Pather Panchali

Pather Panchali (1955)

by Satyajit Ray

What is it?

Pather Panchali is the story of a family in rural India during the 20s (but it may be yesterday as well). The father, a priest and writer, struggles to support his wife and his two kids Durga and Apu who live in the deteriorated ancestral home. This movie is a story of family and childhood memories. It is a lyrical narration of the life, tragedies and little happiness of an impoverished family

Memorable scene

This film is visually stunning and all the images are composed with great care and technical skill. In my favourite scene Durga and Apu run across a field of tall grass and giant feather looking plants trying to catch a glimpse of the train that they have heard several times but never seen.

Did you know?

The music for Pather Panchali was composed by an emerging sitar player called Ravi Shankar. The same Ravi Shankar that played at Woodstock and became an internationally recognized musician. Even John Coltrane name his son Ravi Coltrane after Shankar.

Why is it worth watching this movie?

Pather Panchali is a movie which manages to bring the simplicity of life into a lyrical level. Enriched by the stunning images and brilliant music, the life and tragedy of this poor family becomes beautiful and eternal. This film has some of the sweetest childhood memories I have seen on the screen: the kids following the candy seller, gathering to watch image shown in the bioscope or following a theater play.

I have to confess that for me it was not an easy film to watch, it flows slowly with serenity and patience requiring lots of attention. But it brought to me the sweet aftertaste of a poem and its sequences linger and keep growing in my memory.