RAY & CINEMA.

That Satyajit Ray was an auteur in the world of cinema, would be an understatement. His films were and would continue to be raison de etre of the Bengali intelligentsia. Ray had mastered his craft right from his days in advertising. His films have a past in literary content, a present in the cultural ethos  of modern Bengal and a future in cinematic lexicon. If one glances at his oeuvre of films , one would notice that these films are generic on one level, while on the other , they appeal to universal sentiments. His masterpieces were completed prior to his bouts of illness.

Ray had respected and regarded the media in a mature , foolhardy way. While his contemporary and often, his rival ( mentor to many a film maker) Ritwik Ghatak had shunned and disregarded the media. Ray had been meticulous in his entire career, viz. documentations and hard copies of the his processes of filmmaking . On the other side, Ghatak was a renowned bohemian throughout his lifetime.  To compare these two stalwarts is not the aim of this piece, but just to highlight the shades of brightness and grey patches that dwelt in these two psyches.

It had been Ray's ultimate dream -  that of holding the Oscar statuette. Sadly , he did so from his sick hospital bed. We can vividly recall to this day , that Audrey Hepburn who showed the video footage of Ray receiving the Oscar for Lifetime Achievement , had draped a saree , just like that  - without  a proper blouse, but with a brooch. Prabably she had seen Ray's Pather Panchali and had seen the character of Durga , clad in a saree in that way.

Satyajit Ray serves as a mentor to many a film director. Tales told on the silver screen , are nothing but chronicles of the human saga , which is modern living.  One hopes that this make -believe world gets better as time goes on. Indian cinema is witnessing major changes in terms of style , technique and content. The demarcation between mainstream and parallel cinema is getting blurred by each passing day. Sure , there are and will continue to be films which run mostly in rural areas or are aimed at  a particular section of society , who need 'value for money' or full 'paisa vasool'. But there are also films which are daring to traverse virgin territories. Films which are smallbudgeted , but put our grey cells into the activity mode from a realtively dormant one. Recent films like 'Chittagong' for instance? Or ' Makkhi"?



 

WRITERS DOMAIN: THE BENGALEE DURGA PUJA.

WRITERS DOMAIN: THE BENGALEE DURGA PUJA.: The advent of autumn creates a new fervor in the hearts of each and every Bengali , residing here in India or anywhere else in the world. T...

THE BENGALEE DURGA PUJA.

The advent of autumn creates a new fervor in the hearts of each and every Bengali , residing here in India or anywhere else in the world. The Kaash flowers herald in the season in this part of our land, i.e. West Bengal. Though we don't get to see much of it , living as we do in concrete jungles of urban metropolises, the swaying of these flowers in the winds of autumn, we get the feelings of deja vu, of sheer , unalloyed nostalgia.

The Durga Puja is and can be celebrated at many levels. It is the celebration or occasion for offerings to the goddess who conquers evil to establish goodwill &peace over the earth. She, as the legend goes, has come with her children to her maternal place .

The Bengalis celebrate the occasion amidst much fanfare. It is the most important event in the cultural calendar . We buy new clothes , paint our homes anew. In other words, everything is and shoould be new. Today, shopping for the Pujas has reached mass hysteria. THere are several bigshots who act as sponsors for several Puja conglomerations.

Be what it may, the Durga puja is cause celebre in the conscious of every Bengali denizen, good or bad.