Pather Panchali

Friday, August 16 - Sunday, August 18, 2019

Staff Pick! Chosen by Rahat who says: “I like director Ray dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaving his rural Bangla village in search of work. This is the story of a young boy, Apu, and life in his small village.”

With the release in 1955 of Satyajit Ray’s debut, PATHER PANCHALI, an eloquent and important new cinematic voice made itself heard all over the world. A depiction of rural Bengali life in a style inspired by Italian neorealism, this naturalistic but poetic evocation of a number of years in the life of a family introduces us to both little Apu and, just as essentially, the women who will help shape him: his independent older sister, Durga; his harried mother, Sarbajaya, who, with her husband away, must hold the family together; and his kindly and mischievous elderly “auntie,” Indir—vivid, multifaceted characters all. With resplendent photography informed by its young protagonist’s perpetual sense of discovery, PATHER PANCHALI, which won an award for Best Human Document at Cannes, is an immersive cinematic experience and a film of elemental power.

Screening as part of our Summer 2019 series, “Weekend Classics: Staff Picks.”

• Country India
• Year 1955
• Running Time 125 minutes
• Distributor Janus
• Director Satyajit Ray
• Writer Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay (novel), Satyajit Ray (screenplay)
• Editor Dulal Dutta
• Cinematographer Subrata Mitra
• Cast Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Uma Das Gupta, Subir Banerjee, Chunibala Devi
• Accessibility Assistive Listening, T-Coil

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.