''The Apu Trilogy'' is a celebrated series of three Indian Bengali-language drama films directed by

Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, author, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligraphy, calligrapher, and composer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influ ...

: ''

Pather Panchali (, ) is a 1955 Indian Bengali language, Bengali-language Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Satyajit Ray in his directorial debut. It is an adaptation of Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay's 1929 Bengali Pather Panchali ...

'' (1955), '' Aparajito'' (1956) and '' The World of Apu'' (1959). The trilogy's evocative score was composed by

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitar, sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Hin ...

. Adapted from two Bengali novels by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay—''

'' (1929) and ''Aparajito'' (1932)—these films are widely regarded as a cornerstone of Indian and world cinema. Produced on a modest shoestring budget using an amateur cast and crew, the trilogy garnered widespread critical acclaim and won numerous prestigious awards, including three

National Film Awards The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

and multiple honours at the

Cannes Cannes (, ; , ; ) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions Internatio ...

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

s. Notably, ''Pather Panchali'' was made with a budget of roughly 150,000, approximately $45,300 at the time.

Plot summaries

The three films comprise a "

coming of age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can b ...

" narrative in the vein of a ''

bildungsroman In literary criticism, a bildungsroman () is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth and change of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood (coming of age). The term comes from the German words ('formation' or 'edu ...

''; they describe the childhood, education and early maturity of a young Bengali named Apu (Apurba Kumar Roy) in the early part of the 20th century. ''Pather Panchali'' (English, "Song of the Little Road")
Apu's early experiences in rural

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

as the son of a poor but high

caste A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...

family are presented. Apu's father Harihar, a

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

, has difficulty in supporting his family. After the death of Apu's sister, Durga, the family moves to the holy city of

Benares Varanasi (, also Benares, Banaras ) or Kashi, is a city on the Ganges, Ganges river in North India, northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hinduism, Hindu world.* * * * The city ...

. ''Aparajito'' (English, "The Unvanquished")
The family's finances are still precarious. After his father dies there, Apu and his mother Sarbajaya come back to a village in Bengal. Despite unrelenting poverty, Apu manages to get formal schooling and turns out to be a brilliant student. He moves to Calcutta to pursue his education. He slowly distanced himself from his rural roots and his mother who was not keeping well at the time. In the process the growing Apu comes into conflict with his mother. Later he is informed that, when his mother dies too, he has to learn to live alone. ''Apur Sansar'' (English, "The World of Apu")
Attempting to become a writer, Apu unexpectedly finds himself pressured to marry a girl whose mother rejected her mentally ill bridegroom on the day of their wedding. Their blossoming marriage ends in her death in childbirth, after which the despairing Apu abandons his child, but eventually returns to accept his responsibilities.

Production

In 1950, Ray had decided that ''

'', the classic coming of age story (

) of

Bengali literature Bengali literature () denotes the body of writings in the Bengali language and which covers Old Bengali, Middle Bengali and Modern Bengali with the changes through the passage of time and dynastic patronization or non-patronization. Bengali h ...

, published in 1928 by Bibhutibhusan Bandopadhyay, would be the subject matter for his first film. This semi-autobiographical novel describes the growing up of Apu, a small boy in a Bengal village. He went ahead with the film after meeting

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. His '' La Grande Illusion'' (1937) and '' The Rules of the Game'' (1939) are often cited by critics as among the greate ...

during filming of '' The River'' (1951) and after watching the Italian neorealist film ''

Bicycle Thieves ''Bicycle Thieves'' (), also known as ''The Bicycle Thief'', is a 1948 Italian neorealist drama film directed by Vittorio De Sica. It follows the story of a poor father searching in post-World War II Rome for his stolen bicycle, without which h ...

'' (1948) while he was in London. Besides the influence of

European cinema Cinema of Europe refers to the film industries and films produced in the continent of Europe. The history of Italian cinema began a few months after the French Lumière brothers, who made the first public screening of a film on 28 December 18 ...

and Bengali literature, Ray is also indebted to the Indian theatrical tradition, particularly the '' rasa'' theory of classical

Sanskrit drama The term Indian classical drama refers to the tradition of dramatic literature and performance in ancient India. The roots of drama in the Indian subcontinent can be traced back to the Rigveda (1200-1500 BCE), which contains a number of hymns in ...

