“Ritwik: Reason, Realism and Asymmetry” – Part of the year-long “Ritwik in Retrospect”

Type of Activity:  A Special Lecture, open to all based on registration
Date/Duration of Activity (from – to): On 10^th June 2025
Time: 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM
Details of Resource Person(s): Mr. Basab Mullik, Cinematographer, Research Scholar, John Hopkins University
No. of Participants: 49

Objective of the Event: Critically analyzing Ritwik Ghatak’s works by going beyond the notions of realism and locating a paradigm of reason rooted asymmetry

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 a 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 Society Hall started with an introduction by Prof. Supratik Sur Roy of the Department of Film Studies followed by the felicitation of Mr. Basab Mullik. In his lecture, Mr. Mullik started out by laying out the various dissonances and incongruencies apparently encountered in Ghatak’s cinema. He referred to various moments from Ajantrik, Meghe Dhaka Tara and Titas Ekti Nadir Naam to support his arguments. Drawing from his own experience and pursuit as a cinematographer, Mr. Mullik emphasized various aspects of composition and blocking that results in a uniquely identifiable aesthetic of images in Ghatak’s films. However, he then steered his arguments toward an idea of asymmetry as a critique of post-enlightenment reason and causality which has informed Ritwik Ghatak’s aesthetic strategy.
The lecture was attended by almost 50 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 practitioners of theatre also attended the event. The lecture was followed by an engaging Q&A session. Mr. Mullik addressed all the questions in his usual affable and humorous demeanour. The event came to a conclusion as Mr. Arup Ratan Samajdar of the Department of Film Studies delivered the Vote of Thanks. The afternoon came to a close with informal interactions over tea and snacks.

Outcome of the Event: This special lecture by Mr. Basab Mullik accomplished a very important task. For the students, it was an opportunity to learn how to think of an artist in a new context or within the framework of a new research question. Going beyond the usual ideas of partition, or melodrama, this lecture provided a fresh insight into Ghatak’s body of work.