Satyajit Ray’s “Pather Panchali” turns fifty.

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i think that “pather panchali” was the greatest film to come out of india, ever. yesterday marked the fiftieth anniversary of its premiere:

KOLKATA: It was May 3, 1955. The debut film of one Satyajit Ray opened a week-long festival at New York’s MOMA. On August 26 the same year, Pather Panchali opened to Indian audiences at Basusree.
And, in a near-repeat of the phenomenon, four months after Cannes conferred an award on it, the film won the President’s Gold. That prompted the 35-year-old Ray to give up a handsome monthly salary of Rs 1,013 and shoot the sequel, Aparajito. And it changed the face of Indian cinema.
As the film steps into its 50th year, it’s time for flashbacks…
…Soumitra Chatterjee saw it the next day, “and was stupefied.” Till then, he’d weigh every Bengali film against How Green Was My Valley, or Bicycle Thieves. So disappointment was inevitable.
Pather Panchali dispelled that, “it spelled hope for Indian cinema. No, we’d not seen anything like it,” the actor repeats. “Aparajito, Jalsaghar, Charulata were better crafted, but the raw emotion of Pather Panchali has no parallel.”

77 thoughts on “Satyajit Ray’s “Pather Panchali” turns fifty.”

  1. I saw the entire trilogy a few weeks ago. I don’t understand the language (what language was it? sorry for my ignorance), but no big deal… I’m a little surprised no one has commented on this movie. Maybe it’s one of those experiences, that affects you so profoundly you don’t even have to discuss it.

    Anywyas, each one made me bawl (not even the boy’s reunion with his parents in Empire of the Sun compares) and no one had the patience to watch it with me, so it was even sadder. i won’t give away what events made me sad, as to not spoil it for those of you who haven’t watched it. I came away deeply impressed with Ray’s story-telling skills, and touched as well. I loved the classical music in the background as well. (Aside:The actress in the last film, I think she was in 60’s, 70’s hindi movies as well.)

  2. It was in Bong. I mean Bengali.

    I think you mean Sharmila Tagore. She was in loads of films and then married the Nawab of Pataudi. She converted hours before her wedding and went of to have two sprogs – including Mr Saif Ali Khan.

    And the classical music in the background was performed by a little-known young sitar player called Ravi Shankar.

    Ah Bengal.

  3. What I find amazing about “Pather Panchali” is how accessible it is: I’ve known people from the US, Egypt and France apart from several desis who were just bowled over by it.

    Bong Breaker: I think Tagore’s “conversion” was more pro forma than anything else; she has retained her name in the years since, and nothing more has been heard about it. I think that conversion is akin to Dharmendra’s and Hema Malini’s “conversions” (the two became Muslim in order for Dharmendra to become a bigamist).

  4. Anna: “i think that “pather panchali” was the greatest film to come out of india, ever.”

    Certainly the greatest I’ve ever seen, but the big “hole” in my Indian cinema experience is that I’ve never seen a single film by the great Adoor Gopalakrishnan, none of whose films are available on DVD (but that might change soon, as “Shadow Killer” (Nizhalkuttu) is being released by an “arthouse” imprint here in October)). What is taking so long is a mystery; I have a weakness for the Malayalam cinema of the 1980s, and there’s a Yonkers-based company that’s released a bunch of DVDs with subtitles for the likes of me… I seem to recall you mentioning in some post that your parents were from Kerala; do you speak/understand Malayalam? Have you seen any of Gopalakrishnan’s films?

    Aside: on the subject of great Malayalam cinema, I highly recommend Vanaprastham by Shaji Karun, shown at Cannes ’99 and featuring Mohanlal in a mind-blowing turn as a Kathakali dancer…

  6. I didn’t know Dharmendra and Hema converted! I just thought he had two wives under the Hindu law of ‘we’ll look the other way cos you’re famous’. Well you learn something everyday.

    I can’t say I know a great deal about Sharmila Tagore’s conversion or life (in fact I got the number of kids wrong above). The concept of conversion for marriage has always made me uncomfortable, but we’ll not stray onto that topic for now!

    Sharmila Tagore was gorgeous. Does anyone else agree that the 60s and early 70s were a golden time for beautiful Indian girls? I love those old ‘dos and outrageous eye makeup. Nowadays actresses and models are hot, but where’s the glamour? Aishwariya? Puhlease.

