Ritwik Ghatak (Bengali: ঋত্বিক কুমার ঘটক) (4 November 1925 – 6 February 1976) was aBengali filmmaker and script writer. Along with prominent contemporary Bengali filmmakers Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen, his cinema is primarily remembered for its meticulous depiction of social reality. Although their roles were often adversarial, they were ardent admirers of each other's work and, in doing so, the three directors charted the independent trajectory of parallel cinema, as a counterpoint to the mainstream fare of Hindi cinema in India. Ghatak received many awards in his career, including National Film Award's Rajat Kamal Award for Best Story in 1974 for his Jukti Takko Aar Gappo and Best Director's Award from Bangladesh Cine Journalist's Association for Titash Ekti Nadir Naam. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri for Arts in 1970.
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Early life
Ritwik Ghatak was born in Dhaka in East Bengal (now Bangladesh). Ghatak's father Suresh Chandra Ghatak was a district magistrate and a poet and playwright; his mother's name was Indubala Devi. He and his twin sister Prateeti, were the youngest of nine children. The other children were Manish, Sudhish, Tapati, Sampreeti, Brototi, Ashish Chandra and Lokesh Chandra. He and his family moved to Calcutta (now Kolkata) just before millions of other refugees from East Bengal began to flood into the city, fleeing the catastrophic Bengal famine of 1943 and the partition of Bengal in 1947. Identification with this tide of refugees was to define his practice, providing an over-riding metaphor for cultural dismemberment and exile that unified his subsequent creative work. The 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, which led to more refugees fleeing to India, was to have a similar impact on his work.
Creative career
In 1948, Ghatak wrote his first play Kalo sayar (The Dark Lake) and participated in a revival of the landmark play Nabanna. In 1951, Ghatak joined the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA). He wrote, directed and acted in plays and translated Bertolt Brecht and Gogol into Bengali. In early 1970s, he wrote and directed his last play Jwala (The Burning). The music director was Darbar Bhaduri, who was called by Ghatak 'Dada' or 'Guru' from his childhood. Ghatak was greatly inspired by Darbar Bhaduri. In Rajshahi, Bangladeh—his homeland Ritwik lived beside Bhaduri's house. Almost all time he was with Darbar Bhaduri. Darbar Bhaduri was a 'King maker' who kept away from outside world. Ghatak by pressure made Darbar Bhaduri the music director of Jwala, and the music was extraordinary.
Ghatak entered the film industry with Nimai Ghosh's Chinnamul (1950) as actor and assistant director. Chinnamul was followed in two years by Ghatak's first completed filmNagarik (1952), both major breakthroughs for the Indian cinema. Ghatak's early work sought theatrical and literary precedent in bringing together a documentary realism, a stylised performance often drawn from the folk theatre, and a Brechtian use of the filmic apparatus.
Ghatak's first commercial release was Ajantrik (1958), a comedy-drama film with science fiction themes. It was one of the earliest Indian films to portray an inanimate object, in this case an automobile, as a character in the story.
Ghatak's greatest commercial success as a script writer was for Madhumati (1958), one of the earliest films to deal with the theme of reincarnation. It was a Hindi film directed by another Bengali filmmaker Bimal Roy. It earned Ghatak his first award nomination, for the Filmfare Best Story Award.
Ritwik Ghatak directed eight full-length films. His best-known films, Meghe Dhaka Tara (The Cloud-Capped Star) (1960), Komal Gandhar (E-Flat) (1961), and Subarnarekha(Golden Lining) (1962), a trilogy based in Calcutta and addressing the condition of refugee-hood, proved controversial and the commercial failure of Komal Gandhar (E-Flat) andSubarnarekha prevented him from making features through the remainder of the 1960s. In all three, he used a basic and at times starkly realistic storyline, upon which he inscribed a range of mythic references, especially of the 'Mother Deliverer', through a dense overlay of visual and aural registers.
Ghatak returned to filmmaking in the 1970s, when a Bangladeshi producer financed the 1973 epic Titash Ekti Nadir Naam (A River Called Titas). Making films became difficult because of his poor health due to extreme alcoholism and consequent diseases. His last film was the autobiographical Jukti Takko Aar Gappo (Reason, Debate And Story) (1974), in which he portrayed Neelkantha (Nilkanth) the lead character.[13] He also had a number of incomplete feature and short films in his credit.Ghatak moved briefly to Pune in 1966, where he taught at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). During his year at FTII, he was involved in the making of two student films: Fear and Rendezvous.
