[Points: Introduction—name of the film—director, writer, superb screen play, music, acting, direction and representation of rural life of India—acclaimed as one of the best films—international award winner—conclusion.]
I am not a regular film goer ; yet I have seen a couple of good Indian and foreign films. If I am asked to name my favourite film, without hesitation, I will vote for Pather Panchali. This film was produced by the Government of W. Bengal in 1956. From the very first show it created a stir among the film lovers. This film is the work of Satyajit Roy, the director, based on a novel of Bibhuti Bhusan Banerjee, the literary genius. Only after seeing the film I could under stand why this film has been universally acclaimed to be one of the best ever produced.
"Pather Panchali" means something like "Song of life". It is not a novel in the conventional sense. It is a narration of the day-to-day life of a poor family, the like of which can be found all over.
Harihar, the head of the family, is a poor Brahmin. He is barely able to make both ends meet as a poor village priest. He has his sister, his wife and two lively children Apu and Durga to look after. Apu and Durga are always full of life in spite of all round poverty. They live in their own world roaming about in the nature. They represent two harmless creatures who have nothing in home but so much in the nature to gather knowledge from.. One day Harihar leaves the village for several weeks to earn more for the family. In the meantime Durga dies after a short illness. Harihar learns this only after his return. Then he decides to leave his ancestral home for good. So, one day the family leaves for Beneras.
The story is simple and from this simple story Satyajit Roy created a superb film. One of the greatest qualities of the director is that he presented the film in such a way that one never felt that one was enjoy ing a film. Everything looked so natural. He did not neglect any detail. And the minutest details like rain drops falling on a bald head, the butterflies swinging about, Apu and Durga looking in amazement at the train for the first time in their life,-made this film a classic one. As for acting, it did never appear to me that they were acting in a film; they looked natural-they just fitted like a T to their respective roles. The scenario, photography, location shooting everything looked classic and flawless. And the director presented the film in such a nice manner that the filmgoers never feel that they are witnessing a world of make believe. I can never forget the scenes which ultimately signalled the deaths of Durga and Indira Thakrun. I think they are the best shots ever taken in celluloid. Last but not least, the music composed by Ravishankar was really soft and 'musical.' The background music of a street vendor hawking on streets closely followed by a stray dog by the side of a pond always haunts me. The music gave a strange poignancy to the film.
In short, the film reflects the life of the millions of rural popula tion. It has a universal appeal and that is why this film has won the hearts of its viewers and critics in different international film competi tions. I was told that even in the U.S.A. some critics expressed that it was an experience of a lifetime to see such a film. No wonder, it has won laurels all over the world. To sum up-it is not a film, it is a classic poem in celluloid.
