Reading – A (Rendezvous with Ray)

 UNIT – 4 (FILMS AND THEATRE)

Reading – A (Rendezvous with Ray)

 

1. In what way was the friendship of Roberge and Ray unique?

   - Roberge was a French-Canadian priest. Ray was an Indian film director. They were not acquainted with each other before. It was a friendship between two persons of different countries, professions, mother tongues, and religions. So it was unique.

 

2. Why did Roberge watch ‘Apu Trilogy’ at a time in one sitting? What impact did the movie have on him?

   - Roberge watched the Apu trilogy at a time in one sitting because the movies were very fascinating. Roberge developed love towards Indian people and Bengal cinema and culture after watching the Apu trilogy. It led to path-breaking work in the Bengal film industry.

 

3. How did Roberge know about the people of Bengal in his youth?

   - Roberge knew about the people of Bengal from Mircea Eliade’s book "La Nuit Bengalie," some of Tagore’s poems, and a Reader’s Digest article on Mother Teresa.

 

4. What does the word ‘Trilogy’ mean? Give some examples.

   - The word ‘trilogy’ means a set of three films with the same artists or characters. "Pather Panchali," "Aparajito," and "The World of Apu" are the movies of the Apu trilogy. Similarly, "Singam," "Singam-2," and "Singam-3" form another trilogy.

 

5. What did detractors accuse Ray of? Did Roberge agree with them?

   - Most of Ray’s films were based on poverty. Detractors accused Ray of making a reputation by selling India’s poverty to the West. Roberge didn’t agree with them.

 

6. Why did Roberge say, “I did not come here to convert. In fact, I am the one who got converted”?

   - Roberge was a priest. People might think that he came to India to convert people to Christianity. But it was not so. He came to India and adopted the Indian way of living. So he said that he didn’t come here to convert but got himself converted.

 

7. Why did Roberge take nine years to meet Ray in person?

   - Roberge didn’t want to just go and see Ray like he was a living museum piece. He wanted to prepare himself, get to know his works more, so that when they met, there could be a worthwhile dialogue. So he took nine years to muster up the confidence to meet Ray in person.

 

8. What did outsiders use to think about Ray? Was it true?

   - Outsiders used to think of Ray as cold, aloof, and even intimidating. But it was not true. In fact, he was a very simple and unassuming man with a subtle sense of humour.

 

9. Why was Ray in a disturbed mood on one Sunday?

   - A few well-known personalities of the city had visited Ray earlier to go through some of his manuscripts. After they left, Ray found the "Charulatha" screenplay missing. So he was in a disturbed mood.

 

10. What humane concern of Ray stunned Roberge?

    - Ray knew the person who had stolen his "Charulatha" script. He decided not to take action against the culprit as he didn’t want to hurt his reputation. This humane concern of Ray stunned Roberge.

 

11. In what way were the philosophies of Ray and Tagore similar?

    - Tagore, in his last major prose piece, “Shabhyatar Sankat,” expressed that in spite of what was happening it would be a sin to lose faith in Man. The same analogy is seen in the last three films of Ray: "Ganashatru," "Shakha Prashakha," and "Agantuk." This shows that the philosophies of Tagore and Ray are similar.

 

12. Do you support Ray’s decision in not taking action against the culprits? Give reasons for your answer.

    - Yes, I support Ray’s decision in not taking action against the culprits. The culprit might be in a respected position. Taking action might hurt his reputation. Someday, he would realize his mistake and return the script.