Top 50 Bengali Films of All time
by s-ganguly1288 | created - 25 Nov 2013 | updated - 13 Mar 2014 | PublicFilms are adjudged on Global impact,Critics Collective evaluation, Film Journal Rankings and Personal evaluation.
14th Jan 2014- Updated to Top 50 list from the original Top 30.
Director's Share:
Ray-17
Ghatak-8
Budhhadeb Dasgupta-7
Rituparno Ghosh-7
Mrinal Sen-6
Aparna Sen, Kamaleswar Mukherjee, Kaushik Ganguly,
Barin Saha, Utpalendu Chakrborty-1.
Films After 2000: 10
Index-
**: Included in either of TIMES/Sights & Sounds/ New York Times/ Cahiers du Cinema/BFI /Cinemaya Best Film of all Time List
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1. Pather Panchali (1955)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama
Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Subir Banerjee, Chunibala Devi
Votes: 38,520 | Gross: $0.54M
**
2. The Cloud-Capped Star (1960)
Not Rated | 126 min | Drama
A selfless young woman (Supriya Choudhury) sacrifices her own happiness for her unappreciative family.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Supriya Choudhury, Anil Chatterjee, Gyanesh Mukherjee, Bijon Bhattacharya
Votes: 3,236
**
3. The World of Apu (1959)
Not Rated | 105 min | Drama
This final installment in Satyajit Ray's Apu Trilogy follows Apu's life as an orphaned adult aspiring to be a writer.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Sharmila Tagore, Alok Chakravarty, Swapan Mukherjee
Votes: 16,742 | Gross: $0.02M
**
4. Jalsaghar (1958)
Not Rated | 95 min | Drama, Music
Depicts the end days of a decadent zamindar (landlord) in Bengal, and his efforts to uphold his family prestige even when faced with economic adversity.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Chhabi Biswas, Gangapada Basu, Padmadevi, Kali Sarkar
Votes: 6,757 | Gross: $0.09M
**
5. Subarnarekha (1965)
Not Rated | 143 min | Drama
A man (Abhi Bhattacharya) opposes the love between his sister and the orphan (Satindra Bhattacharya) they adopted years earlier.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Madhavi Mukherjee, Bijon Bhattacharya, Abhi Bhattacharya, Indrani Chakrabarty
Votes: 1,334
**
6. Aparajito (1956)
Not Rated | 110 min | Drama
Following his father's death, a boy leaves home to study in Calcutta, while his mother must face a life alone.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Pinaki Sengupta, Smaran Ghosal, Kamala Adhikari, Rani Bala
Votes: 15,977 | Gross: $0.17M
**
7. Charulata (1964)
Not Rated | 117 min | Drama, Romance
The lonely wife of a newspaper editor falls in love with her visiting cousin-in-law, who shares her love for literature.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Madhavi Mukherjee, Shailen Mukherjee, Shyamal Ghoshal
Votes: 7,198 | Gross: $0.08M
**
8. Pathetic Fallacy (1958)
102 min | Drama
Bimal is a taxi-driver in a small town. His taxi is his only companion and, although very battered, it is the apple of Bimal's eye. The film shows the love of taxi driver Bimal and his pathetic vehicle Jagaddal.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Kali Bannerjee, Gangapada Basu, Satindra Bhattacharya, Tulsi Chakraborty
Votes: 616
9. The Big City (1963)
Not Rated | 122 min | Drama
Life at home changes when a house-wife from a middle-class, conservative family in Calcutta gets a job as a saleswoman.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Anil Chatterjee, Madhavi Mukherjee, Jaya Bachchan, Haren Chatterjee
Votes: 4,962
**
10. Komal Gandhar (1961)
134 min | Drama, Musical
A highly critical look at the role of "progressive" art and artists in a changing society.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Supriya Choudhury, Abanish Banerjee, Anil Chatterjee, Satindra Bhattacharya
Votes: 299
**
11. Pratidwandi (1970)
110 min | Drama
A young college graduate is struggling to find a job. He lives in a flat with his younger, employed sister, revolutionary brother and widowed mother. The strain of the situation ultimately causes him to hallucinate.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Dhritiman Chatterjee, Asgar Ali, Arabinda Banerjee, Soumitra Bannerjee
Votes: 1,912
12. Aranyer Din Ratri (1970)
115 min | Drama
A group of Calcutta city slickers, including the well-off Asim (Soumitra Chatterjee), the meek Sanjoy (Subhendu Chatterjee) and the brutish Hari (Samit Bhanja), head out for a weekend in the wilderness.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Sharmila Tagore, Kaberi Bose, Simi Garewal, Soumitra Chatterjee
Votes: 2,920
