![]() It drowns when its owner dies, as unceremoniously as Indir does. It is only when she dies and it tumbles down the rough slope at the unwitting touch of Durga that the camera closes in and follows its movement until it splashes into the water, and we see that it is badly dented, much like the life of its owner. Interestingly, Ray does not focus on this brass vessel much, so we do not pay attention to it either. It is only when her own children’s survival is at stake that Sarbajaya turns her face against the old woman, and she dies like an animal”, writes Chidananda Dasgupta in The Cinema of Satyajit Ray. While she was alive, the two children, Apu and Durga, loved her “not so much because she was their aunt, as because she represents a mysterious force of life and death that fascinates them through her stories of the witch and other fairy tales. The vessel that holds her water suggests the reality of her tragic death as it tumbles down the stones noisily, suggesting that she is no more. Indir is introduced with a close-up of a brass bowl filled with some mishmash, and then the camera tracks back to show the bent, toothless woman eating from the bowl. The dented brass vessel that the doddering aunt Indir Thakrun carries with her defines the abject despair of the old woman’s impoverished, unwanted life. However, it is in Pather Panchali that we see hunger at its starkest. One is Pather Panchali, the second is Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne, and the third is Asani Sanket. It's a serene work of art that captures the beauty in the minutia of life, and I am very excited to see where this trilogy goes.WHunger finds a prominent place in three films by Satyajit Ray, reflecting three completely different backdrops, though hunger is a significant sub-plot in all three narratives, each one a ‘period’ piece in a manner of speaking. ![]() "Pather Panchali" is a film that you should just let wash over you like summer rain. Each theme is so naturally ingrained into the story and these characters, that you don't really understand the true gravity of them until the film is over. ![]() Family is a huge subject for the film, and the struggles and sacrifices each family must make. Commentary on the circular nature of life is made through beautifully blocked shots of the elderly Auntie and the children. Class struggles and the reality of poverty are touched upon without feeling melodramatic, as demonstrated by the scene where Apu and Durga. There are many themes present throughout the film. From the ceremonious reveal of grown Apu under the blanket, to the silenced pain of his father losing his daughter, the film knows when to inject a dose of cinema, and when to let the images speak for themselves. Intimate moments of both great happiness and terrible sadness are the only plot this film needs, and much like the titular Apu, the film wanders and observes these moments through curious eyes. The full focus of the film is life itself, and the film ebbs and flows through the highs and lows that make up a life. These beautiful moments add up to a film that manages to show the beauty of life in a way that feels so natural, yet cinematic. Shots of lily pads flipping in the rain, shots of snakes bursting through the surface of mossy ponds, and shots of kittens playfully wrestling in the corners of the frame. Beautifully blocked shots capture all the minutia of life in the small village of Nischindipur, and Ray captures these little details so well it is almost frightening to think of how much time must've been waiting for those perfect shots. The film treats the beauty of everyday life with the same cinematic gravitas as another director would with a car chase or a shootout. ![]() Well, after last week's sale, I finally bought the trilogy and started it last night, and just. I have been wanting to tackle the Apu trilogy for quite some time now, but have been waiting for a Criterion sale to get them.
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