Filmography
Film
Director and scriptwriter
Year | Film | English Title | Actors | Release Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
1952 | Nagarik | The Citizen | Kali Banerjee, Prabha Devi, Shobha Sen | Premiere: 20 September 1977.
Release: 30 September 1977.
|
1958 | Ajantrik | The Unmechanical / The Pathetic Fallacy | Kali Banerjee, Anil Chatterjee, Tulsi Chakrabarti | 23 May 1958 |
1958 | Bari Theke Paliye | The Runaway | Kali Banerjee, Gnanesh Mukherjee, Keshto Mukherjee. Jahor Roy | 24 July 1959 |
1960 | Meghe Dhaka Tara | The Cloud-Capped Star | Anil Chatterjee, Supriya Choudhuri, Bijon Bhattacharya, Gita Ghatak, Gita Dey | 14 April 1960 |
1961 | Komal Gandhar | E-Flat | Supriya Choudhuri, Gita Dey, Anil Chatterjee, Bijon Bhattacharya | 31 march 1961 |
1962 | Subarnarekha | Subarnarekha | Abhi Bhattacharya, Madhabi Mukherjee, Bijon Bhattacharya, Ritwik Ghatak | 1 October 1965 |
1973 | Titash Ekti Nadir Naam | A River Called Titash | Rosi Ahmed, Kaberi Choudhuri, Fakirul Hasan Bairagi, Ritwik Ghatak | 27 July 1973 |
1974 | Jukti Takko Aar Gappo | Reason, Debate and a Story | Ritwik Ghatak, Tripti Mitra, Snaoli Mitra, Gnanesh Mukherjee, Jahor Roy,Utpal Dutt | 30 September 1977 |
Story & Scriptwriter
Year | Film | Director | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|
1957 | Musafir | Hrishikesh Mukherjee | Script |
1958 | Madhumati | Bimal Roy | Story & Script |
1960 | Swaralipi | Asit Sen | Script |
1962 | Kumari Mon | Chitrarath | Script |
1963 | Deeper Nam Tiya Rong | Gurudas Bagchi | Script |
1965 | Rajkanya | Sunil Banerjee | Story & Script |
1968 | Heerer Prajapati (Hindi) | Santi P. Choudhury | Script |
Actor
Year | Film | Director |
---|---|---|
1950 | Tathapi | Manoj Bhattacharya |
1951 | Chinnamul | Nimai Ghosh |
1962 | Kumari Mon | Chitrarath |
1962 | Subarnarekha | Ritwik Ghatak |
1973 | Titash Ekti Nadir Naam | Ritwik Ghatak |
1974 | Jukti Takko Aar Gappo | Ritwik Ghatak |
Short films and documentaries
- The Life of the Adivasis (1955)
- Places of Historic Interest in Bihar (1955)
- Scissors (1962)
- Ustad Alauddin Khan (1963)
- Fear (1965)
- Rendezvous (1965)
- Civil Defence (1965)
- Scientists of Tomorrow (1967)
- Yeh Kyon (Why/The Question) (1970)
- Amar Lenin (My Lenin) (1970)
- Puruliar Chhau (The Chhau Dance of Purulia) (1970)
- Durbar Gati Padma (The Turbulent Padma) (1971)
Incomplete films and documentaries
- Bedeni (1951)
- Kato Ajanare (1959)
- Bagalar Banga Darshan (1964–65)
- Ronger Golam (1968)
- Ramkinkar (1975)
Films on Ritwik Ghatak
- Ekti Nadir Naam (The Name of a River) (2002) by Anup Singh.[2]
- Meghe Dhaka Tara (2013) directed by Kamaleshwar Mukherjee.
