Roadshow, Big Bazaar two films inspired by Satyajit Ray

Satyajit Ray's film ‘Pratidwandi (The Adversary)’ was screened recently, at the Cannes Classics section. Inspiration from Ray’s life and work, Kolkata-based Indian producer-director Aritra Sen’s Roadshow Films and Los Angeles-based British writer-director Alex Harvey’s Big Bazaar Films are producing two films this year, reports Variety.

First up is feature documentary ‘Forest of Humans’, which looks at Ray’s creative relationship with Kolkata. Directed by Harvey and produced by Aritra Sen, the documentary will explore many ways in which Ray used Kolkata’s diverse humanity to create an entire cinematic world. Filming almost entirely on location in Kolkata, the film aims to show how Ray’s poetic world is still mysterious and alive in the city today.

“His films never try to idealize Kolkata, but they are constantly changing the way it is seen,” says Harvey. “Look at the disgruntled hero in The Adversary who is seen far from his city, unable to find solace in his casual pleasures.”

Ray’s ‘Pratidwandi’ also partly provides the inspiration for ‘Prantik’, a contemporary drama set in Kolkata and London. It takes as its starting point a similar premise – the story of a young man who, when his father dies, is forced to make his own way in the city. The film 'Prantik,' directed by Sen and produced by Harvey, is set to begin production this fall.

“Ray was the reason I wanted to work in film, the reason I feel in love with cinema,” said Aritra Sen.

“In addition to ‘Prantik’ and ‘Forest of Humans’ we’re also planning a period film called ‘Niru’, set in the Kolkata of the 1880s, at the height of the Raj, and based on Ibsen’s play, ‘A Doll’s House.’ Ray’s extraordinary film, ‘Charulata,’ is proving to be a great creative inspiration for that project,” Harvey and Aritra Sen said.

Aritra Sen previously produced ‘Feluda’ series based on stories by Ray. Harvey’s last film was mixed martial arts documentary ‘Enter the Jungle’.