Childhood Days- A Memoir [Paperback]

Satyajit Ray (Author), Satyajit Ray (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1998

Who was Satyajit Ray, writer, director, music composer and artist? Where did he make his beginnings? Who were the people he grew up with? In this charming collection of stories from Ray's childhood and film-making days, we get a glimpse into the life of a man who appeared serious and aloof to the world, and find a different, more accessible Ray humorous, tender, affectionate. He tells us about his first taste of an ice cream, his initial understandings of the principles of photography, and the teasing he had to endure in school because of his famous father and grandfather. With unassuming grace he writes about his vast, talented family, where each member had his or her special quirks and eccentricities.



In this volume, Ray also shares some of his experiences while shooting Pather Panchali his epic debut, and subsequent films, particularly for children. He describes how an entire field of kaash flowers was eaten up by cows before he could shoot his famous scene with the train in Pather Panchali; and how a circus tiger let loose in a bamboo grove chased away a group of curious onlookers in the blink of an eye.



Frank and funny, these stories written originally for the Bengali children's magazine Sandesh, are an essential read for all Ray enthusiasts as well as those who want to know Ray, the writer and film-maker, better.



Translated from the Bengali by Bijoya Ray.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Bengali

Product Details

• Paperback: 173 pages
• Publisher: Penguin India (South Asia Books); 7 edition (February 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140250794
• ISBN-13: 978-0140250794
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,615,803 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Those were the best days .., April 17, 2002

By 

Debabrata Ghatak (India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Childhood Days- A Memoir (Paperback)

This is Ray's autobiography ,translated by his wife Bijoya Ray.
Ray paints his childhood days (from very little age till when he crossed 16 years) with such minute details and interesting incidents that one has to finish this book in one go.

His passion for cinema(Ray is a world-known director)is grown in these earlier years thanks to those Hollywood movies coming regularly to Calcutta at that time.
One can get the live sights and sounds and life of Calcutta in this book during the time period of 1926-1936.

This is a great work.

5.0 out of 5 stars A great glimpse into the youth of a fascinating artist, September 16, 2006

By 

David Alston (Chapel Hill, NC, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Childhood Days- A Memoir (Paperback)

Graceful and quick as a read - this is an essential read for fans of Satyajit Ray.

Translated by Ray's wife, CHILDHOOD DAYS was first published in the Bengali children's magazine "Sandesh," and is primarily geared towards a young audience.

But Ray sheds light upon his own very fascinating, rather bohemian upbringing, and after reading this one will easily spot the many strands of disguised autobiography surfacing in many of Ray's films.

CHILDHOOD DAYS is expanded or augmented with additional writings on the making of "Pather Panchali," and also "Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne," which was his first children's film - and this section of the book is of particular interest as well. "Goopy" has paradoxically become one of Ray's most popular films in India, and is a major entry in his overall body of work, in spite of being very rarely screened internationally. This portion of the book is a fairly direct address to kids who would have loved this magical and mesmerizing film, but also serves to pique the curiosity of non-Indian film aficionados of all ages (I was only able to locate a copy of the film after extensive searching).

In any case, CHILDHOOD DAYS manages to serve as several things - foremost a shimmering, smart bit of writing for young audiences, and simultaneously, a fascinating yet unpretentious creative autobiography.

I have biases towards Ray's films and writing, but I still recommend.

-David Alston