Christopher Nolan is impressed by ‘Pather Panchali’

Hollywood’s Oscar-winning director Christopher Nolan has once again expressed his deep love and respect for Indian cinema. This time, world-renowned Bengali filmmaker Satyajit Ray has praised him.

During a recent visit to the famous ‘Criterion Closet’ in New York, Nolan chose Satyajit Ray’s timeless ‘Apu Trilogy’ for himself and highlighted Satyajit Ray’s contribution to cinema.

‘Criterion Closet’ is basically a well-known archive of the Criterion Collection, where more than 1,000 world-class timeless classic films are preserved. Renowned directors, actors and artists from all over the world often visit this room and reminisce about the films that inspired them.

In a video shared on the Criterion Collection's social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Nolan is seen browsing the shelves. At one point, he stops at a box of 'The Apu Trilogy'.

Praising Satyajit Ray, Nolan said, "Then there is 'The Apu Trilogy' by one of India's greatest filmmakers, Satyajit Ray. The trilogy begins with 'Pather Panchali', which is, in a word, an extraordinary film. After watching it, I was completely captivated. I have not seen the second and third parts of the trilogy yet. So I am very excited to complete the story with this collection."

Released in 1955, 'Pather Panchali' is the first film in the Apu Trilogy. Based on the famous novel by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay, this Bengali-language film depicts the life struggles of little Apu, who grows up in a poor family in rural Bengal. The film was widely acclaimed worldwide for its simple yet realistic storytelling style and deep emotions. Even today, it is considered one of the best films of all time.

Later, the trilogy was completed with the release of 'Aparajit' in 1956 and 'Apur Sansar' in 1959, covering various chapters of Apu's life, from his childhood to adolescence and adulthood.