The Master And I : Soumitra on Satyajit

With a foreword by Sharmila Tagore.

My life would never be the same again. It wasn't just that he had given me the chance to act in so many of his films, but also the fact that what I had got from my relationship of thirty-five years with him was no different from what I got from my parents or my wife. It was woven into my life, into the development of my character and will remain with me till I die

Soumitra Chatterjee was originally rejected for the role of Apu in Apur Sansar by Satyajit Ray. How did he get it back?

Did Soumitra Chatterjee advise Satyajit Ray to change the ending of Charulata?

How did Satyajit Ray influence Soumitra Chatterjee's career on the stage?

For 35 years, Bengal's most accomplished actor Soumitra Chatterjee was a constant presence in the artistic and personal life of India's foremost film director Satyajit Ray. Not only did he act in 14 of the maestro's films, he was also the film-maker's most faithful student and one of his closest friends. Soumitra Chatterjee tells the stories of his life with Satyajit Ray, recounting his experiences on and off the sets, revealing unknown facts, and offering intimate glimpses into his relationship with the film-maker he revers. As much about Ray as it is about Chatterjee, this is a unique artistic as well as personal journey along the path walked by the director and his most beloved actor.

This definition of real Romanticism that we're all aware of, the famous Renaissance of wonder - Manik da had the rare ability to feel this same sense of wonder the way a child does, as though seeing everything for the first time. What would an artist be left with if he lost his sense of wonder? Manik da retained this ability till the last day of his life. It was because of this that he remained fresh all the way, his work never becoming jaded.

Soumitra Chatterjee is the finest actor of modern Bengali cinema, an illustrious stage actor, and the winner of numerous awards, including the Dadasaheb Phalke Award (2012), India's highest award for cinema.

About the translator

Arunava Sinha translates classic, modern and contemporary Bengali fiction, non-fiction and poetry into English.