Failed Masculinities: The Men in Satyajit Ray's Films

by Devapriya Sanyal

Overview

Satyajit Ray belonged to a category of filmmakers and artists from newly independent countries whose work was used to define 'national culture'.
Failed Masculinities: The Men in Satyajit Ray's Films argues that a study of his films will give us a purchase on the moral trajectory of India in its first few decades of independence, particularly through examination of his male characters and their narratives. Films discussed by Sanyal include the Apu Trilogy, Shakha Prasakha, Ghare Baire and Kapurush.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781399511155
Publisher:	Edinburgh University Press
Publication date:	02/28/2025
Pages:	184
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Devapriya Sanyal is Assistant Professor of English at St Joseph's University, Bangalore. She has degrees in Literature and Cinema from Lady Brabourne College, Calcutta and Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She is the author of Salman Khan: The Man, The Actor, The Legend (2022).

Table of Contents

Introduction: Satyajit Ray’s films, his men and the inscription of the nation

1. The colonial and the pre-modern: Shatranj Ke Khiladi, Jalsaghar, and Devi

2. An Uncertain India: Early Nationalism in Ghare Baire and Charulata

3. Breaking with the Past: The Apu trilogy

4. 'For all we have and are': The Post-independence bourgeoisie in Kanchenjungha and Kapurush

5. The Hollow Men: The complacent ‘achiever’ in Nayak, Aranyer Din Ratri, and Seemabaddha

6. Trying times: Aspiration and failure in Kanchenjunga, Mahanagar, Pratidwandi, and Jana Aranya.

7. At Odds with the Nation: Joy Baba Felunath, Hirak Rajar Deshe, and Sadgati.

8. ‘An Essay on Man’: The wise person in Ganashatru, Shakha Prasakha and Agantuk

Conclusion: Moving Away from the Nation

Editorial Reviews

Sanyal draws some fascinating conclusions when reviewing the different kinds of ineffectual males populating Satyajit Ray’s films from the 1950s to the early 1990s. Notions of modernity and nationhood intersect with masculinity to illuminate this historically contextualised study in which women – whether strong or subjugated – play a critical role too.

Martin Shingler

This is a marvelous volume that shows how a filmmaker, a national industry, and emerging modern masculinity impact one another, deepening questions of identity and manhood. Highly recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty; professionals.

CHOICE - G.R. Butters Jr