- The Ritwik Ghatak Experience (2019) directed by Arin Paul.[3]
Screenplays aborted before shooting
- Raja (1956)
- Amritokumbher Sandhane (1957)
- Akal Basonto (1957)
- Arjan Sardar (1958)
- Balidan (1962)
- Aranyak (1963)
- Nakshi Kanthar Math (1963)
- Elephant taming in Gouripur (1963)
- Shyam Se Neha Lagei (1964)
- Janmabhumi (Pandit Mashai) (1965)
- Chaturanga (1966)
- Hirer Prajapati (1966)
- Sansar Simante (1968)
- Echoes from Vietnam in Bengal (1968)
- Kumar Sambhaber Ashtom Swargo (1969)
- Sat Lahari
- Natun Phasal
- Ajay and Gabroo
- Those forgotte ones
- Shei Bishnupriya (1974)
- Mannequin (1974)
- Hath
- Princess Kalaboti
- Buddhu Bhutum (1975)
- Lojja (1975)
Theatre
- Chandragupto (Dwijendralal Ray), actor
- Achalayoton (Tagore) (1943), director and actor
- Kalo Sayor (Ghatak) (1947–48), actor and director
- Kalonko (Bhattacharya) (1951), actor
- Dolil (Ghatak) (1952), actor and director
- Kato Dhane Kato Chaal (Ghatak)(1952)
- Officer (Gogol) (1953), actor,
- Ispaat (Ghatak) (1954–55), un-staged
- Khorir Gondi (Brecht)
- Galileo Chorit (Brecht)
- Jagoran (Atindra Mozumdar), actor
- Jalonto (Ghatak)
- Jwala (Ghatak)
- Dakghar (Tagore)
- Dheu (Biru Mukhopadhay)
- Dhenki Swarge geleo Dhan bhane (Ghatak/Panu Paul)
- Natir Puja (Tagore)
- Nabanna (Bhattacharya)
- Nildarpan (Dinabandhu Mitra), actor
- Nicher Mahal (Gorky), un-staged
- Netajike nie (Ghatak)
- Poritran (Tagore)
- Falguni (Tagore)
- Bidyasagar (Banaphool)
- Bisarjan (Tagore)
- Vangabandor (Panu Paul), actor
- Voter vet (Panu Paul), actor
- Musanfiro ke lie (Gorky), actor
- Macbeth (Shakespeare), actor
- Raja (Tagore)
- Sanko (Ghatak), actor
- Sei Meye (Ghatak), director
- Strir Patro (Tagore)
- Hojoborala (Sukumar Ray)
Literary works
Books
- Ritwik Ghatak stories ISBN 81-87075-55-4
- Galileo Charit (Bengali translation of Brecht's Life of Galileo)
- Chalachitra, Manush Ebong Aro Kichu Dey's publishers ISBN 81-295-0397-2
- Cinema and I, Ritwik Memorial Trust, Kolkata
- On the cultural "Front", Ritwik Memorial Trust
- Rows and Rows of Fences: Ritwik Ghatak on Cinema, Seagull Books Pvt. Ltd, Kolkata ISBN 978-81-7046-178-4
- Ritwik Ghatak Stories, Translated from Bengali by Rani Ray, New Delhi, Shrishti publishers and distributors ISBN 978-81-87075-55-4
Short stories
- Akashgangar srot dhore
- Ezahar
- Shikha
- Ecstasy
- Rupkotha
- Raja
- Parashpathar
- Bhuswarga Achanchal
- Sphotik Patro
- Chokh
- Comrade
- Sarak
- Prem
- Jhankar
- Mar
Articles and essays on film
Article | First published | Year |
---|---|---|
A New Chapter in Acting | Chalachitra, Autumn issue, Page 93–101 | 1950 |
A Draft on Cultural Line | Indian People's Theatre Association | 1 June 1951 |
A Film Festival in Calcutta" Soviet Film Grand Concert: Bicycle Thief | Parichay, March, Year 21, Vol–2, No–3 Page 70–79 | 1952 |
Soviet Film In Bengali | Parichay November, Year 24, No–5, Page 517–526 | 1954 |
About Oraons (Chotonagpur) | Ritwik, October 1977, Page 189–201 | 1954–1955 |
Some Thoughts on Ajantrik | Indian Film Reviews, Page 22–23 | December, 1958 |
One Long Boundary Wall | Chalachitra, Annual number, Page 117–119 | 1959 |
Various Weapon: Editing | Ritwik Page 183–187 | Unknown |
Speech About Cinema; Artists of Bengal | Chitrabikshan Jan–Apr, 1976 | 1958–60 |
A Book review: Theory of Film | Indian Film Culture, Vol–1, No–1, Page 47–50 | April–June, 1962 |
Music in Indian Cinema And The Epic Approach | Artist, January–March, Vol–1, No–1, Page 37–38 | 1963 |
An Interview On Film Script | Chalachitra Autumn issue, Vol III, Page 47–50 | 1963 |
Human Society, Our Tradition, Film Making and my Efforts | Chalachitra Autumn issue | 1963 |
