Satyajit’s ‘Pratidwandi’ to be screened at Cannes

Cannes Film Festival 2022 has officially selected to screen Satyajit Ray’s ‘Pratidwandi’ at the festival. The news came out on May 2 marked Satyajit Ray’s 101st birthday, reports Times of India. The film will be screened in the Classics Section of the prestigious film festival.

Director Sandip Ray, the son of the legendary filmmaker, is delighted with the news and said “I heard Pratidwandi was restored recently, so I just hope that the restored version is screened at the festival.”

According to Union Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra, the film was recently restored by the National Film Archives.

“Pratiwandi has been restored fully like several other films in the possession of the National Film Archives. It will be screened in the Cannes this year as a tribute to the genius,” said Chandra Apurva Chandra. Cannes Film Festival will be held between May 17 and 28.

Pratidwandi was written and directed by Satyajit Ray based on the novel by Sunil Gangopadhyay. The film unfolds the story of Siddharta, an educated middle-class man caught up in the turmoil of social unrest. It shows how he struggles to find a job. The film is known for experimenting with specific techniques, such as photo-negative flashbacks. The film bagged three National Film Awards, including Best Direction, in 1971. It also won a nomination for the Gold Hugo Award at the Chicago International Film Festival 1971. Pratidwandi is the first film of Ray’s Calcutta Trilogy, which continued with Seemabaddha (1971) and Jana Aranya (1976).