Paras Pathar (The Philosopher’s stone, Bengali, 1958)

The hallmark of a great director is his ability to capture societal trends and imbue his works with his personal thoughts. That Indians are crazy for jewelry especially gold is known to all. At least in two of his films viz., ‘Paras Pathar’ & ‘Monihara’, Satyajit Ray uses this obsession as a leitmotif and used it to tell a story rich in societal commentary, the first one aided by a ‘fantasy’ narrative and the latter using the “horror” route based on a story by Rabindranath Tagore.

A number of remarkable films have been made in Bengal using the elements of ‘fantasy.’ One can recall Mrinal Sen’s ‘Ichchapuran’ based on a Tagore story, Anik Dutta’s ‘Aschorjo Prodip’ & ‘Asiete Asiona’ among others. These films clubbed with ‘Paras Pathar’ and ‘Thana Theke Aschei’ have pushed the envelope for Bengali cinema in their depiction of the unreal becoming the central device to communicate a social message/commentary.

‘Paras Pathar’ (1958) was the third film made by Ray after two serious films in his career – ‘Pather Panchali’ & ‘Aparajito.’ It’s a film unlike any that Ray has directed ever before or since. Billed as a comedy, it’s Chaplinesque in its treatment of pathos. It also brilliantly captures the aspirations lurking beneath the mundane existence of the middle-class office going Bengali and also issues a pearl of cautionary wisdom along the lines of the Gandhian philosophy of wealth accruing out of a lack of labor having disastrous consequences. Tulsi Chakraborty, the main protagonist is brilliant in a role of a lifetime.

Some of the initial sequences of the film exquisitely capture the milieu of the 50s and its life in the ‘office para.’ (business area) Watch the sequence where Tulsi C reveals the formula to the greedy jeweler out to make money and observe how humor can be cerebral and needn’t always be loud or conveyed using funny mannerisms.

The influence of De Sica’s ‘Bicycle Thieves’ on Ray and on the making of his debut film ‘Pather Panchali’ is well-documented. There’s also a likelihood that De Sica’s fantasy-laden ‘Miracle in Milan’ (1951) could have inspired Ray to make his film ‘Paras Pathar’.  ‘Paras Pathar’ was based on a story by the scientist Rajsekhar Basu who wrote under the pseudonym Parashuram.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Asite Asiona (1967)

A neglected octogenarian (Bhanu Bandopadhyay) stumbles upon a miraculous discovery…Fed up with the ill-treatment meted out to him and his wife (Ruma Guha Thakurta) by his children, he longs for an escape from his dreary existence. Accidentally, he even finds a solution to all of his woes. He discovers a pond where on taking a dip one regains his youth. When he transforms into a handsome young man, many were forced to accept the miracle as real. Quite predictably, all hell breaks loose …

From a chemist keen to investigate the composition of the water in the pond, senior officers in the Govt. keen to cash on its benefits, the change in the behavior of the children and their wives towards the man, sundry characters trying to make the most of the situation – everything adds up to make this an absolutely laugh riot.

Bhanu Bandopadhyay and Robi Ghosh deliver sterling performances. The supporting cast which includes Ruma Guha Thakurta, Kamal Mitra, Renuka, Asit Baran, Tarun Kumar, Shyam Laha and others perform creditably.

Does Bhanu forever remain young? Could such a miracle really have taken place? Watch the film to know the answers …one of the most hilarious Bengali films ever IMHO.

Aishwiny Iyer Tiwari