“Articulations of Modernity: The Ritwik Phenomenon” – Part of the year-long “Ritwik in Retrospect” Event

Name of the Activity: “Articulations of Modernity: The Ritwik Phenomenon” – Part of the year-long “Ritwik in Retrospect” Event

Type of Activity: A Special Lecture, open to all based on registration

Date/Duration of Activity (from – to): On 8^th January 2025

Time: 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM

Details of Resource Person(s): Sanjoy Mukhopadhyay, Writer and Critic, Former HOD of Dept. of Film Studies Jadavpur University, Former Director and CEO of Roopkala Kendro

No. of Participants: 58

Objective of the Event: Introduction to the aesthetic and philosophical system of Ritwik Ghatak’s works, inaugurating the year-long celebration of Ritwik Ghatak Centenary.

Brief Description of the Event: Ritwik Ghatak is considered among the greatest filmmakers to have ever lived. His films have gained cultural, political, and philosophical significance over the years, inspiring other filmmakers and becoming recognizable part of Film Studies curriculum in colleges and universities around the world. “Ritwik in Retrospect” is a humble initiative by the Department of Film Studies to observe his birth centenary where we plan to organize a series of lectures, seminars, screenings, and discussions throughout the year. In the process we aim to reassess and reevaluate the films of Ghatak and revisit the central questions in renewed contemporary contexts.

The special lecture held in Jubilee Hall started with an introduction by Prof. Arup Ratan Samajdar of the Department of Film Studies followed by the felicitation of Prof. Sanjoy Mukhopadhyay. Prof. Tathagata Sen from the Department of English delivered the Welcome Note wherein he emphasized upon the importance of recalling Ghatak in today’s cultural scenario.

In his lecture, Prof. Mukhopadhyay pointed out how the experience of modernity is not a discontinuous break from history but is informed by the ‘pre-modern’ and the ‘ancient’ in complex ways. He discussed how Ghatak’s film form articulates the contemporary in the manner of the mythic, drawing inspirations from, and getting into dialogue with poets, artistes and philosophers from different ages – from Kalidasa to Hegel to Tagore to T. S. Eliot.
The lecture was attended by around 60 participants including teachers, students and non-teaching staff from our college. Besides them, teachers, students, and research scholars from other institutions such as SRFTI, University of Calcutta, and Sanskrit College and University also attended the event. The lecture was followed by an exciting and enlightening Q&A session. Prof. Mukhopadhyay patiently and cordially addressed almost all the questions before Mr. Soumya Ganguly of the Department of Film Studies delivered the Vote of Thanks. The afternoon concluded with informal interactions over tea and snacks.

Outcome of the Event: This special lecture by Prof. Mukhopadhyay carefully and effectively served two essential purposes. It was a curtain raiser for our long-term plans of celebrating Ghatak Centenary. More importantly, he provided an insightful outline to Ghatak’s entire body of work, providing a necessary critical entry point into the filmmaker’s system of thought. Particularly for the students, it was not only a fruitful introduction to Ghatak, but also an exposure to a critical framework – a method to think about critical questions.