Art and Integrity | Dainik Basumati Autumn issue | 1963 |
Editorial | Artist July–September, Vol–1 No–3 | 1963 |
Nazarin and Louis Buñuel | Chalachitra Winter Page 41–44 | 1963 |
The Film and I | Montage Vol–II No–3 | 1963 |
Nazarin– a review | Kino Vol–I No–1, Page 23–26 | January, 1964 |
Experimental Cinema | Amrita, Autumn issue | 1964 |
The Mother Land and Artist's Duty | Parichay Autumn issue | 1964 |
Assessing a Film | Chalachitra Autumn issue, page 18–20 | 1964 |
Experimental Cinema | Lecture, Film and Training Institute | 16 September 1964 |
On Komal Gandhar | Chitrapat, Vol–I, No–I, Page 23–24 | 1965 |
The Director's Message in Bengali Cinema | Chirakalpa Summer issue, Vol–I, No–I | 1965 |
Understanding Cinema | Angik, Summer issue | 1965 |
A Book review: Theory of Film– An Attitude to Life and an Attitude to Art | 1965 | |
It is not possible to accept what Box Office demands | Statement column, Jugantar | 13 August 1965 |
The Past and Present of Bengali Films, Interview | Chalachitra Page 24–25 | October 1965 |
A Book Review: Theory of Film; Nature of Film | Lecture F.T.I.I of Pune | 30 September 1965 |
Bengali Cinema, Literary Influence | Film Fare | 1965 |
Sound in Film | Parichay, Chatushkala issue, Year 35 | 1965 |
Plays and the Present Age | Jatiya Sahitya Parishad, Page 9–12 | 12 April 1966 |
On Subarna Rekha | Chitrapat Vol–2 No–2, Page 26–27 | August 1966 |
My Film | Film, Autumn issue | 1966 |
Art, Cinema and the Future | Ananda Bazar Patrika | 1966 |
The Third International Film Festival in India | Chitralekha Vol– I, No– 4, Page– 13–16 | Winter 1966 |
Experiment in Cinema and I | Unpublished | Unknown |
The Future of Film | Movie Montage Vol–1 No–1 Page–1 | 1967 |
My Coming into Films | Film Forum Festival, Souvenir, 17–20 July | 1967 |
Sound in Film | Film Forum Festival, Souvenir, 17–20 July | 1967 |
From a Statement | Chitrayan Page–34 (August, 1977) | 1967 |
What is the True Form of Cinema | Lecture | 29 September 1967 |
Experimental Film and I | Chitrabikshan | October, 1967 |
Cinema and the Subjective Factor | Chitrakalpa Vol–2 No–1, Page 5–7 | October, 1967 |
Thinking about Cinema | Movie Montage Special issue, Vol–I, No–2, Page 49–53 | 1967 |
Interview | Movie Montage Vol–I, No–2, Page 54–58 | 1967 |
Documentary Film | Sahitya–Patra Sept–Nov issue, Page 117–121 | 1967 |
The Position of Cinema in the Society | Movie Montage Vol–I, No–3, Page 3–4 | 1967 |
Bengali Society and Bengali Cinema | Madhyanya Oct–Dec issue, Vol–II, No–3, Page 147–150 | 1967 |
Filmic Rhythm and Structure | Chalachitra Sept–Dec issue, Page 9–10 | 1967 |
Prognosis for Today's Cinema | Desh December issue, Vol– 35, No–9, Page 885–886 | 1967 |
The So-called Crisis in Bengali Cinema | Abhinay-Darpan May–June issue, Page 32–34 | 1968 |
Some Stray Thought Some Perceptions | Ritwik October 1977, Page 5–10 | 1968 |
The Film I Want to Make About Vietnam | West Bengal Youth Festival, Commemorative Volume | 1968 |
Dance in Cinema | Nupur Dance Academy, Souvenir | 1968 |
On The People's Theatre Movement | Abhinay Darpan, May–June issue, Page 2, 7–8 | 1969 |
If I Could Make Films Again | Antarjatik Angik | 1969 |
Obscenity and Films | Assam Bani Patrika | 12 December 1969 |
The Present and Future of Indian Film Making | Abhinay March–April issue, Vol–I No–2 & 3, Page 138–148, 201–204 | 1970 |
Interview by Ajay Basu | Abhinay May issue, Vol–I, No–4 | 1970 |
What Ails Indian Film Making | Amrita Bazar Patrika, Sunday issue | 10 May 1970 |
Interview | Chitrabhash | July 1970 |
Our beloved Ganga–da, The Quite Man | Gangapada Basu Commemorative volume, page 44–38 | 3 Jan 1972 |