  7. Actually, if Dharmendra had NOT been famous and had been living in some out-of-the-way village he probably would have gotten away with having two wives (according to the Indian census, a higher % of India’s Hindus have more than one wife than India’s Muslims do). I suspect it is precisely BECAUSE of his fame that he needed to dot his “i”s so to speak…

    Sharmila Tagore was and is gorgeous…I saw her in “Virrudh” recently and at any age she exudes dignity and charm…

    As for Aishwarya: Bong Breaker, have you SEEN her in “Kajra Re” (Bunty aur Babli) or Chokher Bali??????????????

  8. Haven’t seen Bunty aur Babli, but I have seen Chokher Bali and Raincoat. I’m not a fan of hers. But I’m not a hater. I wish her well.

    Just took a look at your blog…cussing Trekkies in the first post I see! Consider this conversation OVER!

  10. Ah, sorry got the wrong end of the stick. An Indian friend who is comic mad recently confessed to me after years of laughing nervously at my TREK jokes, that he is NOT a trekkie. I was shocked and stunned. Perhaps that was lingering in my mind!

    Tell me one thing, how come the Phantom enjoys such popularity in India? And for so many years; my mum showed me a comic she bought as a kiddie! Actually…perhaps it’s worth a few bob…

  11. Sharmila Tagore was gorgeous. Does anyone else agree that the 60s and early 70s were a golden time for beautiful Indian girls?

    I love the picture you linked to. Quite hip. There definitely were some beauties. My parents never watched 80’s movies,so I was exposed to all the 60s 70s stuff. It’s interesting that she’s bikini-clad in that photo. Actresses do the bikini shot these days too, and it still creates a hoopla for some reason… after all this time? But, I like how that photo isn’t really about sex… more about how she decided to wear a bikini with really cool hair and cleopatra eyeliner. BongBreaker, I’m surprised by your newfound appreciation for some class – ha ha. VeenaTeenaNina or whatever her name is, will be impressed too: I’ll be sure to let her know of the new BongBreaker.

    She must have been very young in the last apu movie, but she seemed so mature. She def was the boss of Apu!

  12. “how come the Phantom enjoys such popularity in India?”

    I’m stumped to be honest; perhaps for the same reason that Kipling is popular in many circles in India? Though the Phantom has a kind of irresistible hokeyness to it…

  14. Blimey Ang, you’ve been keeping tabs on me.

    There’s no new Bong Breaker, I’m like all guys. I am in love with classy, beautiful women. But every now and again even a gourmet chef likes to have a cheap, dirty burger 😉

  15. “Tell me one thing, how come the Phantom enjoys such popularity in India? “

    That is true that Phantom is very popular in India, so is Mandrake, and so is Archie. These are not popular, especially in USA. Could be the way, they were marketted.

    Archie in USA is for middle high but not in India.

    Bong Breaker, I am going to propose to Aishwarya Rai one of these days (so be respectful to her), and am seiously thinking of going back to oil industry so that I can afford her.

  16. seiously thinking of going back to oil industry so that I can afford her.

    Afford her?!!

    Please!

    But Betty and Veronica are still on the market….

  19. Mandrake was such a lame character. But I do remember the whole Defenders of the Earth theme tune and I always liked his bit, so he must’ve had some effect on me. Maybe he hypnotised me.

    Sumita, they’re all for sale. At the end of the day they’re just performing monkeys who answer only the money, as testified by their repeated presence at the wedding of the Mittals, Shahs, Advanis and any other rich-surnamed people. Not as guests, but as people miming and dancing on stage. It makes me feel good. That for all their jet-setting, hot girls and guys, fan worship and above-the-law lifestyles, I could buy them all.

    After re-re-mortgaging my house nine times.

  20. “Sumita, they’re all for sale. At the end of the day they’re just performing monkeys who answer only the money, as testified by their repeated presence at the wedding of the Mittals, Shahs, Advanis and any other rich-surnamed people.”

    Bong Breaker, it varies from performer to performer. For instance, Shah Rukh Khan was in the forefront of showing up at people’s weddings and dancing for money, but Aamir Khan has not been known to do that, and neither have many others.

  21. Well the subject of this discussion does it. Ash has danced at a handful of friend’s friend’s friend’s weddings. Most of the bigguns do, Preity, Rani, SRK, Hrithik, Salman (when he was in favour) etc etc.

    But Aamir Khan has always been a bit different from the crowd, which is why I’ve said on here before that he’s the only character I like in Bollywood. Although to be fair, none of the others have abandoned their families and had love children with English girls.

