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soumitra chatterjee#62

’ Ray knew everything about acting’ _ Soumitra talks about Ray’s precise handling of actors, his innate shyness and his immense personality’ ( interview recorded in 1999 backstage, after a theatre performance )

 

this short film is branch#62 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee#61

’ don’t cry, because Satyajit Ray has given you a heritage _ Soumitra Chatterjee remembers how he learned about Ray’s death, and what were his first thoughts ( “I lost a friend, I lost my mentor” ), and about his best memories linked with Ray ( “this long association seems like one big day” )

( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#61 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee#60

’ he treated them as equals ‘ _ Soumitra Chatterjee talks about Ray’s special handling of child actors, explains about the script sessions and the influence his wife Bijoya might have had on his work. ( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#60 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee#59

’ this theme is always present in Ray’s films, a human being trying to develop himself, widening his horizon. From that point of view, those characters are all extensions of Apu ‘_ Soumitra Chatterjee talks about ‘Days and nights in the forest’ ( “ this was the first film where for the first time we could get a glimpse of the mind of contemporary young men of Calcutta “ ), and about the systematic presence in Ray’s films of a character with a larger truth. ( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#59 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee#58

Tagore represents this unshakable faith in human goodness, in man’s future, and in man’s capacity to transcend the barriers of regional or personal or even paroquial limitations ‘_ In this long excerpt Soumitra talks about the subtleties of the Bengali language the subtitles can’t convey, about his collaboration with Madhabi Mukherjee, about Tagore’s influence on Ray, about Ray’s handling of the camera, and during a tea break, starts reflecting on today’s Calcutta. ( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#58 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee#57

‘ in the film Devi, Ray was not attacking Hinduism itself, he was attacking superstitions, he was attacking the archaic nature of religion ‘_ Soumitra Chatterjee talks about Devi and about Ray’s interest in human psychology. ‘I think that is the reason why I always felt so good working with Satyajit Ray, because that supplies a lot of meat to the actor”.

this short film is branch#57 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee #4

Homme de lettres, réalisateur et acteur de cinéma et de théâtre, Soumitra Chatterjee est l’acteur d’élection de Ray. Dans cette longue interview filmée en 1999 à Jorasanko ( la maison de Tagore à Calcutta ), Soumitra retrace humblement son parcours dans la filmographie de Ray et revisite quelques-uns des personnages emblématiques qu’il a si brillament incarnés. Témoignage lucide et poignant d’un immense artiste, au plus près de Ray.

 ‘working with Ray over the years, i came to sort of understand what he wants from me’ _ Soumitra Chatterjee talks about the strong connection he had with Ray, and about the way they worked together ( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta ).

this short film is branch#4 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

soumitra chatterjee #3

 ‘Ray learned the craft of filmmaking while shooting’ _ Soumitra Chatterjee talks about the double apprenticeship of Apu and Ray, the spirit of discovery, ‘the journey of a man towards a more complete self’, and about the essential artistic contribution of Bansi Chandragupta and Subrata Mitra in Ray’s early films.
( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#3 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray

soumitra chatterjee #2

 ‘after seeing Pather Panchali, we knew that Indian cinema would never be the same again’ _ Soumitra Chatterjee remembers how he was chosen by Ray to play in Apur Sansar, the first days of shooting, working with Sharmila Tagore, …
( interview recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta )

this short film is branch#2 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’

 

soumitra chatterjee #1

‘through acting in Ray’s films, i get glimpses of the answers to my own problems’ _ Soumitra Chatterjee reflects beautifully upon the positive attitute towards life that found its way to his own heart by acting in Ray’s films
( recorded in 1999 at Jorasanko Thakurbari, north Calcutta)

this short film is branch#1 of a big tree entitled ‘memories of ray’