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THE BIG CITY

MAHANAGAR

By Satyajit RAY

RDB ENTERTAINMENTS PVT. LTD. - as PROD

Drama - Completed 1963

Mahanagar marks Ray’s first excursion into neo-realism with its depiction of every day life in the then contemporary Calcutta of 1955. The film examines the effects of the confident working woman on patriarchial attitudes and social dynamics.

- Year of production
- 1963
- Genres
- Drama
- Countries
- INDIA
- Languages
- BENGALI
- Budget
- N/A
- Duration
- 131 mn
- Director(s)
- Satyajit RAY
- ISAN
- 0000-0000-4716-0000-G-0000-0000-Q
- Producer(s)
- R.d BANSAL
- Synopsis
- Subrata, an ordinary employee of a bank, is the only member of the family with an income. Against established custom and the reproofs of her father-in-law, Subrata’s wife Arati seeks employment as a door-to-door salesgirl. When she becomes successful in her work, gaining self-confidence and financial independence, her husband is unable to accept the situation and wishes for her to quit. Ironically, a crisis at the bank erupts and Arati resigns as a protest against the wounded honor of her friend, an Anglo-Indian woman. The film ends with a more equal re-alignment of the relationship between Arati and her husband.
  Mahanagar received a prize for Best Direction at the 1964 Berlin Film Festival and it remains one of Ray’s most unassuming and life-like creations.