Satyajit Ray, a highly acclaimed filmmaker in India, was born on May 2, 1921 in Calcutta (now known as Kolkata) in India to his parents, Sukumar and Suprabha Ray. His father, Sukumor Roy, was a well-known writer of nonsense rhymes for children and his grandfather, Upendrakishore Roychoudhury, a prominent writer of children’s literature.
After completing his schooling at Ballygunge Government High School, Ray joined the Presidency College in Calcutta to obtain his bachelor’s degree. Then, he went to Visva Bharati University founded by Rabindranath Tagore. Although he started his career in a British advertising agency, he eventually changed his attention to film making. His films are internationally acclaimed and won numerous awards. Roy also won many awards for his personal achievements including the Légion d’Honneur from France (1987), the Oscar Honorary Award from the United States in (1992) and the Bharat Ratna from India (1992). Apart from making films, he was also a good writer and illustrator. We have several of his works in our collections. If you do an author search for Satyajit Ray, you will find his movies and his short stories. If you would like to learn more about Ray, I recommend taking a look at some of the books, articles, and other resources listed on the Satyajit Ray Film and Study Center (Ray FASC).
Ray’s popular movies include Charulata, Mahanagar, Apur Sansar, Devi, Home and the World, etc. Click on the clip below to enjoy a song from his movie, Home and the World.