    (not sure if she’s English, but I saw a pic of the kiddie. Very cute little toddler)

  22. OK, point conceded as to the ones you name.

    But how is that any worse/better than people taking money to endorse products? Would you say that Hollywood stars are for sale (because they endorse products on Japanese TV)? Or that athletes are too?

    [If the answer to the above Q is “yes,” then I guess you’re consistent…]

  23. Umair and Bong,

    I am the guy who wants to propose to Aishwaryia. Why are you two guys getting all excited? Is there something I do not know between you guys and lovely Aish? Methinks.

    Mr. Miyagi

  24. Kush, Since Ash has not accepted your proposal, she’s unattached at the moment (that punk Vivek Oberoi doesn’t count), and I can’t bear the thought that your bhabi-to-be is being referred to in such terms…

  25. Umair: Yes!

    Although…I find endorsing toothpaste or whisky (a la Lost in Translation) far less cheesey than dancing at someone’s wedding! However Kylie performed at someone’s wedding recently…but then again she is a singer by trade. The day that Angelina Jolie or Johnny Depp prance around at someone’s wedding is the day I’ll equate the two industries.

    And more importantly, I’ll make SURE I’m at any wedding where Angelina performs! Ash can go jump (or you can have her to yourself Kush), Angelina is twice the woman she’ll ever be! 😉

  26. Bong Breaker: fair enough, though “singer by trade” doesn’t cut it given that the whole tradition in Bollywood movies is for actors to lip-synch in songs. The actors also perform in numerous stage shows where the same thing happens, and what they are doing at these weddings, although cheesy, is very much in keeping with much of the rest of their job.

    One should also bear in mind that Bollywood actresses are woefully underpaid compared to their male counterparts; even the top actresses do not command salaries anything like even mid-rung male actors do. Such performances are an easy way to make money, and they involve “more of the same” from the performer’s point of view (as they do this kind of thing for a living anyway)…

    As for Angelina Jolie, I’ve got nothing against her either…

  29. Uhh boy. Since the topic at hand has been bastardized to the point of no return, here’s my boyfriend – and he can’t be bought. Haters need not respond.

    Guess what? Pather Panchali is now 51 years old.

  32. Over the years, I have seen many Satyajit Ray movies, they are very powerful.

    Ang, his movies were in Bengali (Bong Breaker answered the question) except “Shantranj ki Khilari (The Chess Players)” which was trilingual: English, Hindi, and chaste Urdu.

    He was India’s Akiro Kurosawa. I have known many non-Desi Satyajit Ray’s film fans.

  33. I hope to see a few more. The Goddess sounds cool. And no, Angelina Jolie is not in it.

    But, I’ve only seen the apu series at the neighbourhood indie movie store…. time for an amazon search!

    U.M.: Shadowkill sounds interesting. I suppose there are no song/dance numbers, huh?

  34. Ang: from what I’ve jeard of Adoor, I don’t think there are song/dance numbers.

    Devi/The Goddess is amazing. Also check out Charulata and Jalsaghar (The Music Room), both are fine films too.

  35. Ah well if the topic is swinging back to my hero, then allow me to offer this superb link. I’ve written reams about Ray over the years and was often frustrated by the dearth of information online. This site is a really good starting point for anyone interested in the great man.

    Indeed he was India’s Kurosawa Kush – in fact they were good friends. And at the risk of repeating myself (as I’ve put this quote up before) Kurosawa famously said of Ray:

    “Not to have seen the cinema of Ray is like existing in this world without having seen the sun and the moon”

  37. “Indeed he was India’s Kurosawa Kush – in fact they were good friends. And at the risk of repeating myself (as I’ve put this quote up before) Kurosawa famously said of Ray:”

    Many years ago, I saw an interview by Satyajit Ray on TV. The man’s command in knowledge and style was astonishing. I never seen a South Asian speaking with such an authority and flair. You could sense that he thought of Kurosawa as his close friend. He sounded little bit like an “Oxbridge guy”

    My father tells me same about Subramanium Chandrashekar. He heard him in Roorkee for the honorary degree…..He tell me that he (Chandra) was one of the few people who speak of cosmology, physics, indian and western philosophy, and shakespeare with same authority.

  38. Not to have seen the cinema of Ray is like existing in this world without having seen the sun and the moon

    Sigh…I’m not a very dramatic person, but I have to agree; I truly felt like a different person after watching the 3 films.

    Durga and Apu reminded me of me and my sister when we were young, proving just how universal this film was. Their wide-eyed fascination with the train was so heart-warming… one of my fave scenes.

