Ritwik Ghatak, rebel auteur who drew upon his life and times for his art

“No one else can shake the people’s middle-class mindset, wealth, and contentment. You have departed, pride has dissipated, and humility has surfaced.” This is my translation of a few lines from Ritwik, for You, a poem written by Bengali poet Shakti Chattopadhyay in 1976, shortly after the death of filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak.

 

November 4 marked the centenary of Ghatak, Indian cinema’s rebel auteur. Along with Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen, he is often hailed as one of Bengali cinema’s three maestros. However, in a 1997 article, Jacob Levich referred to Ghatak as the “problem child”