Today marks the 102nd birthday of legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray. His contributions to Bengali cinema are unparalleled. Many Bengali film artistes and celebrities are paying tribute to him in various ways today. 

Growing up, I never analysed what drew me to the Feluda novels. It is only now that I marvel at how Feluda remained the fiction novel read at leisure by a self-proclaimed Bookworm such as myself for so long in my childhood.

On the birthday of legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray, Babita shared her memory of working with him. 

Ray's portrayal of women in his films was not limited to his female characters' on-screen presence. He also worked closely with women behind the scenes, such as his wife, Bijoya Ray, who was his constant collaborator and partner.

He created two lasting popular characters in Bengali literature—the debonair detective Felu Da and the brilliant scientist Professor Shonku. The brilliance of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Isaac Asimov neatly packed into one creative mind that was Ray's.

As Bengalis, we have grown up reading Satyajit Ray. Who does not remember the clever, witty, and adventurous detective, Feluda? Or the highly revered Professor Shonku, an eccentric scientist, inventor, explorer, and polyglot? Today, we celebrate one of these characters, Professor Trilokeshwar Shonku, paying a humble tribute to the Bengali maestro that is Satyajit Ray. For many of us, Ray was the entrance to Bengali literature, and the Shonku series — an influential work of science fiction in the Bengali language.

This Valentine's Day, grab a cup of tea and your loved one and immerse in the movies suggested below.

The 1956 film is essentially about Apu's adolescence and growing apart from his mother. The film highlights the underlying conflict of the mother-son relationship.

Animation, games and performances your children shouldn't miss on the last day of DAS 2023 today

“Bhoot”, the Bangla word for ghost, derives from the Sanskrit word Bhūta, referring to living beings and the past. Later, it also came to mean ‘disembodied spirit.’ Ghost stories carry a special tradition in Bangla literature and the root lies in folklore and rural culture.

Bangladeshi actor Ahmed Rubel has claimed the ‘Best Actor’ award, under the Feature Film category, at the 15th Jaipur International Film Festival 2023 (JIFF). Rubel was nominated for his performance in the Satyajit Ray tribute film, “Priyo Satyajit”. 

Be it for their nostalgic pull or the promise of escaping into a rich, evocative world, these tales have been consistent go-to’s for me over the years.

Pather Panchali, the film by legendary Satyajit Ray, is a world classic. It is no wonder that recently it topped the list of 10 greatest Indian films in a poll conducted by the India chapter of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI). The film is an adaptation of the Bengali book by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay, published in 1929.

As yet another stage of religious tension arises in the subcontinent, it was heartening to see Australians warm up to the great Bengali film director Satyajit Ray.

A generation or two has passed since its release. Here’s why we, as the current generation, ought to go back to this classic.

Has Netflix done enough to please fans of Ray and his stories?

Satyajit Ray, born on May 2, 1921—a hundred years ago from this day—hails from a long line of Rays. His grandfather, Upendraishore Ray, was the first storyteller of the family, followed by father Sukumar Ray, master of the fun and formally experimental verse fondly remembered as the HaJaBaRaLa, a children’s novella often compared to Alice in Wonderland.

He used the various technicalities of filmmaking to express this language to the fullest. His preference for using lights and shadows in various angles to dramatise certain situations in the story was evident from his very first film. Exploring the appropriate use of different types of shots, close shots, pan shots, long shots to frame the flow of events in a lyrical manner with the limited technology available at that time was his speciality.

The nature of filmmaking in the 1930s and '40s was quite interesting. It was a time when movies in the Indian subcontinent were entirely dependent on music. A single feature length super hit movie sometimes contained even 60 to 70 songs.

The Daily Star is honoured to arrange a film screening and discussion of Charulata and Kanchenjunga, marking beloved author Satyajit Ray's 97th birthday.