Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne and other Stories


Book Description

This book is a selection of the best of stories by Upendrakishore Roychoudhuri, and the most fascinating of his characters: Goopy and Bagha, dedicated but unsuccessful musicians who are cast out of their homes because their music drives their families and neighbours crazy; Tuntuni, the little bird; the clever fox; Majantali Sarkar, the cat; the intrepid Granny Hunchback; and many others. Swagata Deb’s vibrant translation brings Upendrakishore’s unique magic to a wider audience, giving a new lease of life to these evergreen tales.




The Cultural Gutter


Book Description

Science fiction, fantasy, comics, romance, genre movies, games all drain into the Cultural Gutter, a website dedicated to thoughtful articles about disreputable art-media and genres that are a little embarrassing. Irredeemable. Worthy of Note, but rolling like errant pennies back into the gutter. The Cultural Gutter is dangerous because we have a philosophy. We try to balance enthusiasm with clear-eyed, honest engagement with the material and with our readers. This book expands on our mission with 10 articles each from science fiction/fantasy editor James Schellenberg, comics editor and publisher Carol Borden, romance editor Chris Szego, screen editor Ian Driscoll and founding editor and former games editor Jim Munroe.




Satyajit Ray


Book Description

Profiles the life of the Indian director, and discusses the making of each of his films




Manik Da


Book Description

Satyajit Ray, known to his intimates as Manik-da, remains India's most respected name in international film circles. This book reveals in its simplicity the ease and camaraderie between Satyajit Ray, one of India's finest film-makers, and Nemai Ghosh, photographer extraordinaire. Manik-da is the latter's endeavour to depict the man behind the director's mask. Ghosh first worked with Ray on Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne, and Ray immediately found in him a kindred spirit who intuitively understood his requirements - and whom he understood. Thus was formed a partnership that spanned over a quarter of a century. In the process, Ghosh was able to photograph Ray at work and play, capturing on film the many moods of the master director. This nuanced and lucid translation from the Bengali original, which includes a perceptive Foreword by Sharmila Tagore, presents to the English reader Ghosh's thoughts on Ray with over fifty exquisite, never-before-seen photographs.







14


Book Description

An anthology of short stories that master film-maker Satyajit Ray adapted into films.A rich zamindar has a dream that his daughter-in-law is an incarnation of Kali; a clerk's life turns upside down when he stumbles upon a magical stone which can turn any base metal into gold; a housewife steps out of her lowermiddle-class household into the big city to work as a salesgirl,and is awestruck by its labyrinthine ways; blessed with three magical boons from the king of ghosts, Goopy and Bagha fight the evil plans of the king of Halla and save the kingdom of Shundi; a group of friends run into a self-proclaimed ageless sage who claims to have been friends with Plato, Jesus and Buddha.With short stories from legendary writers like Tagore, Prabhat Kumar Mukhopadhyay, Rajshekhar Basu and Premchand, Fourteen is a beautiful collection of tales Satyajit Ray transformed into films, that have endured and become classics we all love and admire.




Travails with the Alien


Book Description

Satyajit Ray was a master of science fiction writing. Through his Professor Shonku stories and other fiction and non-fiction pieces, he explored the genre from various angles. In the 1960s, Ray wrote a screenplay for what would have been the first-of-its-kind sci-fi film to be made in India. It was called The Alien and was based on his own short story "Bonkubabur Bandhu". On being prompted by Arthur C. Clarke, who found the screenplay promising, Ray sent the script to Columbia Pictures in Hollywood, who agreed to back it, and Peter Sellers was approached to play a prominent role. Then started the "Ordeals of the Alien" as Ray calls it, as even after a series of trips to the US, UK and France, the film was never made, and more shockingly, some fifteen years later, Ray watched Steven Spielberg's film Close Encounters of the Third Kind and later E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, and realized these bore uncanny resemblances to his script The Alien, including the way the ET was designed! A slice of hitherto undocumented cinema history, Travails with the Alien includes Ray's detailed essay on the project with the full script of The Alien, as well as the original short story on which the screenplay was based. These, presented alongside correspondence between Ray and Peter Sellers, Arthur C. Clarke, Marlon Brando, Hollywood producers who showed interest, and a fascinating essay by the young student at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism who broke the Spielberg story, make this book a rare and compelling read on science fiction, cinema and the art of adaptation.




Classic Satyajit Ray


Book Description

A Collection of Satyajit Ray's best short stories in one volume! Best-known for his immensely popular short stories mysteries and the A collection of forty-nine Feluda adventures of Professor Shonku, Satyajit Ray was also one of the most skilful short story writers of his generation.




Childhood Days


Book Description

Frank and funny, these stories written originally for the Bengali children's magazine Sandesh, are an essential read for all Ray enthusiasts as well as those who want to know Ray, the writer and film-maker, better. In this volume, Ray also shares some of his experiences while shooting Pather Panchali—his epic debut, and subsequent films, particularly for children. He describes how an entire field of kaash flowers was eaten up by cows before he could shoot his famous scene with the train in Pather Panchali; and how a circus tiger let loose in a bamboo grove chased away a group of curious onlookers in the blink of an eye.




3 Rays


Book Description

'3 Rays is like exploring the Mother Earth, and finding the rare treasures'-Gulzar, poet, lyricist and film-maker 'Satyajit Ray's work is like a beautiful scene from nature, and that's the reason we get lost in his beautiful art' -Shoojit Sircar, film-maker 'Ray's magic, the simple poetry of his images and their emotional impact, will always stay with me'-Martin Scorsese, film director, producer, screenwriter and actor 'Satyajit Ray's artifice and honesty set him apart from other film directors'-The Guardian 'Satyajit Ray's world of restless watchfulness and nuance'-The New York Times 'The quiet but deep observation ... have impressed me greatly'-Akira Kurosawa, film-maker The most anticipated book on the centenary birth anniversary of Satyajit Ray An amazingly brilliant collection of Satyajit Ray's previously unpublished autobiographical writings, illustrations, fictions and non-fictions A collector's item, 3 Rays is a source of delight for every reader Satyajit Ray (1921-1992), through his life, philosophy and works offered a unique aesthetic sensibility, which took Indian cinema, art and literature to a new height. An ace designer, music composer, illustrator and a gifted writer, Ray gave us the awe-inspiring sleuth Feluda, and the maverick scientist, Professor Shonku-two iconic characters loved and revered by millions of readers. On the occasion of his centenary birth anniversary, 3 Rays: Stories from Satyajit Ray, the first book in The Penguin Ray Library series, opens a window to the brilliance of this Renaissance man. With more than forty stories and poems along with many unpublished works, autobiographical writings and illustrations by Ray, this volume offers a unique glimpse into Ray's creative genius.