10 Films That Redefined Bengali Cinema

Apur Sansar is the third part of the classic “Apu Trilogy” directed by iconic Bengali director Satyajit Ray. The film is about the early adulthood of a young Bengali named “Apu” played by veteran actor Soumitra Chatterjee and is an emotional landscape with its realistic portrayal of the protagonist’s emotions on celluloid. It helped to put Indian and Bengali films on the world map and is referred to as a classic and has been part of every greatest movie list in the world.

The film written and directed by Ritwik Ghatak is based on a social novel by Shaktipada Rajguru with the same title. “Meghe Dhaka Tara” is strongly melodramatic in tone, as it focusses on the sufferings mounted on the protagonist. Ghatak uses surrealistic sound effects such as sounds of a lashing as the heroine suffers a tragic twist of fate. Considered his greatest commercial success, it coincided with an international film movement towards personal stories and innovative techniques ('new wave').

This Uttam Kumar starrer revolves around a matinee idol on a train journey to receive a national award who ends up revealing his mistakes, insecurities and regrets to a young journalist. Her initial contempt for people like him turns into empathy, as she realizes that behind all the stardom is actually a deeply lonely man and thus decides not to publish what he has revealed. His life journey is gradually revealed through seven flashbacks and two dreams during the train ride in this masterpiece by Satyajit Ray.

This Bengali film directed by Tapan Sinha is set against the backdrop of the political violence that rocked West Bengal in particular in the late 1960s. It is the story of an aged widow in a village who goes to Calcutta to stay with relatives but faces only exploitation. She moves to a slum and finds her "own people" in a group of educated, unemployed youth, who are caught up relentlessly in the prevalent violence which has apparent political fervor which leads to a melodramatic climax, ending with a tragic resolution.

This Bengali fantasy-adventure​ comedy film directed by Satyajit Ray and based on a story by his grandfather Upendra Kishore Roychowdhury. This is the first among a series of films based on the same lead characters. This film showcased the cinematic genius as well as the versatility of Satyajit Ray and is considered as one of the strongest antiwar films ever made.

Acclaimed Bengali director Mrinal Sen used the structure of film within the film framework that really left an impact. In this movie the protagonist is making a film on drought gets caught up in the realities of drought, and this struggle of making a film on a subject and finds himself embroiled up in the reality of it created magic on celluloid.

National award winning director Aparna Sen made a ground breaking impact by taking the subject of an unconventional relationship, ie between a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. The film explored the dual themes of friendship and loneliness as the characters despite differences in age, backgrounds and temperaments, build a strong bond together. What is fascinating about the movie is the matured performances and the nuanced subtle handling of relationships.

The film is a quiet drama about a lonely, sad, unfortunate middle-aged woman “Banalata” (Kiron Kher) whose life is jolted to excitement when a film crew rents her sprawling home. This Rituparno Ghosh venture has the two absolutely stunning dream sequences ever effectively used in any film. The haunting loneliness of the protagonist turned out to be a sheer masterclass in filmmaking.

This Bengali drama film by director filmmaker Kaushik Ganguly, starred Rituparno Ghosh and Indraneil Sengupta in lead role where Ghosh played a gay filmmaker. The film follows documentary filmmaker Abhirup who is making a film on “Chapal Bhaduri” a Jatra artist who used to enact female characters. This film was the first film on homosexuality to be shot after the decriminalisation of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. What works for the movie is its technique, performances and storytelling. The way it went to and and fro between two time and space zones with the use of intertemporal resonances is commendable as Abhirup’s life start resonating with Bhaduri which is captured very aesthetically.

As far as comedy is concerned in Bengal, this film by director Anik Dutt turned out to be a game changer. With the entire script being in verse, it came across as something fresh in script content. It is of the most intelligent and satiric comedies one has seen in a long time in Bengali cinema. The film enjoyed both critical and commercial success and is considered an iconic film of the recent times now.