**
13. And Quiet Rolls the Dawn (1979)
Not Rated | 95 min | Drama
The daughter of an economically middle-class family fails to return home one night.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Satya Bannerjee, Gita Sen, Mamata Shankar, Sreela Majumdar
Votes: 241
14. Distant Thunder (1973)
Not Rated | 101 min | Drama
As food shortages reach catastrophic proportions, Gangacharan attempts to preserve his privileged situation while his generous wife Ananga conversely tries to help and support the community.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Bobita, Sandhya Roy, Chitra Banerjee
Votes: 1,720
**
15. Jukti, Takko Aar Gappo (1974)
Not Rated | 113 min | Drama
In this quest narrative that makes the Odyssey look like a trip to the mall, four men, each peculiar in his own way, embark on a quest to reason with the estranged wife of the protagonist.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Tripti Mitra, Shaonli Mitra, Sugata Burman, Bijon Bhattacharya
Votes: 453
16. In Search of Famine (1981)
115 min | Drama
A film crew comes to a village to make a film about a famine, which killed five million Bengalees in 1943.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Satya Banerjee, Radhamohan Bhattacharya, Dhritiman Chatterjee, Reba Roy Chowdhury
Votes: 362
17. Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne (1969)
132 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
Goopy wants to sing, and Bagha wants to play the dhol. They meet accidentally and are helped by King of Ghosts. With newly endowed abilities, they land in kingdom of Shundi, where their adventure begins.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Tapan Chatterjee, Rabi Ghosh, Ajoy Banerjee, Iva Banerjee
Votes: 2,751
18. Seemabaddha (1971)
110 min | Drama
Chatterji is an ambitious and self-made young man who becomes the director of the company he works for.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Sharmila Tagore, Barun Chanda, Paromita Chowdhury, Ajoy Banerjee
Votes: 1,405
19. Uttara (2000)
99 min | Drama
Two railway signal men, Nemai and Balaram, share a passion for wrestling and spend their days wrestling after working hours. However, things change when Balaram marries Uttara.
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Jaya Seal, Tapas Pal, Shankar Chakraborty, R.I. Asad
Votes: 201
20. Nagarik (1977)
127 min | Drama
Ramu,eldest son a family of migrants to Calcutta,is a fresh graduate searching for a job like many others in post-Partition Calcutta.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Ajit Banerjee, Kali Bannerjee, Gangapada Basu, Satindra Bhattacharya
Votes: 237
21. Jana Aranya (1975)
131 min | Drama
A bright and idealistic young man steels himself for the dog-eat-dog business world, only to flounder in a job market packed with thousands of other hopefuls.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Pradip Mukherjee, Rafique Ahmed, S. Bagchi, Ajit Banerjee
Votes: 1,817
22. The Case Is Closed (1982)
95 min | Drama
The servant boy, a minor, engaged in a middle class family dies mysteriously locked in a kitchen.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Anjan Dutt, Mamata Shankar, Sreela Majumdar, Indranil Moitra
Votes: 233
23. Chorus (1975)
Not Rated | 124 min | Fantasy, Drama
It begins like a fairy tale. It starts with a ritual. A bard appears on the screen and sings.Glory be the new gods who have descended to the Earth.The chairman of the gods, concerned over ... See full summary »
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Utpal Dutt, Ajit Banerjee, Shekhar Chatterjee, Radhamohan Bhattacharya
Votes: 117
24. The Home and the World (1984)
Not Rated | 140 min | Drama
When the movie opens, a woman is recalling the events that molded her perspective on the world. Years ago, her husband, a wealthy Western-educated landowner, challenged tradition by ... See full summary »
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Victor Banerjee, Swatilekha Sengupta, Gopa Aich
Votes: 1,894
25. Kanchenjungha (I) (1962)
102 min | Drama
An upper-class Bengali family is on vacation in Darjeeling, a popular hill station and resort near Kanchenjungha.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Chhabi Biswas, Karuna Bannerjee, Pahadi Sanyal, Anil Chatterjee
Votes: 1,206
26. Tero Nadir Parey (1969)
82 min | Drama
Director: Barin Saha | Stars: Priyam Hazarika, Gyanesh Mukherjee
Votes: 10
27. Charachar (1994)
Not Rated | 97 min | Drama
A bird catcher's empathy for the birds interferes with his livelihood.
