100 years of Satyajit Ray: From Shabana Azmi to Sharmila Tagore, celebs pay tribute to the legendary filmmaker

Read full story : Shabana Azmi remembers legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray on his birth centenary
May 2, 2021, marks the 100th birth anniversary of renowned filmmaker, litterateur, composer, illustrator and designer, Satyajit Ray or Manik-da, as he was lovingly called. His eye for perfection and profound understanding of both the content and technique, sets and costumes, are all a matter of awe and inspiration worldwide. His first film was 'Pather Panchali' (1955), adapted from Bengali author, Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay’s eponymous 1928 novel. Now, on his birth centenary, several celebs and prominent personalities paid tribute to the late legendary filmmaker. Veteran actress Shabana Azmi took to Instagram and posted a never-seen-before picture with the filmmaker. In the photo, Azmi is seen seated on a couch along with the celebrated filmmaker, engrossed in a deep conversation. Shabana's husband and lyricist Javed Akhtar is also seen in the frame seated on the couch next to Ray. The actress captioned the photo as, 'Remembering Satyajit Ray .. Manik da for many of us.' Renowned actor Sharmila Tagore also remembered him and called him magnificent. Earlier in the day, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to Twitter and paid him a tribute as she wrote, 'Tribute to Satyajit Ray, legendary filmmaker, writer, composer, lyricist, illustrator, on his birth centenary. He is not only the pride of Bengal but also India and the whole world. He is an inspiration to people around the globe.' Talking about Satyajit Ray, he was born on May 02, 1921, to Sukumar Ray and Suprabha, in Calcutta, now known as Kolkata. He lost his father when he was barely two-and-a-half years old. The absence of his father would often be reflected in Ray’s early films, where the father figure remained inconspicuous for the best part. For the unversed, Ray was married to Bijoya. Since Bijoya was older than Ray, and they were first cousins, their romance was not taken well by their aristocratic and conservative Bengali families. After a courtship of eight long years, they got married at her sister’s house on October 20, 1948. It was a registered marriage, and both decided to keep it a secret till better times emerged.