• India offered to cooperate with the Bangladesh government to repair and reconstruct the ancestral property of noted filmmaker Satyajit Ray in Mymensingh.

• The iconic building belonged to the filmmakers’s grandfather, Upendra Kishor Ray Chowdhury, who was also a renowned litterateur.

• India called on Bangladesh to reconsider its decision to demolish the property.

• The Ministry of External Affairs urged Dhaka to convert it into a museum symbolising shared culture of the two countries and pledged to extend cooperation for it.

• MEA said the property, presently owned by the Bangladesh government, is in a state of “disrepair”.

Who was Satyajit Ray?

• Satyajit Ray was a renowned filmmaker, writer, illustrator and music composer.

• He was born on May 2, 1921 in Kolkata.

• Ray was greatly influenced by filmmakers such as French filmmaker Jean Renoir and Italian filmmaker Vittorio De Sica.

• He started his career in advertising and found inspiration for his first film, ‘Pather Panchali’ (1955), while illustrating the children’s version of the novel by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay.

• This film, the first part of his Apu Trilogy (the other two being ‘Aparajito’ and ‘Apur Sansar’) not only introduced the world to Ray’s unique storytelling prowess, but also marked the advent of a new wave in Indian cinema. 

• Ray went on to make other great films such as ‘Charulata’, ‘Agantuk’ and ‘Nayak’.

• Ray was also a prolific writer, making the famous sleuth Feluda and scientist Professor Shonku, a popular part of Bengali Literature. 

• The government of India honoured him with the Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award, in 1992.

• In 1992, Ray received the Oscar for Lifetime Achievement by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

• Satyajit Ray passed away on April 23, 1992.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)