. The complicated doctrine of ''rasa'' centers predominantly on feelings experienced not only by the characters but also conveyed in a certain artistic way to the spectator. The duality of ''rasa'' representation shows in ''The Apu Trilogy''. Ray gathered an inexperienced crew, although both his cameraman Subrata Mitra and

art director Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...

Bansi Chandragupta went on to achieve great acclaim. The cast consisted of mostly amateur artists. Shooting started in late 1952, using Ray's personal savings. He had hoped that once the initial shots had been completed, he would be able to obtain funds to support the project, but such funding was not forthcoming. ''Pather Panchali'' was shot over the unusually long period of three years, because shooting was possible only from time to time, when Ray or production manager Anil Chowdhury could arrange further money. With a loan from the

West Bengal government The Government of West Bengal, also known as the West Bengal Government, is the principal administrative authority of the Indian state of West Bengal, created by the National Constitution as the state's legislative, executive and judicial a ...

, the film was finally completed and released in 1955 to great critical and popular success, sweeping up numerous prizes and having long runs in both India and abroad. During the making of the film, Ray refused funding from sources who demanded a change in script or the supervision of the producer, and he ignored advice from the government (which finally funded the film anyway) to incorporate a happy ending in having Apu's family join a "development project". Even greater help than Renoir's encouragement occurred when Ray showed a sequence to

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter and actor. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered classics. He rec ...

who was in India scouting locations for '' The Man Who Would Be King''. The sequence is the remarkable vision Apu and his sister have of the train running through the countryside. It was the only sequence Ray had filmed due to his small budget. Huston praised Ray to Monroe Wheeler at the New York Museum of Modern Art, saying that a major talent was on the horizon. In India, the reaction to the film was enthusiastic; ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

'' wrote that "it is absurd to compare it with any other Indian cinema .. ''Pather Panchali'' is pure cinema". In the United Kingdom,

Lindsay Anderson Lindsay Gordon Anderson (17 April 1923 – 30 August 1994) was a British feature-film, theatre and documentary director, film critic, and leading light of the Free Cinema movement and of the British New Wave. He is most widely remembered fo ...

wrote a glowing review of the film. However, the reaction was not uniformly positive. After watching the film,

François Truffaut François Roland Truffaut ( , ; ; 6 February 1932 – 21 October 1984) was a French filmmaker, actor, and critic. He is widely regarded as one of the founders of the French New Wave. He came under the tutelage of film critic Andre Bazin as a ...

is reported to have said, "I don't want to see a movie of peasants eating with their hands".

Bosley Crowther Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though some ...

, then the most influential critic of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', wrote a mixed review of the film that its distributor Ed Harrison thought would kill off the film when it got released in the United States, but it enjoyed an exceptionally long run. Ray's international career started in earnest after the success of his next film, '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished''). This film shows the eternal struggle between the ambitions of Apu as a young man and the mother who loves him. Some critics, notably

Mrinal Sen Mrinal Sen ( ; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was a Bengali film director and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali, and a few Hindi cinema, Hindi and Telugu cinema, Telugu language films. Regarded as on ...

and

Ritwik Ghatak Ritwik Kumar Ghatak (; 4 November 19256 February 1976) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, actor and playwright. Widely considered as one of the greatest film makers of all time, his works remained largely underrated and ignored during hi ...

, rank it even higher than the first film. Aparajito won the

Golden Lion The Golden Lion () is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is regarded as one of the film industry's most prestigious and distinguished prizes. In 1970, a ...

at the

. The film is also notable for its application of bounce lighting to recreate the effect of daylight on sets with the use of large scale diffusers, pioneered by the cinematographer Subrata Mitra. Ray had not thought about a trilogy while making ''Aparajito'', and it occurred to him only after being asked about the idea in Venice. The final installation of the series, '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu''), was made in 1959. A number of critics find this to be the supreme achievement of the trilogy ( Robin Wood,

Aparna Sen Aparna Sen (; ) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actress who is known for her work in Bengali cinema. She has received several accolades as an actress and filmmaker, including nine National Film Awards, six Filmfare Awards East ...

