{"id":5850,"date":"2020-09-22T18:01:11","date_gmt":"2020-09-22T12:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/?p=5850"},"modified":"2023-08-09T13:31:49","modified_gmt":"2023-08-09T08:01:49","slug":"woman-at-the-window","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/woman-at-the-window\/","title":{"rendered":"Woman at the Window"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Woman<\/a>

Woman at the Window<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

In Satyajit Ray\u2019s film Nayak<\/em>, theatre director Shankar Da tells his prot\u00e9g\u00e9 Arindam, \u201cA film actor is nothing but a puppet. A puppet in the hands of the director, a puppet in the hands of the cameraman and a puppet between the blades of the editor\u2019s scissors.\u201d Theatre, on the other hand, is a living, breathing medium that draws its sustenance from a live audience, adds Shankar Da by way of explanation.<\/p>\n

Ray knew that in the world of cinema, human presence can be reduced to a mere shadow or a silhouette or a frozen frame and objects can get a life of their own. That is why the lorgnette in Charulata, <\/em>the lipstick in Mahanagar, <\/em>Arindam\u2019s black glasses in Nayak <\/em>are as much bearers of meaning and memory as the owners of these objects. Ray did not infuse life into these objects the way Dziga Vertov made his camera come alive and acquire an autonomous existence in the 1929 film Man with a Movie Camera. <\/em>In Ray\u2019s films these objects drew their life force from their owners. They became extensions of the owner\u2019s persona. That is why the maestro took as much trouble to find the right objects as he took to find the right cast for his films. For him these objects were not mere props. They were bearers of the characters\u2019 hopes and anxieties, companions in their lonely moments and representatives of the material universe to which the characters belonged. \u00a0In some cases the objects like the stone picked up by Paresh Babu one rainy afternoon or the slippers given to Goopy and Bagha by the king of ghosts, were endowed with special powers to determine the course of the narrative trajectory.<\/p>\n

Shoma Chatterji writes in her book Woman at the Window:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em>\u201cObjects within the cinematic field can sometimes be substitutes for dialogues or words. \u2026..The brass tumbler rolling off the stones lucidly portrays Indir Thakuran\u2019s death. \u2026.<\/em><\/p>\n

A close look at the \u2018objects\u2019 used for detailing brings us to the possible meanings that lie beyond the concrete objects per se, and their role in \u2018detailing\u2019.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u00a0<\/em>Shoma Chatterji\u2019s book Woman at the Window: Material Universe of Rabindranath Tagore Through the Eyes of Satyajit Ray, <\/em>published by Harper Collins in 2017, takes a unique look at Ray\u2019s films and other films by making the objects in these films the subject of her analysis, instead of the human characters \u2013 or sometimes in tandem with the human characters. \u00a0<\/em>In various chapters of the book, the author reminds the reader of the pivotal role played by objects like \u2018Rosebud\u2019 in Citizen Kane, <\/em>the shoes in Gold Rush, <\/em>the suicide note in Unishe April, <\/em>the gramophone in 36 Chowringhee Lane, <\/em>Badge No. 786 in Deewar, <\/em>the black and white reel with Zubeidaa\u2019s song and dance number in Shyam Benegal\u2019s film Zubeidaa<\/em> and of course, the various objects in Ray\u2019s films. All these objects pulsate with metaphoric and metonymic connotations way beyond their material value.<\/p>\n

\"Jean

“We have always lived off the splendour of the subject and poverty of the object.”
~ Jean Baudrillard<\/p><\/div>\n

Shoma Chatterji posits these objects with the help of theories propounded by Marx, Jean Baudrillard and others. While Marx assigned \u2018use value\u2019 and \u2018exchange value\u2019 of objects, which he viewed as commodities. According to Marxist theory, slaves and industrial labourers are also commodities. Baudrillard declared in one of his manifestoes, \u201cWe have always lived off the splendour of the subject and poverty of the object. It is the subject that makes history, totalizes the world. The object is shamed, obscure and passive.\u201d Chatterji argues, \u201cWould women, who are often socially and economically considered objects, assume subjectivity as women when studied in relation to the objects they are closely associated with?\u201d To illustrate her point, Chatterji cites the example of an aging singer\u2019s tanpura<\/em>. The singer, who is perhaps no longer in public demand, retains her aura through her tanpura<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Arguably, Woman at the Window<\/em> is the first of its kind to be published in India \u2013 a unique addition to the genre of serious books on cinema. Kaushik Bhaumik has eloquently put in his foreword, \u201cOne of the first things that struck me when I started to engage with the book was its timed appearance with respect to the ascent in the West of something called \u2018object \u2013 oriented philosophy\u2019,…Dedicated to overturning the anthropocentrism of philosophical and social thought that holds human beings as the centre of all existence, Harman and a few others have posited a radical autonomy of objects with respect to human will. Objects are things unto themselves and need to be seen as independent of human interest.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is a difference in the way objects are viewed by oriental cultures and western cultures. Western cultures fetishize objects way beyond these objects have lost their \u2018use value\u2019.\u00a0 These objects become showpieces in museums and collectors\u2019 cabinets. Some objects acquire an aura by virtue of the price tagged on them at auctions. In oriental cultures on the other hand, objects are often endowed with anthropomorphic qualities. Clay idols and phallic stones are worshipped, precious stones are expected to determine the destinies of those who wear them and talismans are expected to protect men at war (Recall Karna\u2019s impenetrable golden armour \u2013 a gift from his father Surya). One only has to delve into folk tales to rejoice in the agency enjoyed by talking drums and singing vessels. Objects are often equal to humans and sometimes substitutes for humans. In Tagore\u2019s play Shaap Mochan, <\/em>the king sends his veena <\/em>or lute as his representative when the princess wants to meet the king. \u00a0The princess exchanges garlands with the king\u2019s veena<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Shoma Chatterji\u2019s idea of exploring the material universe of Tagore is not only novel, it promises to open up many windows for scholarly exploration and get the India academia interested in \u2018thing theory\u2019 that is gaining popularity in the west. In her study of the adaptations of Tagore\u2019s literary work by Ray, she works at the intersection of visual, material and literary cultures \u2013 an exciting and virgin field, holding promise for cerebral and aesthetic fulfilment.<\/p>\n

