Dolly Jena is a familiar name to Odia film lovers. She was born born and brought up from Cuttack town, in an aristocratic family. Her father late B.C.Jena was a Civil Engineer by profession. After completing her Diploma Course in acting in the Film & Television Institute of India, Pune she plunged into an acting career in the 1980s. She started with a guest appearance in ‘Hum Kisi Se Kam Nahin’ (Hindi). Then a prominent role came her way in Naxalites, a socio-analytical film in Hindi. It was soon followed by her remarkable perfomance in films such as ‘Razia Sultan’, ‘Amma’, and ‘Holi’ (all in Hindi). Then came a phase of recognitions in her acting career as she bagged the Best actress Award for her performance in the Odia film ‘Jaga Balia’ in 1983.

The Oriya film ‘Hakim Babu’ in which she handled a lead role also won the National Award for the best Odiaa film. Tara in Oriya and Abhaas in Hindi are considered two of Dolly’s most noteworthy directorial accomplishments. Dolly Jena has a complete script of an English film named ‘The Survivor’ ready in her hand. It is based on the award winning Odiaa novel Dana Pani. It has been approved by the National Film Development Corporation for patronisation.

Along with acting in mainstream and parallel cinema she also set her foot in TV episodes. Viewers still vividly remember her closer-to-life performance in the popular TV serials such as ‘Vikram Betal’ and ‘Jantar Mantar’.