). Ray introduced two of his favourite actors,

Soumitra Chatterjee Soumitra Chatterjee (also spelt as Chattopadhyay; ; 19 January 193515 November 2020) was an Indian film actor, play-director, playwright, writer, thespian and poet. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors in the histor ...

and

Sharmila Tagore Sharmila Tagore (; born 8 December 1944) also known by her married name Begum Ayesha Sultana, is an Indian actress primarily known for her work in Hindi cinema, Hindi and Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali films. Widely recognized as one of the gre ...

, in this film. The film finds Apu living in a nondescript Kolkata house in near-poverty. He becomes involved in an unusual marriage with Aparna, the scenes of their life together forming "one of the cinema's classic affirmative depiction of married life", but tragedy ensues. After ''Apur Sansar'' was harshly criticised by a Bengali critic, Ray wrote an article defending it—a rare event in Ray's filmmaking career (the other major instance involved the film ''Charulata'', Ray's personal favourite). His success had little influence on his personal life in the years to come. Ray continued to live with his mother, uncle and other members of his extended family in a rented house.

Cast and characters

Critical reception

This trilogy is considered by critics around the globe to rank among the greatest achievements of

Indian film The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on pr ...

, and it is established as one of the most historically important cinematic debuts. ''

'' won at least thirteen international prizes (including Best Human Document at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival), followed by eleven international prizes for '' Aparajito'' (including the

at the

) and numerous other awards for '' Apur Sansar'' (including the

Sutherland Trophy The Sutherland Trophy was created in 1958 by the British Film Institute (BFI) as an annual award for "the maker of the most original and imaginative irst or secondfeature film introduced at the National Film Theatre during the year".''1963 Londo ...

at the

London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the British Film Institute, BFI estim ...

). When Ray made ''Pather Panchali'', he worked with a cast and crew most of whom had never been previously involved in film. Ray himself at the time of directing ''Pather Panchali'' had primarily worked in the advertising industry, although he had served as assistant director on

's 1951 film '' The River''. From this foundation, Ray went on to create other highly acclaimed films, like '' Charulata'', '' Mahanagar'', and '' Aranyer Din Ratri'', and his international success energised other Bengal filmmakers like

and

. This extract from ''Youth'', by South African author

J. M. Coetzee John Maxwell Coetzee Order of Australia, AC Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, FRSL Order of Mapungubwe, OMG (born 9 February 1940) is a South African and Australian novelist, essayist, linguist, and translator. The recipient of the 2003 ...

, talks of the music in the ''Apu trilogy'', which is based on

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the art music, classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like ''Shastriya Sangeet'' and ''Marg Sangeet''. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as ...

: On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, ''Pather Panchali'' has a 98% fresh rating based on an aggregate of 82 reviews and in 2009 was included in its list of top 100 foreign films. ''Aparajito'' has a 96% fresh rating based on an aggregate of 25 reviews, and ''Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') has a 97% fresh rating based on an aggregate of 29 reviews. This makes ''The Apu Trilogy'' one of the highest-rated film trilogies of all time (97%, 94%, 100%), along with the ''Toy Story'' trilogy (100%, 100%, 99%), ''The Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (91%, 96%, 93%), the original ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...

'' trilogy (94%, 97%, 83%), and the ''Before'' trilogy (100%, 95%, 98%). Film critic

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

, when including the films in his

Great Movies ''The Great Movies'' is the name of several publications, both online and in print, from Roger Ebert, an American film critic and columnist for ''The Chicago Sun-Times''. The object was, as Ebert put it, to "make a tour of the landmarks of the f ...

list, wrote about the trilogy:

Theme

Andre Robinson, in his book ''Satyajit Ray: The Inner Eye'', comments that the three films differ in their predominant moods, and he compares the trilogy to the development of an Indian classical ''

raga A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, fro ...

''.

Legacy

Sight & Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...