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Shankar Chakraborty, Indrani Haldar, Rajit Kapoor, Sadhu Meher
Votes: 122
28. The Hero (1966)
Not Rated | 117 min | Drama
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 | Stars: Uttam Kumar, Sharmila Tagore, Bireswar Sen, Somen Bose
Votes: 5,108
29. Bariwali (2000)
150 min | Drama
A lonely middle-aged woman is forced by circumstance to let out her house to a film crew. She is attracted to the charming director and he exploits this fact to suit his purposes.
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Kirron Kher, Chiranjit, Sudipta Chakraborty, Surya Chatterjee
Votes: 440
30. A Tale of a Naughty Girl (2002)
90 min | Drama
Based on a short story by Bengali writer Prafulla Roy, the central idea developed by director Dasgupta, tells the story of a girl, Lati, whose mother Rajani is a prostitute living and ... See full summary »
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Samata Das, Rituparna Sengupta, Arpan Basar, Tapas Pal
Votes: 273
31. A River Called Titas (1973)
Not Rated | 159 min | Drama
After their wedding night, a fisherman's young wife is kidnapped on the Titas River in Brahmanbaria, Bangladesh.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Rosy Samad, Kabori Sarwar, Rawshan Zamil, Rani Sarkar
Votes: 1,344
32. Calcutta 71 (1972)
132 min | Drama
An angry young man on trial in 1971,a rainstorm in a slum in 1933,a lower-middle-class family during the 1943 famine,teenage smugglers in 1953 and a middle-class group in a posh hotel in 1971.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Madhavi Mukherjee, Gita Sen, Binota Roy, Ranjit Mallick
Votes: 296
33. Dahan (1998)
145 min | Drama
On her way home the newly wed Romita is molested by five men. The only one who has the courage to help is the young female teacher Jhinuk. Because of that she becomes a heroine and is on ... See full summary »
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Shakuntala Barua, Nirmal Kumar Chakraborty, Chandni, Abhishek Chatterjee
Votes: 379
34. Interview (1971)
101 min | Drama
Ranjit cannot get a middle-class job just because he cannot get hold of a suit.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Karuna Bannerjee, Shekhar Chatterjee, Ranjit Mallick
Votes: 324
35. Grihajuddha (1982)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama
"The Chief labour officer of a private steel company in Barrackpur senses corruption in the management. An idealist he resigns and is murdered. The secretary of the trade union, Probir gets... See full summary »
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Anjan Dutt, Mamata Shankar, Goutam Ghose, Sunil Mukherjee
Votes: 53
36. Bari Theke Paliye (1958)
124 min | Drama
A misbehaving boy who runs away from his village and goes to Calcutta.
Director: Ritwik Ghatak | Stars: Param Bhattaraka Lahiri, Padmadevi, Gyanesh Mukherjee, Kali Bannerjee
Votes: 263
37. The Guerilla Fighter (1973)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama
A political activist escapes the prison van and is sheltered in a posh apartment owned by a sensitive young woman.
Director: Mrinal Sen | Stars: Dhritiman Chatterjee, Simi Garewal, Pravas Sarkar, Bijon Bhattacharya
Votes: 337
38. Paromitar Ek Din (2000)
130 min | Drama, Family
Explores the dual themes of friendship and loneliness. Sanaka and Paromita are mother and daughter-in-law who, despite differences in age, backgrounds and temperaments, build a strong bond together.
Director: Aparna Sen | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Aparna Sen, Rituparna Sengupta, Sumitra Mukherjee
Votes: 395
39. Asukh (1999)
138 min | Drama
Sudhamoy is forced to depend on his daughter's earnings. His life takes a drastic turn when his wife falls ill and gets hospitalized.
