India

Along with Franz Osten and Himanshu Rai, Niranjan Pal was extremely important in the making of this film. A synopsis from his memoirs:

This story was about “the ill-fated love of a Brahmin boy for a scheduled caste girl. As no equivalent film title could be found for Level Crossing, Himansu agreed to Achhut Kanya much to my disgust. The film was shot, edited and readied for release in just eight weeks and turned out to be an outstanding success. The Congress leader, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, specially came to Bombay to see the film at the Roxy cinema and gave it unstinted praise. Devika was hailed as the Queen of the Indian screen, though Ashok Kumar was to wait for a few years before having a similar distinction.” (Such is Life), ed. Lalit Mohan Joshi and Kusum Joshi, p. 240).Read More »

Chiriakhana or Chiriyakhana (Bengali: চিড়িয়াখানা; English: The Zoo) is a 1967 Indian Bengali-language crime thriller film, based on the story of the same name by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, directed by Satyajit Ray starring Uttam Kumar as Byomkesh Bakshi. The screenplay is written by Satyajit Ray.Read More »

Ritwik Ghatak’s final film (made two years before his untimely death) features Ghatak himself in the role of Nilkantha Bagchi (the name is deliberately chosen to draw parallels between Lord Shiva’s blue throat after having swallowed all the poisons-of-the-world during the churning of the ocean and the character in the film), an alcoholic intellectual nearing the end of his life who journeys forth through Bengal, deep into the fabric of his past life, loves, and friendships. It is a not-so-veiled self-portrait of the director himself.Read More »

STUDENT DOCUMENTARY – IT CONCERNS TWO YOUNG COUPLES ON A VISIT TO THE AJANTA CAVES. THE FILM OBSERVES THEIR INTERACTION THEREBY WEAVING SUBTLE CHARACTER STUDIES ON A PERSONAL KEY.Read More »

‘Let us declare that the state of war does exist and shall exist’, the revolutionary patriot had said almost a hundred years ago, and that forewarning travels into India’s present, as armed insurrection simmers in Bastar, in the troubled heart of central India. To the east too, beleaguered adivasis from the mineral-rich hills of Odisha come forth bearing their axes, and their songs. And in the north the swelling protests by Punjabi peasants sees hope coagulate – once more – around that iconic figure of Bhagat Singh, revolutionary martyr of the anti-colonial struggle. Read More »

Set against the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the film’s main plot concerns a small platoon of Indian soldiers in the hilly terrain of Ladakh who are considered dead but are rescued by Ladakhi tribesmen and by Capt. Bahadur Singh (Dharmendra). They are asked to retreat from their post (chowky) as the Chinese have surrounded them. Capt. Bahadur Singh and his girlfriend Angmo (Priya Rajvansh) die holding the Chinese at bay so that their comrades can retreat to safety. But even the retreating soldiers are heavily outnumbered and give up their lives for the country.Read More »

The time is immediately before World War II. The place a remote village in Bengal. Priyanath, a middle aged man and the last offspring of a once wealthy family, gets married to a lovely teenage girl to please his widowed mother. Overcoming the initial inhibitions, he starts enjoying the happiness of a normal married life.Read More »

Page 3′ takes a behind-the-scenes look at A-list celebrity lifestyles through the eyes of a female entertainment journalist. It explores the power-play between the rich and famous and the media. It is also the story of three girls trying to make a decent living in an indecent societyRead More »

Quote:
Nita (Supriya Choudhury), breaks a sandal while passing through the market square, and without complaining, continues barefoot on the graveled street, unable to buy a replacement pair of sandals for the walk home. Patently aware that Nita has received her monthly salary, her talented, but indolent older brother Shankar (Anil Chatterjee) pays an unexpected visit, and encountering Nita absorbed in reading a personal letter from a suitor named Sanat (Niranjan Ray), playfully snatches the note and reads aloud its affectionate contents, before asking her for spending money.Read More »