'', the

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves filmmaking and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

's film magazine, listed ''

'' several times in its Critics' Poll of all-time greatest films, in 1962 (ranked #11), 1982 (ranked #79), 1992 (ranked #6), 2002 (ranked #22), 2012 (ranked #42) and 2022 (ranked #35). '' The World of Apu'' appeared in 1982, ranked at #42. In the 1992 edition, both '' Aparajito'' and ''The World of Apu'' were tied at #127, while ''The Apu Trilogy'' was ranked separately at #88. In a combined list of ''Sight & Sound'' critics' and directors' poll results in 2002, ''Pather Panchali'' was ranked at No. 28, '' The World of Apu'' at No. 93 and '' Aparajito'' at #160. If the votes are combined, then ''The Apu Trilogy'' as a whole would be ranked at No. 14 in 1982, No. 4 in 1992 and No. 14 in 2002. In director's poll of ''Greatest films of all time'' by ''Sight & Sound'' magazine ''Pather Panchali'' ranked 48th in 2012 and 22nd in 2022. In 1988,

John Kobal John Kobal (born Iwan Kobal; 30 May 1940 – 28 October 1991)Kobal's biography page
, John Kobal Fo ...

's poll of critics and filmmakers ranked ''The Apu Trilogy'' at No. 35 on their list of Top 100 Movies. In 1998, the Asian film magazine '' Cinemayas critics' poll of all-time greatest films ranked ''The Apu Trilogy'' at No. 7 on the list, while ''Pather Panchali'' alone was ranked at No. 2 on the same list. If the votes are combined, then ''The Apu Trilogy'' would be ranked at #1. In 1999, ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'' ranked ''Pather Panchali'' at No. 12 (tied with ''

The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...

'') in its top 250 "Best Films of the Century" list, based on a poll of critics, while ''The Apu Trilogy'' was ranked separately at No. 54 in the same poll. If the votes are combined, ''The Apu Trilogy'' would be ranked at #5. In 2000, an audience poll of best

Asian films Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from As ...

conducted by ''MovieMail'' ranked ''The Apu Trilogy'' at No. 2 on the list. In January 2002, the trilogy as a whole was included on the list of the "Top 100 Essential Films of All Time" by the

National Society of Film Critics The National Society of Film Critics (NSFC) is an American film critic organization. The organization is known for its highbrow tastes, and its annual awards are one of the most prestigious film critics awards in the United States. In January 2024, ...

. In 2021 the trilogy was ranked at No. 65 on '' Time Out'' magazine's list of ''The 100 best movies of all time''. ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' ranked ''The Apu Trilogy'' at No. 4 on its list of "10 greatest movie trilogies of all time". ''Pather Panchali'' was included in various other all-time greatest film lists, including ''Time Out'' magazine's "Centenary Top One Hundred Films" in 1995, the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

''s "Hot 100 Films From the Past" in 1997, the ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' "100 Maverick Movies of the Last 100 Years" in 1999, and the British Film Institute's Top Fifty "Must See" Children's Films in 2005.

Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...

ranked ''Pather Panchali'' at No. 37 on his ''Top 100 favourite films of all time'' list. In 1996, ''The World of Apu'' was included in Movieline Magazine's "100 Greatest Foreign Films". In 2002, ''Pather Panchali'' and ''The World of Apu'' featured in "

Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made". ''The Apu Trilogy'' as a whole was included in film critic

's list of The Great Movies in 2001 and in ''Time'' magazine's All-Time 100 best movies list in 2005. It was also ranked No. 17 in ''

Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

'' magazine's "The 100 Best Films of World Cinema" in 2010. The original trilogy has been reconstructed via the Harvard Film archive & Criterion and was shown in Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA the 1st week of July 2015. '' Apur Panchali'' is a Bengali film based on Subir Banerjee's life, who played child ''Apu'' in the first installment of ''Apu Trilogy''. Director

Kaushik Ganguly Kaushik Ganguly (born 4 August 1968) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor in Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali cinema. Multiple National Film Awards winner Actor-Director, Kaushik Ganguly is known for making films that explore vario ...

won the award of best director for ''Apur Panchali'' in the 44th

International Film Festival of India The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is an annual film festival currently held in Goa, on the western coast of India. The festival aims at providing a common platform for the cinemas of the world to project the excel ...

(IFFI) in November 2013. The director mentioned in an interview that he found similarities between certain parts of the life of Subir Banerjee and the iconic character Apu. In the film actor Parambrata Chatterjee portrays a younger Subir Banerjee, while Ardhendu Bannerjee plays the role of the aged Banerjee.

Influence

According to Michael Sragow of ''

The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'' in 1994: Across the world, filmmakers such as

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

James Ivory James Francis Ivory (born Richard Jerome Hazen June 7, 1928) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He was a principal in Merchant Ivory Productions along with Indian film producer Ismail Merchant (his domestic and professio ...

