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Gaach, a French tribute to Ray's best man, Soumitra
SHANTANU DATTA
NEW DELHI, JAN 20: For all the love and admiration we have for Satyajit Ray and his films, it is ironic that it took a woman from France to make a film about ``Apu'', the Master's favourite actor, Soumitra Chatterjee.A product of the Merchant-Ivory stable, Catherine Berge's Gaach (tree) had its first screening in India today and even though it came at the fag end of the festival, there was quite a crowd to see this documentary-feature on one of the most popular film and theatre artistes of Bengal. Structured loosely, the hour-long film delves into the different aspects of Soumitra's career and allows him to do most of the talking. So it is he who introduces us to his poetry, his life in the theatre and of course his long association with ``Manik-da'' (as Ray was known to his friends). There are several clips from Ray's films including Apur Sansar, Ganashatru, Jalsaghar, Samapti, and of course the unforgettable: Kishore Kumar's rendition of ``Ogo bideshini...'' in Charulata.
It is by using this Tagore song that Berge wins over sceptics among the audience - there were quite a few Bengalis today - convincing them of her sincerity in handling a subject that she admits is quite alien to her. And so, `Apu's' song about the Friendly Fraulein becomes poignantly relevant in the context: a foreigner making a film on the actor who played `Apu'. ``I grew up on my grandfather's stories about Tagore and Ray. I began to like the Bengali language and was fascinated by the idea that Ray worked with one actor for so many of his films,'' says Berge. That was enough for a film, and after a chat with Soumitra on the phone and then a five-minute brisk meeting with Ismail Merchant, Gaach was through as a project.Hurried through a shoot of nine days in Calcutta, one of the most interesting aspects of the film are Ray's many heroines, Sharmila Tagore, Aparna Sen, Madhabi Mukherjee, telling their own little stories about their favourite actor. Berge uses the Late Robi Ghosh, another favourite
of Ray, as a ``patua'' holding his scroll of paintings to a motley group of village children to narrate the events of her film. Gaach makes up with content what it lacks in cinematic excellence. The filming of the theatre sequences seems contrived, while Zakir Hussain's music is un-inspiring. But if the idea is to speak of the man,then Gaach is a success.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
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