If There Be Any One Person In India Who Comprehends The Film Medium, Then He is Satyajit Ray | Cine Technique | March, 1972 |
Interview | Chatrapat No–9, Page 37–38 | 1972 |
Thoughts about Ajantrik | Ajantrik Angik Winter–spring issue, Page 55–60 | Unknown |
Interview– Titash and others by Tulu Das | Unknown | 1973 |
Ritwik Ghatak, an interview | Chitrabikshan August–September, 6th year, No 11–12 | 1973 |
Brecht and Ourselves | Natyachinta Volume–2, Page 9 | 1973 |
An Interview by Muhammed Khashru | Dhrupadi Vol–IV, Page 148–169 | 13 May 1974 |
People I Have Seen Both The Bengal | Unknown | September, 1974 |
Dialectics in Films | Amrita | 1974 |
My Views | Amrita | 1974 |
Two Aspects, The Mind, Day Dreams, The Eye, Movement In Film | Chalachitra Autumn issue, Page 14–23 | 1974 |
Face to Face with Ritwik Ghatak | Chitrabikshan | September, 1974 |
Bijon Bhattacharya– Giver of New Life | Natyadarpan Vol–1, No–1, Page 13–15 | May 1975 |
An Interview by Prabir Sen | Jalim Singh's Journal | 1975 |
Recent plays | Moumachi | 1975 |
The Emergency– Ritwik Ghatak's Works at the Censor's Mercy | Chitrabikshan July–Sept, 10th Year, No. 10–12, Page 9–10 | 1975 |
Let There Be Sound | Chitrabikshan Jan–Apr issue, Page 216 | 1976 |
Film Making | Chitrabikshan Jan–Apr issue, Page 225–226 | 1976 |
Symbol | Shabda | Unknown |
On Drama | Agyatabas No–17, Page 49–50 | 1976 |
Cinema, Literature and My Films | Chitrabikshan | November, 1976 |
La Dolce Vita and Felini | Chitrapat, Special issue | 1976 |
On Bergman | Chitrapat, Special issue | 1976 |
My Thoughts on Cinema | F.F.S.I Ritwik Retrospective Souvenir | 1976 |
What It Means To Make Films In India | Unknown | Unknown |
An Interview | by Kalpana Biswas | 1976 |
An Interview | Film Miscellany | 1976 |
An Interview | Swarabarna | 1976 |
Excerpt of an Article | Movie Montage No–18 Page– 57 | November 1976 |
On Memory of Pramathesh Barua | Unknown | Unknown |
Ideology
Ghatak was not only a film director, he was a theorist, too. His views and commentaries on films have been parts of scholarly studies and researches. As a filmmaker his main concentration was on men and life and specially the day-to-day struggle of ordinary men. He could never accept the partition of India of 1947 which divided Bengal into two countries. In almost all his film he dealt with this theme.
Filmmaking was not only art for him. In his opinion it was only a means to the end of serving people: It was only a means of expressing his anger at the sorrows and sufferings of his people.
Awards, honours and recognitions
- Padma Shri for Arts in 1970 by The Government of India.
- Musafir had won the Certificate of Merit for Third Best Feature Film at 5th National Film Awards in 1957.
- Madhumati Nominated for Filmfare Best Story Award.
- National Film Award's Rajat Kamal Award for Best Story in 1974 for Jukti Takko Aar Gappo].
- Best Director's award from Bangladesh Cine Journalist's Association for Titash Ekti Nadir Naam.
- Ajantrik got special entry in the Venice Film Festival in 1959.
- In a critics' poll of all-time greatest films conducted by Asian film magazine Cinemaya in 1998, Subarnarekha was ranked at No. 11 on the list.
- In the 2002 Sight & Sound critics' and directors' poll for all-time greatest films, Meghe Dhaka Tara was ranked at No. 231 and Komal Gandhar at No. 346 on the list.
- In 2007, A River Named Titas topped the list of 10 best Bangladeshi films, as chosen in the audience and critics' polls conducted by the British Film Institute.
- Heerer Prajapati had won the Best Children's Film Award (Prime Minister's Gold Medal) at 16th National Film Awards in 1970.
Source: Wikipedia
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