10 lesser-known facts about Satyajit Ray

Ray used to work for a British advertising agency as a junior visualiser. He worked with the D.J. Keymer company from 1943 up until the release first directorial Pather Panchali which cemented his place as a professional filmmaker back in 1956. During his advertising days, he gave some brilliant innovative advertising campaigns, which showed his passion for typography and illustration. So, you may call him an ad-man also!

Before he stepped into the industry as a filmmaker, Ray founded the first film club in Kolkata in 1947. ‘Battleship Potemkin’ was the first film to be screened in this club. He even wrote many thought-provoking articles on cinema for newspapers and started to create superb screenplays. Such was the passion that whenever someone announced a film based on a novel or story, he would immediately script his own version and compare it with the main film. This initiative became his big step towards filmmaking.

During a trip to London back in 1950, Ray watched a staggering 100 films. He was already planning to make ‘Pather Panchali’ at that time. He even used to pitch an innovative way of making films to his close friends. His proposed filmmaking process included actors with fresh, new without makeup and shooting on location. But nobody believed in him. But on the London trip, a screening of Vittorio De Sica’s ‘Bicycle Thieves’ turned out to be the ultimate push he required in filmmaking. The innovative, realistic treatment Vittorio used actually inspired him and also convinced him to make Pather Panchali on his own procedure, just the way he had always dreamt.

Many believe ‘Pather Panchali’ was a leap of faith for Satyajit Ray and his team. From finding out the financial backing, to selecting the right cast and shooting locations, it was an unbelievable task. When a shortage of funds hit the film, Ray even sold his life insurance policy while his wife pawned her jewellery to get out of the financial crisis. It took a marathon three years to complete the shoot. Satyajit Ray used to describe the making of ‘Pather Panchali’ nothing but a series of miracles: “One, Apu’s voice did not break. Two, Durga did not grow up. Three, Indir Thakrun did not die.” The rest was history. This masterpiece took Indian cinema on the global map.

With an extraordinary cinematic vision, Ray enthralled us with his works and grabbed as many as six National Awards for Best Director. This is still an unmatched achievement in the history of Indian cinema. He won these awards for ‘Chiriyakhana’ (1967), ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’ (1968), ‘Pratidwandi’ (1969), ‘Sonar Kella’ (1974), ‘Jana Aranya’ (1975) and ‘Agantuk’ (1991). He even won the National Award for Best Music Director twice – for ‘Ashanti Sankt’ (1973) and ‘Hirak Rajar Deshe’ (1980).

Ray made a documentary named ‘Sikkim’ in 1971 based on the landlocked state. It was initially commissioned by the Chogyal (king) of Sikkim, despite his growing concerns of China and India threatening the jurisdiction of the divine land. When Sikkim eventually came under India’s control in 1975, the documentary was banned by Indian Government. However, the ban was lifted in 2010.

One of his finest works, ‘Kanchenjunga’ (1962) is the first coloured Bengali film and is also regarded as the first Indian anthology film. People who are familiar with Ray's Apu Trilogy will find it hard to digest the fact that the same Ray is the director of this film. ‘Kanchenjungha’, set in the hilly areas, revolves around the 20th-century problems in a pristine location. Problems that we try to hide in daily life are revealed and exposed to everybody. It’s like people are revealing themselves as Kanchenjungha is exposed through bright sunlight.

He was awarded the Legion of Honour by the President of France in 1987. France has always recognized extraordinary accomplishments in many fields. These Décorations, as they are widely known, include such societies, or Orders, like the National Order of the Legion of Honor, the Order of Academic Palms, and the Order of Arts and Letters.

He was awarded the honorary Doctorate by Oxford University, the second film personality to receive the honour after Charlie Chaplin, another icon of world cinema. Many believe this honour is more prestigious than the honorary Oscar he received in 1992 for his lifetime achievement.

Satyajit Ray launched the career of Sharmila Tagore and Soumitra Chattopadhyay (with whom he frequently collaborated) in Apur Sansar (1959); the latter being cast in 14 of his films. Some of Ray’s landmark movies in which Soumitra starred include ‘Sonar Kella’, ‘Jai Baba Felunath’, ‘Charulata’, ‘Ghare Baire’, ‘Ashani Sanket’, ‘Devi’, ‘Abhijan’, ‘Aranyer Din Ratri’ and ‘Ganashatru’. After ‘Apur Sansar’, he also worked with Sharmila Tagore in a number of films.