'Mahanagar' or 'The Big City' was perhaps one of the first occasions where Satyajit Ray explored contemporary society and his beloved Calcutta. His earlier films were mainly period pieces which involved themes of the transition from traditions to modernism like The Apu Trilogy or The Music Room. Interestingly even though 'The Big City' was a contemporary film, it still has this aforementioned theme running through it in a different context and in a different time and place. The story based on a novel by Narendranath Mitra explores a family belonging to the lower-middle class of the income divide in early 1960s Calcutta. The financial constraints that the family goes through renders the money earned by the sole breadwinner Subrata insufficient for survival and this financial inadequacy makes it necessary for Arati, Subrata's wife to start a new life as a working woman to help out her family which subsequently leads to complications within the family. This film is extremely layered and complex, but the characteristic gentle and graceful style of Ray's filmmaking adds an incomparable humanism to the film and makes the viewer helplessly feel for the characters and fall in love with the film as a whole.
There is a whole array of themes being explored here but due to the beauty of the screenplay and the dialogues written by Ray, everything flows effortlessly. Arati certainly can be used as a symbol of feminism, but the way Ray uses this character is different from some other big feminist characters like the two leads in 'Thelma & Louise'or Nana in 'Vivre Sa Vie'. Arati is not working to show the men in her life that she is equally capable if not better than them. Satyajit Ray's film is in no way adversarial. Arati's reasons for working are completely rooted in the financial needs of her family, but I think at a deeper level, she also wants to eliminate all her shame and inhibitions for not receiving good education and prove to her own self that she is good enough. I think this is established in a beautiful scene set in the bathroom of her office when she stands in front of the mirror and looks at herself and her salary notes.
Although this is majorly Arati's journey in her transition from being a housewife to a working woman, but the film won't be complete without the other characters. The husband Subrata is not evil. We never see any dramatic and loud arguments between him and Arati. He does get engulfed gradually by a feeling of jealousy towards his wife and her success, but under the circumstances that he finds himself in, such a reaction is very understandable. He never shows anger, the only signs of his light disapproval comes in the form of faint sarcasm and subtle taunts. But these reactions are attracted due to his own mental struggles as a result of his father's attitude towards him which makes him feel like a failure as a son and a provider. Aratis's in-laws are people who are products of their times. The mother-in-law remains subservient and accepts things without saying much. The father-in-law who used to be teacher, is a lot more adversarial. He finds it difficult to adjust his beliefs and opinions with the changing society and considers himself to be a victim of social injustice as someone who remains poor while his students achieve success and he feels neglected by his son. But Ray still refuses to judge him and treats him with respect by understanding his helpless condition.
Ray's screenplay beautifully juggles the prospects the telling the story and showcasing the emotional struggles of Arati and her family as well as making a social commentary on the financial status of the city in general. Ray explores the income gap existing within the city's population. This family is one of the innumerable families that have to deal with similar financial deficiencies in Calcutta and there are many Aratis and Subratas in the city which gets underlined by the last shot of the film. Conservatism and racism with its roots in conservative ideas and the friction caused when these ideas confront the new and fresh ideas of the changing social scene of India and Calcutta also gets explored deftly by Ray. This film is also a beautiful account of how the nature of a marriage changes with the changes in society. The chemistry between Subrata and Arati is brilliant. The love that they have for each other is undeniable. They go through a lot of struggles due to surrounding circumstances,but in the end we see them reconcile in the most heart-wrenching manner possible and the lost shot of the film underlines the feminist ideas which Ray explores in the film. Subrata whole-heatedly accepts Arati as a working woman and they walk together side by side on the Calcutta streets.
There are plenty of beautiful subtleties in the film which are very expressive. The camera work and cinematic style is also remarkable. The first half of the film like Arati is majorly shot indoors. But once Arati gets her job, we get beautiful shots of the Calcutta streets in the style of Cinéma vérité.
