Devi (1960 film)

Devi (English: The Goddess) is a 1960 Bengali drama film by director Satyajit Ray, starring Sharmila Tagore and Soumitra Chatterjee. It is based on a short story by Provatkumar Mukhopadhyay. The title means "Goddess".

Devi
Poster
Directed bySatyajit Ray
Written bySatyajit Ray
StarringSoumitra Chatterjee
Sharmila Tagore
Music byUstad Ali Akbar Khan
CinematographySubrata Mitra
Edited byDulal Dutta
Release date
  • 19 February 1960 (1960-02-19)
Running time
93 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageBengali

Plot synopsis

In 19th-century rural Bengal, Dayamoyee (Sharmila Tagore) and her husband Umaprasad (Soumitra Chatterjee) live with Umaprasad's family. His father, Kalikinkar Choudhuri, is a devoted follower of the goddess Kali. Since Umaprasad is away at school, Dayamoyee takes care of her father-in-law.

One evening, Kalikinkar has a dream that Dayamoyee is an avatar of Kali and must be worshipped as such. Soon other people also come to believe that she is an incarnation of the goddess. After hearing the news, Umaprasad returns home but is unable to remedy the situation as Dayamoyee herself begins to believe that she is an avatar, a belief which soon turns to tragedy.

Cast

Preservation

The Academy Film Archive preserved Devi in 1996.[1]

Critical reception & legacy

The film received critical acclaim upon its release.[2] On Rotten Tomatoes, Devi holds a score of 100% based on 10 reviews for an average rating of 7.6/10.[3] Directors William Wyler and Elia Kazan have described the film as "poetry on celluloid".[4][5]

Awards
National Film Awards
Cannes Film Festival

Other credits

References
  1. "Preserved Projects". Academy Film Archive.
  2. "Screen: Satyajit Ray's 'Devi' Arrives:Indian Film Deals With a Religious Conflict: Creator of 'Apu' Plays Old Against New". New York Times print archive. 8 October 1962. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  3. "Devi (The Goddess)". Rotten Tomatoes. 11 July 2007. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  4. Gupta, Ranjan Das (30 April 2011). "Ray at Cannes". The Hindu Times. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  5. Roisin, Fariha (18 August 2014). "Why the Best American Filmmakers Owe a Debt to Satyajit Ray". IndieWire. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  6. "8th National Film Awards". International Film Festival of India. Archived from the original on 12 October 2013. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  7. "Festival de Cannes: Devi". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 22 February 2009.


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