Saat Pake Badha returns to Moscow Festival after 60 years

The iconic Bengali film Saat Pake Badha (The Marriage Vows), directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Ajoy Kar, is set to be showcased in the Out-of-Competition section at the 48th Moscow International Film Festival.The screening marks a historic homecoming for the 1963 classic, which earned legendary actress Suchitra Sen the Best Actress award at the same festival—making her the first Indian actress to receive an international acting honour.Starring Soumitra Chatterjee, Suchitra Sen, Pahari Sanyal and Tarun Kumar, the film was both a box office success and a critical milestone in Bengali cinema. Over the years, its compelling narrative inspired several remakes across Indian languages, including Hindi, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam.More than six decades later, Saat Pake Badha has been meticulously restored from a 35mm print preserved by the National Film Archive of India under the National Film Heritage Mission. The restoration involved 4K scanning and frame-by-frame correction of visual and audio imperfections, ensuring the film’s legacy is preserved for modern audiences.The restored version was submitted earlier this year and quickly drew praise from festival consultant Nina Kochelyaeva, who described it as a “masterpiece.” The official selection was announced at a press conference in Moscow on April 2, 2026.A digital cinema print (DCP) of the restored film will be screened three times during the festival, which begins on April 16. Representing the film at the festival will be Varsha Bansal, granddaughter of producer R.D. Bansal, who highlighted the film’s enduring relevance and its sensitive portrayal of marital relationships.The return of Saat Pake Badha to Moscow not only celebrates its cinematic brilliance but also reaffirms its timeless place in Indian and global film history.