Madhabi Mukherjee as Arati puts in a spellbinding performance. She is compelling and graceful and flawlessly portrays every emotion and makes the character a real person. Anil Chatterjee is almost equally brilliant as Subrata. He also plays the character with subtlety and makes him believable.
'The Big City' is one of many masterpieces which fill Satyajit Ray's filmography. It is one of those transcendental pieces of cinema that makes you love art as well as the artistes. It is very personal as well as completely universal. Its themes which ring true even today make it a must watch for every cinephile.
There is a whole array of themes being explored here but due to the beauty of the screenplay and the dialogues written by Ray, everything flows effortlessly. Arati certainly can be used as a symbol of feminism, but the way Ray uses this character is different from some other big feminist characters like the two leads in 'Thelma & Louise'or Nana in 'Vivre Sa Vie'. Arati is not working to show the men in her life that she is equally capable if not better than them. Satyajit Ray's film is in no way adversarial. Arati's reasons for working are completely rooted in the financial needs of her family, but I think at a deeper level, she also wants to eliminate all her shame and inhibitions for not receiving good education and prove to her own self that she is good enough. I think this is established in a beautiful scene set in the bathroom of her office when she stands in front of the mirror and looks at herself and her salary notes.
Although this is majorly Arati's journey in her transition from being a housewife to a working woman, but the film won't be complete without the other characters. The husband Subrata is not evil. We never see any dramatic and loud arguments between him and Arati. He does get engulfed gradually by a feeling of jealousy towards his wife and her success, but under the circumstances that he finds himself in, such a reaction is very understandable. He never shows anger, the only signs of his light disapproval comes in the form of faint sarcasm and subtle taunts. But these reactions are attracted due to his own mental struggles as a result of his father's attitude towards him which makes him feel like a failure as a son and a provider. Aratis's in-laws are people who are products of their times. The mother-in-law remains subservient and accepts things without saying much. The father-in-law who used to be teacher, is a lot more adversarial. He finds it difficult to adjust his beliefs and opinions with the changing society and considers himself to be a victim of social injustice as someone who remains poor while his students achieve success and he feels neglected by his son. But Ray still refuses to judge him and treats him with respect by understanding his helpless condition.
Ray's screenplay beautifully juggles the prospects the telling the story and showcasing the emotional struggles of Arati and her family as well as making a social commentary on the financial status of the city in general. Ray explores the income gap existing within the city's population. This family is one of the innumerable families that have to deal with similar financial deficiencies in Calcutta and there are many Aratis and Subratas in the city which gets underlined by the last shot of the film. Conservatism and racism with its roots in conservative ideas and the friction caused when these ideas confront the new and fresh ideas of the changing social scene of India and Calcutta also gets explored deftly by Ray. This film is also a beautiful account of how the nature of a marriage changes with the changes in society. The chemistry between Subrata and Arati is brilliant. The love that they have for each other is undeniable. They go through a lot of struggles due to surrounding circumstances,but in the end we see them reconcile in the most heart-wrenching manner possible and the lost shot of the film underlines the feminist ideas which Ray explores in the film. Subrata whole-heatedly accepts Arati as a working woman and they walk together side by side on the Calcutta streets.
There are plenty of beautiful subtleties in the film which are very expressive. The camera work and cinematic style is also remarkable. The first half of the film like Arati is majorly shot indoors. But once Arati gets her job, we get beautiful shots of the Calcutta streets in the style of Cinéma vérité.
Madhabi Mukherjee as Arati puts in a spellbinding performance. She is compelling and graceful and flawlessly portrays every emotion and makes the character a real person. Anil Chatterjee is almost equally brilliant as Subrata. He also plays the character with subtlety and makes him believable.
'The Big City' is one of many masterpieces which fill Satyajit Ray's filmography. It is one of those transcendental pieces of cinema that makes you love art as well as the artistes. It is very personal as well as completely universal. Its themes which ring true even today make it a must watch for every cinephile.