Aparajito (1956)

Director:

Satyajit Ray

Writers:

Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay (novel)
Satyajit Ray (writer)

Release Date:

1956 (India)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A boy leaves home to study in Calcutta, while his mother must face a life alone.

Plot Keywords:

Loss Of Mother | College Student | Death In Family | Sequel | Loss Of Father

Awards:

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 3 wins

Cast

Kanu Bannerjee	...	Harihar Ray
Karuna Bannerjee	...	Sarbojaya Ray
Pinaki Sengupta	...	Apu (young)
Smaran Ghosal	...	Apu (adolescent)
Santi Gupta	...	Ginnima
Ramani Sengupta	...	Bhabataran
Ranibala	...	Teliginni
Sudipta Roy	...	Nirupama
Ajay Mitra	...	Anil
Charuprakash Ghosh	...	Nanda
Subodh Ganguli	...	Headmaster
Mani Srimani	...	Inspector
Hemanta Chatterjee	...	Professor
Kali Bannerjee	...	Kathak
Kalicharan Roy	...	Akhil, press owner
Kamala Adhikari	...	Mokshada
Lalchand Banerjee	...	Lahiri
K.S. Pandey	...	Pandey
Meenakshi Devi	...	Pandey's wife
Anil Mukherjee	...	Abinash
Harendrakumar Chakravarti	...	Doctor
Bhaganu Palwan	...	Palwan

Directed by
Satyajit Ray

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay		novel "Aparajito"
Satyajit Ray		writer

Produced by
Satyajit Ray	....	producer

Original Music by
Ravi Shankar

Cinematography by
Subrata Mitra

Film Editing by
Dulal Dutta

Production Design by
Bansi Chandragupta

Sound Department
Durgadas Mitra	....	sound

Production Companies

• Epic Productions

Distributors

• Merchant Ivory Productions (1995) (USA) (theatrical) (restored version)
• Sony Pictures Classics (1995) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Divisa Home Video (2004) (Spain) (DVD)
• Edward Harrison (1959) (USA) (subtitled)
• Umbrella Entertainment (2009) (Australia) (DVD)

Also Known As:

The Unvanquished

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

India

Language:

Bengali

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:G | Argentina:13 | Canada:G (Ontario/Québec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Finland:S

Filming Locations:

Calcutta, West Bengal, India

Company:

Epic Productions

Trivia:

This adaptation of Bibhutibhushan Bannerjee's work uses the last section from his novel "Pather Panchali" and the first section of its sequel, "Aparajito".

Quotes:

Sarbojaya Ray: What is there at Keoratola?
Apu: [sleepily] Burning hot...
Sarbojaya Ray: What?
Apu: They have cremations.
Sarbojaya Ray: I see... I hope you're careful on the roads. When are your finals? After that you can get a job and I'll stay with you. Will you have me? Will that ever be, I wonder? Who knows how long one has to live? Suppose I fall seriously ill,,,I'm not so well as I used to be. In the evenings I'm often feverish, I've no appetite. I thought of telling you...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Documentary/Fiction

Each of the three films of the Apu Trilogy exhibit the extraordinary quality of a documentary film on the conditions of life in India at the time they are set. I think this is what I like best in them through numerous viewings. The films are shot in locations that appear untouched by any art department - remote countryside in Bengal, the great cities - Benares and Calcutta. The characters eke out an adequate life in their sufficient poverty - a life sustained by their faith and simple devotion to one another. At the same time there are moments that are pure cinema. There is an exquisite swish pan cut from Kurana (the mother) leaning against a tree, full of emptiness as Apu has just left for Calcutta, to the swift dynamo of the train crossing a bridge with the trestles a blur. At the moment Kanu (the father) gives up his soul a flock of birds alights over the Ganges. Later as Kurana is gradually sinking into the depths of loneliness - a sickness unto death - she has a vision of fireflies swirling around in the falling darkness.

These films traverse the drama of life and death touching gently on all of the salient points along the path. They put us face to face with the challenge of living in a world, which constantly give us disappointment. At the same time there is a celebration of that ineffable quality which gives life meaning.