- Born
- Birth namePuranjit Dasgupta
- Nicknames
- RJ Mantra
- VJ Mantra
- Height6′ (1.83 m)
- Having received several accolades for his impressive work, Mantra is an Indian actor, director, and producer known for Bhaskar Bose in Spotify's detective thriller podcast Bhaskar Bose, Najib-ud-daulah in Panipat (2019) and the iconic character of Genie in the popular Disney India's Broadway musical Aladdin (2019). Mantra has also acted on the small screen in TV serials like Lagegi on UTV Bindass, Mystery Hunters India on Discovery Kids, Narayan Narayan - Chulbule Narad ki Natkhat Leelayen on Big Magic. Mantra also participated in many seasons of the comedy show Comedy Circus (2018) and the sixth season of dance reality show Jhalak Dikhla Ja. Mantra was known as the RJ of a popular Mumbai radio show on Red FM before venturing into acting. He has worked in radio for over a decade and in a range of popular stations like Radio Mirchi, Red FM and Radio City among others.
Mantra got his first break as a film actor in Bollywood film Tum Mile (2009), after which Mantra has appeared in Game (2011), Bheja Fry 2 (2011) (2010), Hum Tum Shabana (2011), and London Paris New York (2012). His other projects include Rebellious Flower (2016) (2016), a biopic of spiritual leader Osho, High Jack (2018), and Panipat (2019). He appeared on various web series such as Boygiri (2017), Phone-a-Friend (2020) , Bhanwar (2020), The Casino (2020), High (2020), Rashmi Rocket (2021). Mantra is also the owner of Mantramugdh Productions.
Mantra's first major TV appearance was Lagegi (2007) on UTV's Bindass channel in 2007, and did more than 100 episodes. Mantra has been a VJ and has hosted shows such as First Day First Show and G-Spot on Channel V. He was a cricket commentator on Star Sports and a NDTV 24x7's sports show 'Cricket Controversies', and has also hosted Pro Kabaddi League (2014) and Vivo Indian Premier League (2008). He hosted the dance reality show Zara Nach Ke Dikha and gained popularity as a stand-up comedian on three consecutive seasons of Sony TV's Comedy Circus (2018).
As a wild card entry, Mantra also participated in the sixth season of celebrity dance reality show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa (2006). He also hosted the latest season of Colors TV's India's Got Talent (2009). He was the main lead as Narad on TV series Narayan Narayan on Big Magic. As a theatre artist, Mantra has performed in more than 100 plays of Piya Behrupiya, a Hindi interpretation of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (2021) produced by Atul Kumar's The Company Theatre. He was praised across India for his performance as Genie in Disney India's hit Broadway style musical Aladdin (2019), which instantly became a crowd favourite.
Mantra has also produced and directed many audio-web series under his production company; some of the well known audio web series are Kaali Awaazein, Love In The Time Of Corona, and Mine n Yours, Bhaskar Bose, and Virus 2062.
- IMDb mini biography by: Buzzmore Media
- In 2000, Mantra was working at the front desk at the Taj Hotel in Indore (India). He made a wake up call to a radio talent spotter who was in the city to recruit talent for the country's first private radio station that was coming up in Indore. That's how he landed his first radio job.
- He was one of the first commercial RJs of India.
- His first major television appearance was Lagegi (2007) on UTV's Bindass channel, which was later renamed Hass ley India.
- Before venturing into the media industry, Mantra was in the hospitality business from 1996 to 2000 and worked as a front desk receptionist and manager for The Taj Hotel.
- He took on the nom de plume Mantra when he started his career as a radio jockey with India's first private radio station Radio Mirchi in 2000. His birth name is Puranjit Dasgupta.
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