100 years of Satyajit Ray
“Never having seen a Satyajit Ray film is like never having seen the sun or the moon” — Akira Kurosawa
Satyajit Ray, one of the great masters of world cinema, is known for his realistic approach to cinema. Though his prominent works are in Bengali, they have a universal appeal. His films are simple narratives in classical format, with great details and many levels of interpretation. They portray a wide range of genres including comedy, satire, fantasy, and tragedy.
About Satyajit Ray :
He was born to Sukumar Ray and Suprabha Ray on the 2nd of May, 1921 in Calcutta, India. He studied at the University of Calcutta and later joined Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan to study art. He began his career as a junior visualiser at D.J. Keymer, a British advertising agency, in 1943. He started Calcutta’s first film society in 1947. His first film, Pather Panchali ( 1955 ) won him numerous awards, including the Best Human Document at 1956 Cannes Film Festival and the Best Film Award at 1958 Vancouver Film Festival.
He began his journey with a group of artists and technicians who were largely newcomers to the film industry. In his career of about 37 years and 36 films, his crew had always been the same — the editor, cinematographers and art directors.
The auteur filmmaker :
Ray showed his talent in many aspects of filmmaking. He wrote all the screenplays of his films, based on his own stories. He designed the sets and costumes, operated the camera since Charulata (1964), composed music for his films since 1961 and designed publicity posters for his new releases. In 1961, he revived the Bengali children’s magazine “Sandesh”, which was founded by his grandfather Upendrakishore Ray.
Later years :
After about forty years of filmmaking, his career was interrupted by ill health in the mid-1980s. In 1992, he received an honorary Academy Award for his rare mastery of the art of motion pictures as well as his profound humanitarian outlook, which influenced filmmakers and audiences worldwide. He was awarded Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian honour in India, shortly before his death. He died on April 23, 1992.
The Satyajit Ray Centenary Show Volume III :
The “Satyajit Ray Centenary Show Volume III” was organised by Kerala Lalithakala Academy and Kolkata Centre for Creativity (KCC) to commemorate the world-renowned filmmaker’s birth centenary. It was held at Durbar Hall Art Centre in Kochi, from 25th September to 25th October 2022. The event was inaugurated by P.Rajeev, Hon. Minister for Law, Industries and Coir.
The one-month exhibition provided an insightful look into the world of Ray’s films. It highlighted the lesser-known aspects of his works from Gallery Rasa’s collection such as his lobby cards, original storyboards, posters, book covers, and rare photographs of the maestro by Nemai Ghosh and Tarapada Banerjee.
It had some interesting additions to the previous volumes, including costumes from the film Shatranj Ke Khilari (courtesy: Suresh Jindal, producer of the movie) and a collection of letters written by Ray to Debjani Ray, that reveal the intricacies of pre to post production work in that era.
If you loved reading my article, let me know through your claps and comments. Do you know of any such filmmakers who revolutionized the world of cinema ?
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