Tagore, a towering personality in world of literature - Indian HC

A five day long Tagore Film festival organized by the Indian Cultural Centre, Colombo focusing on works of Gurudev Tagore was held at the National Film Corporation Hall by Senior Minister Dr Sarath Amunugama in presence of High Commissioner of India Ashok K. Kantha, to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore in Sri Lanka.

The films being screened in this festival are Pathar Panchali, Ghare Baire, Agantuk and Charulata directed by Satyajit Ray and Chokher Bhali directed by Rituparno Ghosh.

A documentary on Tagore made by Satyajit Ray in 1961 when Tagore's 100th birth anniversary was commemorated worldwide and also screened at the festival.

High Commissioner Kantha highlighted that Gurudev Tagore was a towering personality who straddled the world of literature, art, music and intellectual discourse and contributed in a very meaningful manner to the cultural renaissance of India, Sri Lanka and other countries of Asia and especially recollected Tagore's strong association with Sri Lanka, which he had visited thrice in 1922, 1928 and 1934 and strong association of many prominent Sri Lankan artists like Ananda Samarakoon, Chitrasena and Sunil Shantha with Visva-Bharati University.

The High Commissioner emphasized that Tagore's universal humanism and constant enquiry into the human condition reflected through his novels and short stories, remain as relevant today as they were in the first half of the previous century and that it was befitting that some of Tagore's works have been re-interpreted by two of India's finest directors, Satyajit Ray and Rituparno Ghosh.

The films being screened in the film festival are not only an articulation of Tagore's depiction of the human spirit, but also the visual creativity of icons of film in India.

High Commissioner also outlined the events already held to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Gurudev Tagore in Sri Lanka which included release of a special postal stamp by the Government of Sri Lanka and a commemorative volume "Remembering Rabindranath Tagore" on 7th May 2011. The High Commissioner also highlighted the events planned during the course of the year which include re-staging of "Shap Mochan", a play staged in 1934 in Sri Lanka and which Gurudev Tagore himself had acted, exhibition of digital reproductions of Tagore's paintings and a photographic exhibition on life and travels of Tagore.

High Commissioner also highlighted the strong bondage between Satyajit Ray and Dr. Lester James Peiris, whom Satyajit Ray had described as his closest relative in Asia.

Senior Minister Amunugama said that not only Dr.

Lester James Peiris was the closest relative of Satyajit Ray but India and Sri Lanka were also the closest relatives.

He highlighted the uniqueness of some of the masterpieces from Satyjit Ray which still continue to be admired by cine-lovers and compared Satyajit Ray and Lester James Peiris to famous Japanese Director Kurosawa.

The films screened at the film festival were:

Pathar Panchali (Song of the Little Road) is a 1955 Bengali film was the directorial debut of Ray. The first film of The Apu Trilogy, it depicts the childhood of the protagonist Apu in the rural countryside of Bengal in the 1920s.

Ghare Baire (The Home and the World) is a 1985 film by Satyajit Ray, based upon the novel of same name by Tagore.

Ray prepared a script for it in the 1940s, long before he made his first film Pather Panchali.

Charulata (The Lonely Wife) was the director's favourite. Ray described the film as the one which has the least defects.

Agantuk (The Stranger) is a 1991 Bengali film directed by Satyajit Ray.

It was also Ray's last film, and is based on one of Tagore's short stories, Atithi (The Guest).

Chokher Bali is a Bengali film based on the novel of same name by Rabindranath Tagore. Directed by Rituparno Ghosh in 2003.