The World of Apu
The World of Apu | |
---|---|
Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay | |
Produced by | Satyajit Ray |
Starring | Soumitra Chatterjee Sharmila Tagore Alok Chakravarty Swapan Mukherjee |
Cinematography | Subrata Mitra |
Music by | Ravi Shankar |
Production company | Satyajit Ray Productions |
Release date |
|
Running time | 107 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Bengali |
Box office | ₹75–80 lakh[1] |
Apur Sansar (
Upon its release on 1 May 1959, The World of Apu was well-received by critics. It won the
Plot
In early 1940s, Apurba Kumar Roy (Apu) is an unemployed graduate (completed study up to the intermediate science) living in a rented room at
On the day of the marriage, it is revealed that the bridegroom has a serious mental disorder. The bride's mother cancels the marriage, despite the father's protests. He and the other villagers believe, according to prevalent Hindu tradition, that the young bride must be wedded off during the previously appointed auspicious hour, otherwise, she will have to remain unmarried all her life. Apu, after initially refusing when requested by a few villagers, ultimately decides to take Pulu's advice and come to the rescue of the bride by agreeing to marry her. He returns with Aparna to his apartment in Calcutta after the wedding. He takes up a clerical job, and a loving relationship begins to bloom between them. Yet, the young couple's blissful days are cut short when Aparna dies while giving birth to their son, Kajal. Apu is overcome with grief and holds the child responsible for his wife's death.
He shuns his worldly responsibilities and becomes a recluse – travelling to different corners of India, while the child is left with his maternal grandparents. Meanwhile, Apu throws away his manuscript for the novel he had been writing over the years. A few years later, Pulu finds Kajal growing wild and uncared for. He then seeks out Apu, who is working at a mining quarry and advises Apu one last time to take up his fatherly responsibility. At last, Apu decides to come back to reality and reunite with his son. When he reaches his in-laws' place, Kajal, having seen him for the first time in his life, at first does not accept him as a father. Eventually, he accepts Apu as a friend and they return to Calcutta together to start life afresh.
Cast
- Soumitra Chatterjee as Apu (Apurba Kumar Roy)
- Sharmila Tagore as Aparna, Apu's wife
- Swapan Mukherjee as Pulu
- Alok Chakravarty as Kajal
- Sefalika Devi as Sasinarayan's wife
- Dhiresh Majumdar as Sasinarayan
- Dhiren Ghosh as the landlord
Production
Ray wanted fresh faces again for the film like other two films in the
Despite being selected, as a debutant actor, Chatterjee was nevertheless unsure of his career choice and especially his looks, as he did not consider himself photogenic. However, on 9 August 1958, when the first shot of the film was given an okay in one take, he realized he had found his vocation.[4]
Awards
- National Film Awards (India)
- London Film Festival)
- Winner – 1960 – Sutherland Award for Best Original And Imaginative Film
- Winner – 1960 – Diploma Of Merit
- National Board of Review Awards(United States)
- Winner – Best Foreign Film
- British Academy Film Awards (United Kingdom)
- Nominated – 1962 – BAFTA Award for Best Film
Reception and legacy
At
In 1996, The World of Apu was included in Movieline Magazine's "100 Greatest Foreign Films".
At the Indian box office, the film earned a profit of ₹75–80 lakh for distributors.[1]
The World of Apu has been influential across the world. In Gregory Nava's 1995 film My Family, the final scene is duplicated from the final scene of Apur Sansar. The film's influence can also be seen in famous works such as several Philip Kaufman films.[18] References to The World of Apu are also found in several films by European filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard,[19] and in Paul Auster's 2008 novel Man in the Dark where two characters have a discussion about the film.[20] In 2012 the film was ranked #235 in the Sight & Sound Top 250 Films list.[21] The film is ranked 112 in Letterboxd's list of 250 greatest films of all time.[22]
Preservation
The
See also
- Cinema of West Bengal
- Parallel Cinema
- List of submissions to the 32nd Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- List of Indian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
References
- ^ a b "The India Magazine of Her People and Culture". The India Magazine of Her People and Culture. 16. A. H. Advani: 16. 1995. Archived from the original on 8 March 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
In 30 years, Apur Sansar and Teen Kanya have earned Rs 75 to 80 lakh for their Indian distributors.
- ^ a b Ray 1996, p. 131.
- ^ "Soumitra Chatterjee on his master Satyajit Ray". The Times of India. 9 May 2014. Archived from the original on 8 June 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ^ Anuradha SenGupta (29 June 2008). "Being Soumitra Chatterjee: Star of the East". CNN-IBN. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ^ "7th National Film Awards" (PDF). Directorate of Film Festivals. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
- ^ The World of Apu at Rotten Tomatoes
- ^ Aaron and Mark Caldwell (2004). "Sight and Sound". Top 100 Movie Lists. Archived from the original on 29 July 2009. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ "SIGHT AND SOUND 1982 RANKING OF FILMS". Archived from the original on 22 October 2009. Retrieved 29 May 2009.
- ^ "2002 Sight & Sound Top Films Survey of 253 International Critics & Film Directors". Cinemacom. 2002. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ Totaro, Donato (31 January 2003). "The "Sight & Sound" of Canons". Offscreen Journal. Canada Council for the Arts. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ "Take One: The First Annual Village Voice Film Critics' Poll". The Village Voice. 1999. Archived from the original on 26 August 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2006.
- ^ Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
- Filmsite.org. Archivedfrom the original on 5 February 2009. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ "Movieline's 100 Best Foreign Films". GreenCine. 6 April 2008. Archived from the original on 4 June 2009. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ Roger Ebert (4 March 2001). "The Apu Trilogy (1959)". rogerebert.com. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2009.
- ^ The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made Archived 22 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine, THE FILM CRITICS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES, The New York Times, 2002
- ^ "All-time 100 Movies". Time. Time Inc. 12 February 2005. Archived from the original on 23 May 2005. Retrieved 19 May 2008.
- ^ Steve Palopoli (8–15 October 2003). "Ghost 'World': The influential presence of Satyajit Ray's 'The World of Apu' lingers over some of the greatest American films of all time". Metroactive. Archived from the original on 18 May 2006. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
- ^ André Habib. "Before and After:Origins and Death in the Work of Jean-Luc Godard". Senses of Cinema. Archived from the original on 14 June 2006. Retrieved 29 June 2006.
- ^ Douglas Kennedy (19 September 2008). "Man in the Dark, by Paul Auster: Reflections from a hall of mirrors where the present changes shape". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
- ^ "Apur Sansar (1958)". bfi.org. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- letterboxd.com. Archivedfrom the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 8 January 2022.
- ^ a b c "The Restoration". Janus Films. Archived from the original on 11 July 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
Bibliography
- Ray, Satyajit (1996). My Years with Apu. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-024780-0.
External links
- The World of Apu at IMDb
- The World of Apu at Rotten Tomatoes
- The World of Apu at the TCM Movie Database
- The World of Apu at AllMovie
- Apur Sansar Archived 29 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine at SatyajitRay.org