Book Report- Satyajit Ray on Cinema

Divya Saibabu

1 January 2021

Book Report- Semester1

Title: Satyajit Ray on Cinema

Written by: Satyajit Ray

Collated and Edited by: Sandip Ray, in association with Dhritiman Chaterji, Arup K. De,

Deepak Mukerjee, and Debasis Mukhopadhyay

Foreword by: Shyam Benegal

This report is based on the book Satyajit Ray on Cinema, which is a collection of articles,

essays and talks, long and short, spoken and written by Satyajit Ray himself. Put together as a

book by The Society for the Preservation of Satyajit Ray Films, Kolkata by collating a few

articles from their archives and launching a search for the rest, thus finding pieces that were

beyond access for contemporary readers.

Introduction: Satyajit Ray was an Indian film director, writer, illustrator and music

composer. He is widely considered to have been one of the greatest filmmakers of all time.

The book offers revealing insights into the evolution of Satyajit Ray’s thoughts on aspects of

cinema as a visual art, his own craft of film-making, and his views on such other great

directors as Chaplin, Bergman, Godard and Antonioni. It also includes his view on various

topics related to film making, such as film critics and film festivals and the ways in which one

must perceive and accept them.

Summary: My report of the book is from the point of view of a film student who has

recently been exposed to the wonders of the cinema universe. Satyajit Ray for me, like for

every film lover is nothing less than a gutsy genius. He figured out the lack in Indian cinema,

in terms of it’s “Indian-ness”. I for one have always been trying to understand the niche he

has developed for himself in Indian cinema and this book gave immense clarity about the

same. It went beyond just displaying his style but provided explanation for it. Through these

explanations came through his motivations and reasons to pursue cinema the way he did.

“I, as the

interpreter through the film

medium, exercised my right to

select, modify and arrange.

This is a right which every film-maker, who aspires to more than doing a commercial chore – to artistic endeavour, in fact – possesses.”

I found that the style in which the book was put together was more academic, because each

chapter was like another point to remember for filmmaking. I would like to share a few lessons

I learnt from the book, as a part of this report.

a) To begin with, in chapter 3 Satyajit Ray explained why films based on books are different

from the book itself and how that is not a bad thing, in fact better. This was an interesting

learning for me. “The reason is simple, but needs to be stressed repeatedly: books are not primarily

written to be filmed."

b) In some parts there were mentions of the difficulties faced by a professional filmmaker.

“No school can teach you how to avoid the traps and pitfalls that strew a film-maker’s path – more so in

our country than anywhere else.” However there were no examples or life experiences that he

shared. This made it a little difficult for a newbie like me to comprehend the depth/scale

of this struggle.

c) One of the major learnings from the book, was about commercial cinema. He very

correctly pointed out that most film students aim to make non-conventional works of art

but if communicating is the aim then film must be made in a way that the general

audience can comprehend. “One cannot simply blame the public for failing to rise to the level of the

film because the film-maker was supposed to have taken the public into account”, he says.

d) "The biggest boost for a film- maker comes not from critical praise or the praise of a small coterie or from a festival prize; it comes from the acceptance of the film by the public for whom it was made." I learnt quite a few things about the aim of making a film. For one; what I wish to get out of the film

will determine how I execute it.

e) A major part of the book spoke about the value of getting accepted in the western

countries and through that he proved his point- The bearing of a film is it’s story. People

might not understand cultures and traditions but what they understand is morals and

context, is another valuable learning from the book.

f) Satyajit Ray spoke a lot about how critics critique a film, what their shortcomings are and

how a filmmaker must take the critique. Someone who understand the culture in the film

along with the plot is someone who’s opinion is one must take, he says. "Someone who will see

both the wood and the trees.”

The book shown through Satyajit Ray’s personality. Not just his filmmaker personality but

also his personality in life otherwise. For example, when in the latter part of the book Satyajit

Ray narrates to us his journey to the Moscow film festival, he talks about his first class ticket.

Details like this touched on his lifestyle and provided the- “Getting to know Satyajit Ray”,

aspect in the book. His strong stance on the controversial topics such on film being a form of

art also showed the reader his confident personality.

“It’s surprising that there should still be people

who doubt the claims of the cinema to be regarded as art. They say films don’t have the purity of painting, or

the abstract qualities of music, or the analytical scope of the novel, or the intensity of the theatre. To me, this

tendency to run down an art form because it doesn’t have certain properties of some other art form, or to look for

traits which by its very nature it can’t possess, seems childish and pointless”.

I must specially mention

how wonderfully surprised I was to find Satyajit Ray’s illustrations every now and then. It

rounded off his personality well in the book.

Throughout the book I was introduced to filmmakers, painters, musicians, actors and writers,

through constant referencing. This made the book rich and gave it depth, all while shining

light on the the spectrum of Satyajit Ray’s knowledge. The referencing was particularly useful

for a film student like me. It provided a direction to my future readings.

“With any other art, I would have said with confidence that Godard would win in the end. But in the ruthless and unserious world of commercial cinema that he has to operate, I have my doubts.”

Lastly, if not through the regular mention in the book but through the pictures and

descriptions, the book has developed in me a new respected for Bengali cinema and literature.

For me, the book was successful in what it set out to do. To educate filmmakers.

Time well spent!