Pather Panchali (1955)
A child's-eye view of life in a poor Bengali village, and the film that put Indian cinema on the world map.
- Year
- 1955
- Language
- Bengali
- Director
- Satyajit Ray
- Starring
- Kanu Banerjee, Karuna Banerjee, Subir Banerjee, Uma Dasgupta, Chunibala Devi
- Also
- Based on the novel by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay · Music by Ravi Shankar
The story
The film follows young Apu, his older sister Durga, their mother and their elderly aunt in a village in rural Bengal, while their father looks for work as a priest and writer. Small joys (a sweet seller, a train seen across a field of white flowers) sit beside hardship and loss.
Ray shot it on location with a mostly new cast and a tiny budget, finishing it with help from the West Bengal government.
Why it matters
- It won a special award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1956 and launched Satyajit Ray's international career.
- It is the first part of the Apu Trilogy, followed by Aparajito (1956) and Apur Sansar (1959).
- Its natural, quiet style influenced filmmakers in India and abroad.
Where to watch
Restored versions are released by licensed distributors and appear on classic-film streaming services. Availability changes from country to country and month to month; see how to find a legal stream. Please don't use pirate download sites: they are illegal in India and a common source of malware.
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