Abbas Kiarostami Abbas Kiarostami ( ; 22 June 1940 – 4 July 2016) was an Iranian film director, screenwriter, poet, photographer, and film producer. An active filmmaker from 1970, Kiarostami had been involved in the production of over forty films, including s ...

Elia Kazan Elias Kazantzoglou (, ; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003), known as Elia Kazan ( ), was a Greek-American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and inf ...

Carlos Saura Carlos Saura Atarés (4 January 1932 – 10 February 2023) was a Spanish film director, photographer and writer. With Luis Buñuel and Pedro Almodóvar, he is considered to be among Spain's great filmmakers. He had a long and prolific career th ...

Isao Takahata was a Japanese director, screenwriter and producer. A co-founder of Studio Ghibli, he earned international critical acclaim for his work as a director of Japanese animated feature films. Born in Ujiyamada, Mie Prefecture, Takahata joined Toei ...

Barry Jenkins Barry Jenkins (born November 19, 1979) is an American filmmaker. After making his filmmaking debut with the short film ''My Josephine'' (2003), he directed his first feature film '' Medicine for Melancholy'' (2008) for which he received an Inde ...

Philip Kaufman Philip Kaufman (born October 23, 1936) is an American film director and screenwriter who has directed fifteen films over a career spanning nearly five decades. He has received numerous accolades including a BAFTA Award along with nominations fo ...

Wes Anderson Wesley Wales Anderson (born May 1, 1969) is an American filmmaker. Wes Anderson filmography, His films are known for themes of grief, loss of innocence, and dysfunctional families. Due to his films' eccentricity, distinctive visual and narrative ...

and

Danny Boyle Daniel Francis Boyle (born 20 October 1956) is an English director and producer. He is known for his work on the films ''Shallow Grave (1994 film), Shallow Grave'' (1994), ''Trainspotting (film), Trainspotting'' (1996) and its sequel ''T2 Tra ...

have been influenced by ''The Apu Trilogy'', with many others such as

praising the work. Filmmaker

when talking about ''The Apu Trilogy'' remarked "without a doubt, in ay'sfilms the line between poetry and cinema, dissolved". In

Gregory Nava Gregory James Nava (born April 10, 1949) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Personal life Nava was born in San Diego, of Mexican and Basque heritage. Nava graduated from St. Augustine High School in San Diego and attended ...

's 1995 film ''

My Family ''My Family'' is a British sitcom created and initially co-written by Fred Barron, which was produced by DLT Entertainment and Rude Boy Productions, and broadcast by BBC One for eleven series between 2000 and 2011, with Christmas specials broadc ...

'', the final scene is duplicated from the final scene of ''Apur Sansar''. Similar influences and references to the trilogy can be found, for example, in recent works such as '' Sacred Evil'',

Paul Auster Paul Benjamin Auster (February 3, 1947 – April 30, 2024) was an American writer, novelist, memoirist, poet, and filmmaker. His notable works include '' The New York Trilogy'' (1987), '' Moon Palace'' (1989), '' The Music of Chance'' (1990), ' ...

's 2008 novel '' Man in the Dark'', the '' Elements trilogy'' of

Deepa Mehta Deepa Mehta, (; born 15 September 1950) is an Indian-born Canadian film director and screenwriter, best known for her Elements Trilogy, Fire (1996 film), ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth (1998 film), Earth'' (1998), and ''Water (2005 film), Water'' (2 ...

and even in films of

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as ...

. The technique of bounce lighting pioneered by Subrata Mitra, to recreate the effect of daylight on sets, has also had a profound influence on the development of

cinematography Cinematography () is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (optics), lens to focus reflected light from objects into a real image that is transferred to some image sen ...

's soundtracks to the films were also a major influence on

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

, specifically

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Culture ...

Awards and nominations

National awards

;President's Medals * Winner – 1955 – President's Gold & Silver Medals (New Delhi) – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1959 – President's Gold Medal (New Delhi) – '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') ;

* Winner – 1956 – Best Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1956 – Best Feature Film in Bengali – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1960 – Best Film – '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'')

International film festivals

;

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

* Winner –

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...

