Of Life & Death : A Tribute to Rituparno Ghosh

I have always been fond of rains.Especially rainy nights, I feel they have so much to say. My perfect setting would be a cozy bed, warm blanket, a good movie or book on a rainy night #Paradise on earth.

I have never been a movie buff.I love movies but the kind which touch the subtleties of life, the intricate emotions,which convey so many hidden meanings which take me days & even months or years to comprehend.Sometimes I believe I was wrongly born in this generation,where my friends are so enthusiastic about IPL & Iron man.Where they wish to see movies that give them a thrill, a high, & sadly I belong no where there.

My idea of life is taking time to smell the flowers rather than running so fast that we end up stamping all the wild violet flowers that quietly smiling while we were on our way.Slow music gives me peace, books like the Monk who sold his Ferrari give me a purpose, shows like Rendezvous with Simi Garewal intrigue me as I get a glimpse into the life & times of the bold , beautiful & powerful yet movies didnt have a profound effect on me even though the 11 Movies in my laptop are my all time favorites and I carry something with me from each of them.

Then suddenly around 3 weeks back while I browsing through youtube, I stumbled upon the movie Nouka Dubi by Rituparno Ghosh.The movie left me spell bound.The lyrical way in which he portrays the complex interconnections of four lives woven with love,separation,pain,angst & sacrifice set in the backdrop of beautiful Rabindra Sangeet & Bengali culture made me crave for his movies.

Rabindra Sangeet & classic Bengali movies have a special corner in my heart due to my Thani who was a gifted singer & an avid reader of Bengali literature & a movie enthusiast.Memories of me, dadu & Thani cozying up together for the classic Bengali movie every friday night at DD Bangla are still fresh in my mind.The last movie we saw together was Pather Panchali by Satyajit Ray, the story of which I had heard from her when I was a 5 year old.

My reconnection with my happy childhood memories of Bangla movies during Nouka dubi led me to search for Rituparno's movies one after another.

In Utsab, he portrayed a dysfunctional family set in the backdrop of Durga Pujo where at the end everybody realizes that happy families need not be perfect always. 

In Titli, he beautifully brought out the emotions of a mother-daughter where they fall in love with the same person, getting through tinges of jealousy & finally being there for each other when they go through the pain of loving & losing.

In Bariwali, he displayed the profound sense of loneliness when we meet people for a transient phase & that pain which engulfs us when they leave us , makes us lonelier & miserable than ever. I guess it somehow showcased his own loneliness where after his parents died one after other, his brother left him, he struggled with his sexuality & felt lonelier than ever.

In Shubho Mahurat, he emphasized that revenge is not a means of achieving peace & at last we become the consumers of the poison which we try to inflict in others.

In Memories of March he himself personified melancholy, teaching a lesson that the essence of love is accepting people just the way they are without being judgmental.

In Abhoman he expressed love to be eternal,not bound by age,it can happen to anyone anytime & that is what makes love beautiful.

Chokher Bali &  Antarmahal were visual delights,the beauty in which he portrayed Rabindranath's works, resurrecting them in the most beautiful way that they could be brought back to life.

And as I kept watching his movies, I fell more in love with the profound lessons he had in them for me.He has made me smile,brought tears & above all given me the warmth like a loved one.

The day I got the news of his demise, I was in office and it was raining.I felt pained,sad , very sad as I was waiting for many more valuable insights of life which he could have given me.It was a similar moment when I had seen Thani in that cold & quiet condition.The only question that haunted my mind then was "How could this happen when we had so much left to share & laugh about?"

That moment the same question  crossed my mind again after a period of 5 years.This time it was Ritu da, the soul who was bound to me by the threads of life & learning. May your soul reach those beautiful places where you took me & many others through your thought provoking & eternally wonderful movies ! You will be missed dearly !