\"Ghare

Objects of foreign origin in Bimala’s bedroom in Ghare Baire<\/p><\/div>\n

In her book, Chatterji devotes the last three chapters to the study of Teen Kanya, Charulata <\/em>and Ghare Baire<\/em> , which happen to be the adaptations of Tagore\u2019s novels and stories by Ray.<\/em> \u00a0In the five chapters (Including the introduction) preceding these three chapters , the author lays the foundation by dwelling on the themes \u2018literature and cinema\u2019, \u2018Tagore, women and cinema\u2019, \u2018cinematic value of objects\u2019 and \u2018Satyajit Ray, his celluloid women vis-\u00e0-vis<\/em> cinematic value of objects\u2019. \u00a0In the last mentioned chapter, she analyses the role of objects in adaptations from Bibhuti Bhushan and Narendranath Mitra and questions whether the objects have a gendered quality structured into them. She also draws her readers\u2019 attention to the fact that food recurs as an object in many films of Ray, right from Pather Panchali<\/em> to his last film Agantuk<\/em>. She argues that Ray has used food not only as a cultural component, but also to make political statements.<\/p>\n

\"charulata\"

Charu with her lorgnette in the garden<\/p><\/div>\n

The medium of cinema is uniquely equipped to turn objects into subjects and endow them with life. What gets a passing mention in a literary work, takes on a new significance in its cinematic adaptation. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine the garden sequence of Charulata without the swing, the lorgnette and of course the khaata<\/em> that Charu lovingly gifted to Amal. Charu\u2019s beautiful gift came with a condition, \u201cWhatever you write in this khaata<\/em>, you cannot send for publishing. It will stay between us.\u201d Amal, a bit of a hedonist, does not heed Charu\u2019s sentiments.\u00a0 The way the snapping of strings within Charu is cinematically portrayed, takes the film way beyond the original literary work. The objects \u2013 be they embroidered khaata<\/em> or embroidered slippers or embroidered hanky, are central to this cinematic portrayal.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Shoma A Chatterji<\/p><\/div>\n

Woman at the Window <\/em>is a not to be missed book for cinema lovers, Ray fans and film scholars alike. In this centenary year of Ray, it offers a fresh look at Ray\u2019s craft. Ray\u2019s attention to details is legendary. But after reading this book we realize that these details were not mere mise en sc\u00e8ne<\/em> details for Ray. Each object he chose was a part of the world he carefully constructed. Chatterji writes in her introductory note, \u201cObjects in the cinema of Satyajit Ray are enriched by cinematic value, posterity value and value as a subject for future study.\u201d<\/p>\n

In exploring the material universe of Tagore as reconstructed by Ray, Shoma Chatterji \u201cmakes visible the invisible elements in the Ray \u2013 Tagore link.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Pictures are courtesy the author)<\/em><\/p>\n

More to read<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018I Consider Woman at the Window a Path-breaking Effort\u2019 \u2013 In Conversation With Film Critic Shoma A Chatterji<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018Illuminating Ray\u2019 A Critique on Gaston Roberge\u2019s Satyajit Ray: Essays (1970-2005)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Ray@100 Lecture 3: The Desiring Woman in Satyajit Ray\u2019s Cinema<\/a><\/strong> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Material Universe of Rabindranath Tagore through the Eyes of Satyajit Ray<\/strong>
\nBy Shoma A Chatterji<\/strong>
\nA review by Subha Das Mollick<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":603,"featured_media":5860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2470,2277],"tags":[1300,218,1724,202,28,51,1417,1928],"class_list":["post-5850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","category-ray100","tag-book-reviews","tag-cinematic-adaptation-of-rabindranath-tagore","tag-rabindranath-tagore","tag-rabindranath-tagore-in-cinema","tag-satyajit-ray","tag-shoma-a-chatterjee","tag-shoma-a-chatterji","tag-woman-at-the-window"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/603"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5850"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7926,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5850\/revisions\/7926"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}