    I wonder why more people in bollywood didn’t model their plots after him. Didn’t he prove to be viable and successful?

  39. My understanding (though I am no expert on the Bengal box office) is that many of Ray’s films were modestly successful (and some, like the Gopi-Bagha films, quite successful), but the Bengali film audience is famous for patronizing the sort of fare that elsewhere in the world gets relegated to the realm of niche art-house flick. That being said even Ray faced great financial difficulties, but it is difficult to imagine him being able to make his sort of cinema in Bombay or Madras (maybe Kerala in the 1980s). Since Ray’s films never made as much money as the big Hindi and Tamil bonanzas, there really was no incentive (other than an artistic one) for anyone to emulate him…

  40. “I wonder why more people in bollywood didn’t model their plots after him. Didn’t he prove to be viable and successful?”

    It is like why all fimmakers in Japan are not Akiro Kurosawa or in US, like Francis Ford Coppola or Clint Eastwood or in UK, like David Lean.

    First, you should have the talent, artistry, and guts like them which is a very, very rare commodity.

    Satyajit Ray films were never big money makers (as Umair points). In fact, some of them (Bollywood types) did not like him because he was not glamorous. He had some real financial problems with “Shatranj ki Khilari”.

  41. If Ray had not had so much family money, it is likely his film career would not have been what it was. He came from a well-off background and as such did not work simply for revenue. However to say that his films were only modest in success is not true. What he did suffer from was a backlash from some other filmmakers, as Kush hints at. They were upset at his portrayal of India as a land of poverty and suffering at a time when national pride was taking a battering, post-independence and during subsequent wars with our friendly neighbour, especially as his films travelled abroad.

    Ray was a stubborn man and thank God for that. ‘Art house’ cinema did not win widespread popularity outside Bengal, but the Indian intelligensia consumed Bengali film ravenously during the 60s. However he became a popular figure amongst French and Japanese film buffs.

    Now that I’ve got me blog up and running, I promise I’ll write something soon about why Indian cinema has not capitalised on the success of Ray, Ghatak, Sen, Roy and co. but Japanese cinema has gone from strength to strength.

    I disagree that it’s simply because Ray was more talented. There have been many gifted directors, such as the ones mentioned above. But their style fell out of style. The 70s through to the 90s killed the intelligent Indian film. Now there are gradually more thought-provoking Indian movies, but to be honest they are the ones which are inspired by the West.

    I don’t mean the ones that rip off plots wholesale. I mean the ones that take the professionalism of the West. It’s odd we think like that – as if having scripts and schedules is a new thing to Indian cinema, as they have been absent for two decades. But go back to the 50s and 60s and India truly was on a par with the rest of the world in terms of creativity, if not technical expertise.

  42. “I disagree that it’s simply because Ray was more talented. There have been many gifted directors, such as the ones mentioned above. But their style fell out of style.”

    Sure, I agree with you. In fact, you should also include Guru Dutt, and some others too. But I do not think they experimented as boldly as him.

    Once Nargis Dutt made a big rickus in Rajya Sabha about how Satyajit Ray exported “poverty”.

    I am a big fan of Japanese movies too.

  43. Earlier this year, TIME announced their 100 Greatest Films of All Time. 5 Indian films made the cut.

    Three were by Satyajit Ray – his Apu trilogy. It should be remembered that Pother Panchali was Ray’s debut feature, making it all the more impressive. Watch it again and think about the angles he chooses and the natural lighting he uses, both were remarkably bold in 1954.

    The other two movies were Pyaasa by Guru Dutt (a masterpiece) and Nayakan by Mani Ratnam, which I must confess I haven’t seen.

    Read more about it here (warning: spoilers).

  44. Power of Indian Movies…….

    I have a friend who is Iranian American. The first time I met, he asked me if I was related to Raveena Tandon. I told him that she was my fiancee.

    He all the time talks about Shantaram and Raj Kapoor movies whenever we met (or email).

    My father has a uncanny, striking resemblance to Guru Dutt. About a dozen times, street vendor kids come to him, call him “Guru Dutt”, and run away.

  45. People look at me and say I remind them of someone. They umm and aahh, so I make some suggestions

    “Hrithik?” “John Abraham?” “Dino?”

    Then they click their fingers and say “Got it! Johnny Lever!”

    (not really.)

    Isn’t it sad I had to add that not really? The ego is just too delicate.

