Satyajit Ray’s personal favourite work “Charulata” adapted from Tagore’s novel, if given a closer look unfolds a feminist side, where Charu played by Madhabi Mukherjee gives a truthful reflection of her life from a female’s point of view. When asked to choose his favourite movie in a “Cineaste” interview, Ray responded, “Well, the one film that I would make the same way, if I had to do it again, is Charulata”.
Ray’s creativity in portraying characters and emotions that are so realistic always makes his work stand out from the crowd.
Story of the late nineteen century Bengali woman Charu
Charulata is the story of the late nineteen century Bengali woman Charu, who after marriage seems to be neglected by her husband and often a victim of boredom. She is married to Bhupati (Sailen Mukherjee), an upper-class Bengali academic and newspaper editor who is interested in social reform and the liberation movement and seems to have no time for his lonely wife.
As the story moves forward it is observed that Bhupati realizes Charu is lonely so he invites her brother Umpada and sister-in-law Manda to come over and provide company to Charu and soon Umpada starts assisting Bhupati with the printing press, but Manda’s impolite demeanor contrasts with Charu’s intellectual and inventive personality.
Caught in the trap of guilt and emotion
Bhupati one day calls his cousin Amal played by Soumitra Chatterjee and Bhupati requests him to support Charu in her literary and artistic endeavors. Soon the bonding between Charu and Amal strengthens as they started to connect through their shared hobbies and help one other fill the gaps in their schedules.
Amal recognizes Charu’s affection for him but chooses not to return it out of shame and obligation. On the other hand, Bhupati faces a huge loss as Umpada and Manda run away scamming him for his money and Bhupati turns to Amal as the only person he could trust. Caught in the trap of guilt and emotion Amal decides to leave for England for higher studies and marriage, leaving behind a letter for Charu.
When Bhupati realizes the truth and sees Charu sobbing, he is both shocked and heartbroken and he leaves the house. When he comes back, Bhupati and Charu make an effort to reach out their hands to one another, but the movie ends before their hands’ touch.
The film never portrayed Charu from Bhupat’s point of view and neither did the camera’s.
Ray’s simple yet heart-touching work makes the Charulata extraordinary, Through Charulata, Ray made it a point to showcase to the audience that the female gaze that we talk about is not always the opposite of the male gaze but rather shows the world through the female point of view and so the film never portrayed Charu from Bhupat’s point of view and neither did the cameras.
The most beautiful part is Charu as a character was never melted down to the conclusion of being an adulterous woman who is having an affair but rather gives a very realistic approach to the feeling of loneliness and emptiness in a women’s life.
Charulata is a quite balanced film
The majority of Ray’s movie is silent or has very little dialogue from the characters. He concentrates on Charu’s gestures, facial expressions, music, or singing in order to portray her feelings. She rarely verbally conveys her emotions or uses words to describe herself. Silence is frequently associated with weakness or submission when we think of it, yet in Charulata, it serves as a platform for the subjectivity of women.
Lastly, if given a closer look the film Charulata is a quite balanced film, it is never extremely inclined to the feminist side but rather beautifully portrayed and gave equal room for the emotions of men and their perspective in the film. There’s a lot to note down from this absolute masterpiece by Satyajit Ray, if you are wondering where to watch this 1964’s wonderful film Charulata then you can watch it on Amazon Prime.
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