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Satyajit Ray is considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, and his films have had a profound impact on world cinema. His films are known for their realism, social commentary, and use of symbolism. He was a master of storytelling, and his films often explored themes of poverty, class, and the human condition. We caught hold of an old interview of the director where he is talking about a religious film and his speech makes so much sense amidst the recent row over Akshay Kumar’s film OMG 2.
Oh My God 2 has been advised 20 cuts and has been passed with an adult certificate from the censor board, which has left everyone in shock. The film has Akshay Kumar playing Lord Shiva and Pankaj Tripathi playing his ardent devotee. The trailer of the film had mixed responses and people criticised Khiladi Kumar for flaunting his chiselled body as Lord Shiva. The controversy hit hype after the recent Censor outing of the film.
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Now a video of Satyajit Ray amidst all the controversy and criticism around OMG 2 is going viral. The video was shared on a Reddit thread r/IndiaSpeaks, where the director can be seen talking about getting attacked for making films with religious contexts.
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The director says, “I once made a film called ‘The Goddess’, Devi. It dealt with religious dogmatism, It didn’t attack religion as such, It attacked dogmatism. The extreme form of religion. But people were writing in the papers, ‘Because Mr. Ray is not a Hindu, he was a Brahmo, he is making such films against Hinduism.”
The Pather Panchali next reveals why such hue and cry is made over such religious films, and it makes much sense amidst recent controversies regarding OMG 2. The Pather Panchali director further says, “But they are stupid people, You can’t take them into account. This happens in India all the time, and people don’t…We have a fairly backward audience here, I must say in spite of the Film Society movement and all that. If you consider the large audience, It’s a backward audience. Unsophisticated audience. Exposed to commercial Hindi Cinema more than anything else. And so, you face this problem.”
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At the end of his speech, the director roars with confidence, “But you make the kind of films (you want), I make the kind of films I want to make.” Ray went on to make 36 films over the course of his career. His most famous films include Aparajito (The Unvanquished), Apur Sansar (The World of Apu), Charulata (The Lonely Wife), Jalsaghar (The Music Room), Mahanagar (The Big City), Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest), and Shatranj Ke Khiladi (The Chess Players).
Ray’s films had a profound impact on world cinema. He helped to introduce Indian cinema to a global audience, and his films inspired a new generation of filmmakers. Ray is considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, and his work continues to be studied and admired by filmmakers all over the world.
Regarding the huge list of CBFC cuts and the censor certificate for OMG 2, no official statement has been made by the team yet. We wonder if directors of today’s era could vouch for their films with the same confidence!? We’ll be waiting for directors to own their piece of craft with such exurberence and confidence calling their work, their choice rightfully!
For more such stories, stay tuned to Koimoi.
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