– Best Human Document – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner –

– OCIC Award (Special Mention) – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Nominated –

– Golden Palm for Best Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') ;

* Winner – 1957 – Golden Lion of St. Mark for Best Film – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Winner – 1957 – Cinema Nuovo Award – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Winner – 1957 – Critics Award – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') ;

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

* Winner – 1957 – Selznick Golden Laurel for Best Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1960 – Selznick Golden Laurel for Best Film – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') ; British Film Institute Awards,

* Winner – 1957 – FIPRESCI Award – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Winner – 1960 – Sutherland Trophy for Best Original And Imaginative Film – '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') * Winner – 1980 – Wington Award – Apu Trilogy (for each film) ;

Edinburgh International Film Festival The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF), established in 1947, is the world's oldest continually running film festival. EIFF presents both UK and international films (all titles are World, international, European or UK Premieres), in al ...

* Winner – 1956 – Diploma of Merit – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1960 – Diploma of Merit – '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') ;

San Francisco International Film Festival The San Francisco International Film Festival (abbreviated as SFIFF), organized by SFFILM, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in international film and vid ...

* Winner – 1957 – Golden Gate for Best Picture – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1957 – Golden Gate for Best Director – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') –

* Winner – 1958 – Golden Gate for Best Picture – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Winner – 1958 – Golden Gate for Best Director – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') –

* Winner – 1958 – International Critics' Award – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') ;

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...

* Winner – 1958 – Best Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') ;

New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center. Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, NYFF i ...

* Winner – 1959 – Best Foreign Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') ; Stratford Film Festival * Winner – 1958 – Critics' Award for Best Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'')

Other international awards

;

National Board of Review Awards The National Board of Review of Motion Pictures is a non-profit organization of New York City area film enthusiasts. Its awards, which are announced in early December, are considered the first major harbinger of the film awards season that ...

(United States) * Winner –

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the thir ...

– Best Foreign Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner –

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

– Best Foreign Film – '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') ; Kinema Junpo Awards (Tokyo) * Winner – 1967 – Best Foreign Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') ;

Bodil Awards The Bodil Awards are the major Denmark, Danish film awards given by the Danish Film Critics Association. The awards are presented annually at a ceremony in Copenhagen. Established in 1948, it is one of the oldest film awards in Europe. The awards ...

(Denmark) * Winner – 1967 – Best Non-European Film – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Winner – 1969 – Best Non-European Film – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') ;

British Academy Film Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to f ...

(United Kingdom) * Nominated –

–

BAFTA Award for Best Film The BAFTA Award for Best Film is a film award given annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and presented at the British Academy Film Awards. It has been given since the 1st BAFTA Awards, representing the best films of 19 ...

– ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Nominated –

1959 Events January * January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...

–

– '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') * Nominated –

– BAFTA Award for Best Foreign Actress – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'') – Karuna Banerjee * Nominated –

1962 The year saw the Cuban Missile Crisis, which is often considered the closest the world came to a Nuclear warfare, nuclear confrontation during the Cold War. Events January * January 1 – Samoa, Western Samoa becomes independent from Ne ...

–

– '' Apur Sansar'' (''The World of Apu'') ;Other awards * Winner – 1956 Golden Carbao (

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

) – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1956 Vatican Award (Rome) – ''

'' (''Song of the Little Road'') * Winner – 1958–1959 Golden Laurel for Best Foreign Film (United States) – '' Aparajito'' (''The Unvanquished'')

References

Citations

General bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

* * *

at SatyajitRay.org
The Apu Trilogy
at

Janus Films Janus Films is an American film distribution company. The distributor is credited with introducing numerous films, now considered masterpieces of world cinema, to American audiences, including the films of Michelangelo Antonioni, Sergei Eisenstein ...

The Apu Trilogy (1955, 1956, 1959)
in ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

''
Voted #17 on The Arts and Faith Top 100 Films (2010)

''The Apu Trilogy: Behind the Universal''
an essay by Girish Shambu at the

Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films". A "sister company" of arthouse film distributo ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Apu Trilogy, The Film series introduced in 1955 Cinema of West Bengal Films directed by Satyajit Ray Indian film series

Plot summaries

Production

Cast and characters

Critical reception

Theme

Legacy

Influence

Awards and nominations

National awards

International film festivals

Other international awards

See also

References

Citations

General bibliography

Further reading

External links