive themes such as sexuality, gender identity, divorce, and widowhood in films that defied conservative Indian principles. Ghosh studied economics at Jadavpur University, Kolkata, before working at an advertising agency. Inspired by the Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray (who had also begun in advertising), Ghosh decided to pursue directing. He immediately rose to fame with his debut children’s film, Heerer angti (1994; “The Diamond Ring”). Ghosh earned the first of his 12 National Film Awards for his second work, Unishe April (1994; “The Nineteenth of April”), which depicts the strained marriage of an ambitious dancer and her delicate relationship with her grown daughter. Chokher bali (2003; “Sand in the Eye”) tells the story of a young Hindu widow who lusts after her friend’s husband; it is considered by many to be the best of Ghosh’s 19 films. Ghosh was an ardent cross-dresser who lived in what he called a state of “gender fluidity.” In addition to directing, Ghosh occasionally acted, often portraying homosexual characters. He starred as a man who undergoes a sex-change operation in Chitrangada: The Crowning Wish (2012), which was interpreted by some to be semiautobiographical. It won a special jury award at the 2013 National Film Awards presentation. Ghosh was also editor of the popular Bengali film magazine Anandalok, and he appeared on television as a celebrity talk-show host.