Son plans documentary on Bimal Roy’s life

The life of one of the greatest film-makers of Indian cinema will now be on celluloid. Joy Roy will soon direct a documentary film on the life of his father, Bimal Roy. Joy was barely 10 when his father passed away.

“I know him mainly through his work, so this documentary is an emotional and adventurous journey for me,” he said.

The 50s were the golden period of Indian cinema and Bimal Roy was among the directors who shone during that period. He entered the film industry in the 30s.
Bimal Roy began as a camera assistant to PC Barua and went on to become his assistant director.

He made his directorial debut with Udayer Pathey (1944) in Bengali, which was remade as Humrahi in 1945 in Hindi. He directed several hits including Parineeta (1953), Devdas (1955), Madhumati (1958), Yahudi (1958), Sujata (1959) and Bandini (1963). But the film that gave his career a remarkable impetus was Do Bigha Zameen (1953), which won an award at the Cannes and Karlovy Vary Film Festivals in 1954. On seeing Do Bigha Zameen, Raj Kapoor had exclaimed, “I wish I had made this film.”

“There are already some documentaries on Bimal Roy’s work, but my documentary is an attempt to get to know my father better. People who have worked with my father revealed some of their wonderful encounters with him, and said that my father, apart from being a great director, was a very simple and good human being. The man has gone, but his works are alive, and I want the man to live on as well,” said Joy.

The documentary is expected to be ready by July.