Nayak (1966)

En route to Delhi to receive an award, a Bengali film star reevaluates his success through his fellow passengers, dreams and past experiences.

Director:

Satyajit Ray

Writers:

Satyajit Ray (story), Satyajit Ray (screenplay)

Stars:

Uttam Kumar, Sharmila Tagore, Bireswar Sen

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Uttam Kumar	...	Arindam Mukherjee
Sharmila Tagore	...	Aditi
Bireswar Sen	...	Mukunda Lahiri
Somen Bose	...	Sankar
Nirmal Ghosh	...	Jyoti
Premangshu Bose	...	Biresh
Sumita Sanyal	...	Promila Chatterjee
Ranjit Sen	...	Haren Bose
Bharati Devi	...	Manorama (Mr. Bose's wife)
Lali Chowdhury	...	Bulbul (Mr. Bose's daughter)
Kamu Mukherjee	...	Pritish Sarkar (as Kamu Mukhopadhyay)
Susmita Mukherjee	...	Molly (Mr. Sarkar's wife) (as Susmita Mukhopadhyay)
Subrata Sensharma	...	Ajoy (as Subrata Sen)
Jamuna Sinha	...	Sefalika (Ajoy's wife)
Hiralal	...	Kamal Misra

Storyline

A matinee idol Arindam Mukherjee (Uttam Kumar) is going by train to collect an acting award. On the train, he is confronted by a journalist Aditi (Sharmila Tagore) who somewhat unwillingly starts to take his interview. Arindam, won over by Aditi's naivete, starts to disclose his past, his fears and his secrets. On a parallel track, a number of sub-plots unfold (involving an advertising executive and his wife, a businessman and his family, a silent swami and a cranky old man) to reveal the hypocrisies and frailties of the society. The film reaches a climax when Arindam, overcome by his guilt, contemplates suicide and is dissuaded by Aditi. The next morning, Aditi who had surreptitiously taken notes of their conversation destroys them - not wanting to reveal Arindam's darkest secrets. When the train reaches its destination, Arindam alights and is surrounded by his fans and is back to his normal star self where there is no place for guilt, confessions and Aditi.

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Plot Keywords:

train | skeleton | reporter | drunk | actor | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

India

Language:

Bengali

Release Date:

13 April 1994 (France)

Also Known As:

The Hero

Company Credits

Production Co:

R.D.Banshal & Co.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Autograph (2010)

User Reviews

A Perfect Ten

A movie at par with Citizen Kane and Rashomon and IMO even better than them in some ways. Impeccable direction and superb acting. Makes you wonder why these two - the actor and director not get together more often in Satyajit Roy films. The angst was so real it seems the guy is not acting any more - just telling his story as it is. The dream sequencewas outstanding as was the ending. The characterisation had on occasion skirted around the burlesque with the older actor in his first interaction with the protagonist but that made the scene all the more poignant. The underlying philosophy is not too deep but something that one can deeply empathise with. The greatness of this movie is how perfectly the story is told. There is an aura of dramatic tension throughout, not between the characters but within the protagonist himself. I would sincerely recommend this movie to anyone who loves what cinema is all about.