Internal Partition: Satyajit Ray’s cinema in the light of Bengal Partition and the long Post-partition residual process

• Main Authors: Ritwij Bhowmik, ​李威杰
• Other Authors: Liu Joyce C. H.
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2014
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/91275456278204969715

博士 === 國立交通大學 === 社會與文化研究所 === 102 === The thesis explores issues related to 1947’s Bengali partition which influenced Satyajit Ray’s cinema, particularly the films that challenged the religious dogmas of the Bengali society which were presumably some of the predominant reasons behind this partition. It also studies those Ray-films that investigate the declining post-partition situation of West-Bengal and specially Calcutta and also delineate the grim pictures of the refugee exploitation, emancipation of refugee woman and their impact on the society. The Bengal, especially during the nineteenth century, with the advent of western education, perceived a golden era of social, political, religious and literary awakening known as the Bengali Renaissance. But within half a century this same Bengal witnessed some great communal atrocities which finally in 1947, divided the land into two parts – the Muslim ‘East-Bengal’ and the Hindu major ‘West-Bengal’. Over the years, the issues related to partition, which are minutely addressed in a significant number of Ray-films, were technically ignored by scholars, who chiefly ascertained Ray’s films in a myriad of perspectives, notwithstanding the fact that there is a deficiency of some specific scholarship that ensue his cinema within the light of devastating Bengali partition1. This thesis will primarily engage in investigating Ray’s cinema within the light of the Bengali Partition of 1947 and its prolonged residual process; it will draw two distinguishable categories of Satyajit’s prominent films: the first section seeking Ray’s criticism of religious orthodoxies, such as superstitions, blind-faith, untouchability and communalism. The second category will discuss Satyajit’s reprehension of the post-partition [West] Bengali society, the declining city and the uncontrollable refugee crisis – all of which were assuredly the fruits of the Partition. The aim of this thesis is to investigate Satyajit’s cinema that works as a potent articulation against the dolorous partition and the tormenting residual process. The questions that inform the study surround are the backdrop, influence and the means by which a stalwart virtuoso, like Satyajit, expresses his dissatisfaction and anguish. How Satyajit addressed communalism and religious fanaticisms, such as vulnerable superstitions and untouchability? How he ‘voiced’ his excruciation about the post-partition deterioration of his own city? How his films reacted against the ‘exploitation’ of ‘migrant women’ and celebrated their‘emancipation? How Satyajit employed the mid-night’s children or ‘second generation refugees’ as the lead protagonists of his films? Various representations and interpretations of these categories, within the locus of Ray’s cinema are analyzed in this thesis in order to examine the social, historical and political grounding that invigorated Satyajit Ray to produce these films.