Ray & His Women Throughout the Years Part 1

Today happens to be reknowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray's birth anniversary. Ray's female characters have always broken the stereotypical boundaries. On this occasion, let's get to know the remarkable female characters he has created over the years.

1. Sarbajaya  from Pather Panchali (1955): Sarbajaya is a strong village woman who almost single-handedly brings up 2 of her kids. She hides her poverty with her strict self-restrictions. She controls her very naughty daughter with the utmost strictness, which sometimes may seem too brutal, but it is to maintain the family's respect. The same mother breaks apart absolutely when that very daughter dies, never to bring herself together later. She loses her daughter and her husband but still brings up her only son all on her own. She definitely is a strong character.

2.  Aparna from Apur Songsar (1959): Aparna is a simple village girl who, by chance, gets married to Apu without his will. Slowly, she adapts to the very different city life and accepts her husband. They have a very short but happy married life until the time Aparna dies during childbirth. Aparna brings out a lovable, simple young girl with lots of hope for knowing and seeing the world.

3. Doyamoyee from Devi (1960): A fanatic & powerful patriarch regards his daughter-in-law as the reincarnation of Goddess. To prove his point, he makes her go through tremendous mental and physical pain, all in the name of devotion. The underage bride is helpless and hapless, and neither does she have the courage nor the strength to go against the ordeals. Ultimately, this leads to her tragic demise. In spite of a loving husband, the girl faces a tragic ending just because of the pride and maddening fanatism of an adamant man.

4. Ratan, Mrinmoyee, Monimalika from Teen Kanya (1961): Ray's Teen Kanya is an anthology film with 3 short stories of Rabindranath Tagore

Ratan from Postmaster is a small girl who makes a nice bond with the newly appointed postmaster of the village for whom she cooks and serves. Her loveless and non-happening life becomes entirely about her very loving "dada". She cares for him as her own and even nurses him back to health from malaria. When Nanda, the postmaster, leaves the job to return to the city, she urges him to take her with him. When Nanda laughs at his request, Ratan's life is shattered, but she says nothing, while her blank face says everything. 

Monimalika from Monihara is a ravishingly beautiful wife of a wealthy businessman who is obsessed with jewellery. When her husband faces losses in his business, she fears that he will take her jewelleries to revive his failing business. In this very fear, she takes help of an almost unknown person and flees with a body full of her jewelleries, leaving her house. Her husband, who has regained his riches and got another piece of bejewelled necklace for his wife, only finds her gone. Monimalika's ghost comes back to haunt him, not for the love of her husband, but only to get the new piece of necklace that he had got for her. 

Mrinmoyee from Samapti is a naughty teenager who is almost forcefully married to Amulya. She gets bored with the restrictions of her married life and escapes while her husband is in the city. She finds solace in her father's house amidst nature, but she realises, unknowingly she has fallen in love with her husband. So she finally returns to him.

5. Gulabi from Abhijan(1962): Gulabi is a beautiful widow who gets attracted to a taxi driver. Although initially, the man shows no interest in her because of her general hatred towards women, he finally rescues her from trafficking. Gulabi is a serene character. She is lonely and has been degraded by society, but she still finds love in Narsingh, the driver.

6. Monisha from Kanchenjungha (1962): Monisha is a rebel without much hue and cry. She is adamant about her decision to reject the man her dominating father has chosen for her. Instead, she takes an interest in a simpleton who has the courage to reject her father's job offer. She enjoys nature and longs for simplicity amidst her rich and materialistic family.

7. Arati from Mahanagar (1963): A career woman, Arati works with dedication and sincerity to climb the ladder of success at her work in spite of obstructions at home. When her husband loses his job, she takes up the whole responsibility of running the house. Arati is one of the most powerful female characters in Indian cinema, who supports honesty and truth, no matter what may be the effect. She is a woman, ready to face the unknowing future along with her husband. She is vulnerable yet strong.

In the next part, I will be throwing light on a few more significant women characters from Satyajit Ray's movies. Stay tuned.