What Sachit Thinks

Charulata (1964): When Ray’s Subtlety Turns Elusive | Satyajit Ray Film Review Charulata (1964): When Ray’s Subtlety Turns Elusive Charulata (1964) is not Satyajit Ray’s best work. In fact, for a film so routinely described as one of his most “perfect” creations, it left me oddly cold. The lonely-housewife-in-love idea is buried so deep under restraint and suggestion that the emotion almost evaporates. I honestly couldn’t tell what Charulata felt for Amal, her brother-in-law—was it love, attraction, intellectual excitement, or just the relief of being noticed? Ray wants us to read between the lines, but here the lines are so faint that the reading becomes guesswork. The Story: Quiet Loneliness in a Grand House Set in late 19th-century Calcutta, Charulata follows a wealthy but emotionally neglected housewife married to Bhupati Dutta, a well-meaning intellectual who runs a political newspaper. Bhupati ...

Mahanagar (1963): A Simple Woman in a Big City | Sachit Murthy Mahanagar (1963): Satyajit Ray’s Quiet Revolt Satyajit Ray returns to black and white after Kanchenjunga with Mahanagar in 1963. Man, this fellow could churn out films at an astonishing pace. And he returns with a bang. This one is an absolute classic. Mahanagar is the story of Arati Mazumdar, played by Madhabi Mukherjee . A simple housewife in an orthodox household, the film charts Arati’s journey—from being gently hemmed in by domestic expectations to stepping out into the world to financially support her family, and finally to standing up to injustice, even at the cost of upsetting the very financial applecart that sustains them. Madhabi Mukherjee as Arati Mazumdar — a woman whose revolution is ethical, not theatrical. The film makes a strong statement on the value of women in society, and not just through Arati. Ray spreads this id...

Kanchenjunga (1962): Ray’s Cinema of Contrasts, Concealed by Colour and Clouds Kanchenjunga (1962): Ray’s Cinema of Contrasts, Concealed by Colour and Clouds Kanchenjunga occupies a quietly distinctive place in Satyajit Ray’s body of work. It is his first colour film, and yet it never behaves like one. There is no chromatic bravado here, no announcement that Ray has “arrived” at colour. Instead, the palette is muted, patient, almost reticent. Greens breathe softly, greys drift in and out, and sunlight appears only when it feels earned. Colour in Kanchenjunga is not decoration—it is temperament. And that choice is telling, because Kanchenjunga is a film built almost entirely on contrasts. Ray structures the film around people who reflect, resist, or quietly negate one another. There is very little conventional drama. No major events. No revelations that explode into action. Instead, Ray places contrasting personalities in proximity and ...

Abhijan (1962) — A Masterclass in Character Building | Sachit’s Blog Abhijan (1962) — A Masterclass in Character Building Cinema Context — Why Abhijan (1962) Matters Soumitra Chatterjee is fast becoming Satyajit Ray's blue-eyed boy. Already, this great actor has featured in four of Ray's movies: Apur Sansar , Devi , The Postmaster , and now Abhijan . His collaboration with Ray is a fascinating study in trust and depth — Ray seems to sense and harness every subtlety in Soumitra’s performance. Watching Abhijan is as much about understanding Soumitra as it is about understanding Ray’s filmmaking ethos. Character Building: The Heart of Abhijan Narsingh is one of the most complex characters in Ray’s filmography. A proud Rajput, a taxi driver by circumstance, and a man wrestling with internal rage, he embodies a collision of class, ego, and suppressed emotion. Ray never spells out his inner conflicts; he lets Soumi...