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Debashree Roy, Arpita Chatterjee, Gouri Ghosh
Votes: 103
40. Red Door (1997)
95 min | Drama, Mystery
Dr. Nabin Datta is a prominent dentist in Calcutta, 47, disengaged, with little affect, and fearful that his hands and feet are turning to metal. His wife leaves him to live alone. His son,... See full summary »
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Champa, Raisul Islam Asad, Sunetra Banerjee, Haradhan Bannerjee
Votes: 76
41. Kalpurush (2005)
120 min | Drama
A man struggles with his memories of his powerful father.
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Mithun Chakraborty, Rahul Bose, Sameera Reddy, Sudipta Chakraborty
Votes: 279
42. Choker Bali: A Passion Play (2003)
167 min | Drama
Binodini is a young widow who lives with a woman and her son, Mahendra, who had once refused to marry her. Their lives are thrown into disarray when there is deceit and adultery between Binodini, Mahendra, his wife and his friend.
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Prasenjit Chatterjee, Raima Sen, Lily Chakravarty
Votes: 1,822
43. Cloud Capped Star (2013)
Unrated | 154 min | Biography, Drama
To Ritwik Ghatak film was not merely a form of entertainment, but a weapon, a medium to portray struggle of common men. He was successful neither in his career nor he could he become a good... See full summary »
Director: Kamaleswar Mukherjee | Stars: Saswata Chatterjee, Ananya Chatterjee, Abir Chatterjee, Rahul Banerjee
Votes: 729
44. Views of the Inner Chamber (2005)
118 min | Drama
In late 19th Century, Bengal Bhubaneswar Chowdhury (Jackie Shroff) is a wealthy and tyrannical Zamidar (Squire). He has two main obsessions: his desperate attempts for an heir, which even ... See full summary »
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Jackie Shroff, Abhishek Bachchan, Roopa Ganguly, Soha Ali Khan
Votes: 554
45. Chokh (1983)
98 min | Drama
A labour wrongly accused in a murder of his owner's brother and a coworker is given death sentence .He decides to donate his eye and the owner learns about this falsify donation documents to provide for his blind son.
Director: Utpalendu Chakrabarty | Stars: Om Puri, Anil Chatterjee, Shyamanand Jalan, Sreela Majumdar
Votes: 44
46. Shob Charitro Kalponik (2009)
135 min | Drama
Indraneel's sudden death averts a possible divorce, and takes Radhika on a fantastic inward journey of discovery of her own roots through the language of poetry, and lost love. A publisher ... See full summary »
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Prasenjit Chatterjee, Bipasha Basu, Jisshu Sengupta, Sohag Sen
Votes: 485
47. Aarekti Premer Golpo (2010)
128 min | Drama
The movie is about a Delhi base trans gender documentary filmmaker Abhiroop Sen and his bisexual lover cinematographer. They wanted to make a documentary on the life of famous "Jatra" actor... See full summary »
Directors: Kaushik Ganguly, Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Rituparno Ghosh, Chapal Bhaduri, Indraneil Sengupta, Jisshu Sengupta
Votes: 214
48. Dooratwa (1979)
96 min | Drama
A professor in Kolkata marries a young woman. But when he learns that she is pregnant with someone else's child, he decides to leave her.
Director: Buddhadev Dasgupta | Stars: Mamata Shankar, Pradip Mukherjee, Ajoy Banerjee, Snigdha Banerjee
Votes: 35
49. Unishe April (1994)
Not Rated | 138 min | Drama
Potrays a sentimental mother daughter relation. How a female dancer sets her priority and became famous but loses her relationship with her daughter on the way .
Director: Rituparno Ghosh | Stars: Aparna Sen, Debashree Roy, Dipankar Dey, Chitra Sen
Votes: 567
50. The Coward (1965)
70 min | Drama, Romance
A chance meeting rekindles old memories between a screenwriter and his ex-girlfriend, who is by now married to a well-to-do man.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Soumitra Chatterjee, Madhavi Mukherjee, Haradhan Bannerjee, Santi Chatterjee
Votes: 2,413
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