  46. BB said

    The other two movies were Pyaasa by Guru Dutt (a masterpiece) and Nayakan by Mani Ratnam, which I must confess I haven’t seen.

    I confess I have only seen Satyajit Ray’s shatranj ke khilari – and at an age when I was too young to appreciate cinema as art -…

    but your other mentions caught my eye. Guru Datt’s Pyaasa is one movie which was not only critically acclaimed, but was a box office success as well. The poetry – I believe by Saahir Ludhianvi – blows the mind everytime i hear it. Actually, had to bring that up cos one of my granduncles (we’re from Ludhiana on my mums side) claimed to be chaddi-buddies with the writer – true or not, it’s my connexion with b’wood :-). Then Mani Ratnam … I am a HUGE fan of Tamil movies. They were light years ahead of hindi cinema when it came to quality acting and slick movie making… Mani Ratnam is of course famous for Nayakan… but other movies worth noting are Agni Nakshatram, Anjali, this is before bollywood ‘discovered’ him. Mind you, my knowledge of tamil is very very basic (numbers, greetings etc.) and I still found these movies richer than most bollywood. One reason was the music – which to me had so much melody that the words didnt matter … see if you can get sindhu bhairavi, gunaa on dvd . you dont need to know the language.

  47. On the subject of south Indian cinema, a topic where my knowledge could be far better (although I’ve been watching a fair bit of Sri Lankan cinema recently – doing rather well at international award ceremonies, including Cannes), I rummaged around that TIME Top 100 thing and they had also quizzed their film critics to name their top soundtracks. Now that’s something where I’m sure no one will agree (no John Williams?! No Nino Rota?) but one of the chaps, Richard Corliss named Roja as one of his picks – of all time.

    Anyone care to give me a top five Tamil films to watch?

  48. The poetry in some of the songs in old hindi movies, no matter how bad the movie itself, made at least the soundtracks worth buying.

  49. I wouldn’t even pick Roja as Ratnam’s best.

    My own knowledge of South Indian cinema is limited to contemporary Tamil movies, and some Malayalam films from the 1980s. Personally I think “Iruvar” is Ratnam’s best, and despite a flawed script dazzling cinematically, the most impressive “commercial” Indian movie I’ve seen in 10-15 years. Speaking of Sri Lanka, Ratnam’s “Kannathil Muthamittal” is quite good (half of it was shot in SL I believe). Still in the commercial vein, Tamil director Bala seems to specialize in evoking dystopic mileus populated by “fringe” characters– except, in a subversion of the star system, these characters are represented by mainstream major stars. Check out “Pithamagan” (featuring Vikram in a role that fetched him a National Award last year) and “Sethu” (the Hindi “Tere Naam” was an unfortunate remake). Bala is no Ray, but he is perhaps the edgiest commercial director in either Madras or Bombay (amazingly, his films have made very good money too).

    Malayalam: as I noted in one of my earlier comments, RUN to get Vanaprastham.

    [All the films mentioned above are offered with Eng subtitles]

  50. Ang: By way of further response I guess I should asl say that one reason Ray found few emulators in Bollywood was that, particularly after the mid- to late-60s or so, Bollywood became keyed to a more mythic worldview, with a correspondingly larger canvas (I would say this continued in various ways until the late 1980s or so); by contrast the world of Bengali cinema is more intimate, more “local” in a sense. To use a crude (but not inapt) analogy, Bollywood (i.e. films like “Sholay” (1975), “Ghulami” (1985)) were to Bengali cinema as epic was to ballad, or the rhythms of folk song. Simultaneously, and interestingly, Bengali film culture was far less insular, and far more open to cinematic influences from a variety of international sources (for the Hindi film industry, Hollywood was the only international influence that was typically relevant).

    There were some Bollywood directors who specialized in “little” films (they flourished in the 1970s). The best of these is Hrishikesh Mukherjee, who did his best work with Amitabh Bachchan (possibly the only actor I am aware of who could negotiate both the epic and the intimate so successfully): films like “Milli,” “Jurmana” are quite wonderful. [Bachchan in fact played a Bengali villager in “Saudagar,” which I saw years ago; don’t remember how good the film was, but it’s the sort of film, keyed to the rhythms of a particular place at a particular time, that is rather rare these days.]

    Aside: The “Bollywood ” I’m referring to is pretty much dead now, gone the way of the dodo and been replaced by: (i) neo-Hollywood films; (ii) candy-floss love stories. And while many non-Indians and even ABCDs seem to view the latter as representative of “traditional” Bollywood, that’s really far from the case.