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{{short description|1964 film by Satyajit Ray}}
{{for|the 2012 film|Chaarulatha}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2015}}
{{Use Indian English|date=November 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Charulata
| image = CharulataG.jpg
| caption = Film poster
| director = [[Satyajit Ray]]
| producer = R. D. Bansal
| based_on = {{based on|''[[Nastanirh]]''|[[Rabindranath Tagore]]}}
| screenplay = Satyajit Ray
| starring = {{ubl|[[Soumitra Chatterjee]]|[[Madhabi Mukherjee]]|Shailen Mukherjee|[[Shyamal Ghoshal]]|Gitali Roy}}
| music = Satyajit Ray
| cinematography = [[Subrata Mitra]]
| studio = R. D. Bansal & Co.
| distributor = Edward Harrison (US)
| released = {{Film date|df=y|1964|04|17}}
| runtime = 117 minutes
| country = India
| language = [[Bengali language|Bengali]]
| budget =
}}

'''''Charulata''''' ({{Langx|bn|চারুলতা}}, {{IPA|bn|t͡ʃaɾulɔt̪a|audio=LL-Q9610 (ben)-Tahmid-চারুলতা.wav|}}; also known as ''The Lonely Wife'') is a 1964 Indian [[Drama (film and television)|drama film]] written and directed by [[Satyajit Ray]]. Based on [[Rabindranath Tagore]]'s novella ''[[Nastanirh]]'', it stars [[Soumitra Chatterjee]], [[Madhabi Mukherjee]], and Shailen Mukherjee. The film is widely regarded as one of Ray's finest works.

Both the opening and closing scenes of the film have received critical acclaim. The first scene, with minimal dialogue, depicts Charu's loneliness as she observes the outside world through binoculars. In the final scene, as Charu and her husband are about to hold hands, the screen freezes—a technique praised as a masterful use of the [[Freeze-frame shot|freeze frame]] in cinema.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Ray|first=Satyajit|title=Prabandha Sangraha|publisher=Ananda Publishers|year=2015|isbn=978-93-5040-553-6|location=Kolkata|pages=43–48}}</ref>

==Plot==
In [[Kolkata|Calcutta]] in 1879, at the height of the [[Bengali Renaissance]] under British rule, Charulata is the intelligent and artistic wife of Bhupati, an upper-class Bengali intellectual who edits and publishes a small political newspaper. Despite his love for Charu, Bhupati is preoccupied with politics and the freedom movement, leaving her isolated in their well-serviced home.

Bhupati tells Charu that he has invited her brother Umapada, a failed lawyer, to come manage the newspaper's finances. When he notices Charu's boredom with embroidering handkerchiefs and slippers and watching the world go by out her window, Bhupati also invites Umapada's wife, Manda, to live with them and keep Charu company. However, Manda is more domestic and traditional than Charu and offers her little intellectual stimulation.

When Amal, Bhupati's younger cousin, comes to visit after finishing college, he just wants to relax and write, but Bhupati enlists him to help proofread the newspaper, as well as investigate and nurture Charu's literary talents. Amal and Charu bond over conversations and debates about literature and poetry, and their relationship evolves into an intimate, teasing friendship. Charu makes Amal a beautiful notebook, but tells him that whatever he writes in it is only for their eyes, and not to be published.

A good offer of marriage arrives for Amal from a wealthy family in [[Bardhaman]], and Bhupati encourages him to take it, especially since the bride's father has offered to send Amal to study law in England. Amal is momentarily tempted by the idea of seeing Europe, but then tells Bhupati that he does not want to leave India, and to ask the father to give him a month to consider the proposal. Bhupati is confused by Amal's reticence, but Charu tells him that she is sure Amal will ultimately accept.

An essay that Amal wrote in his notebook gets accepted by a magazine, and Charu responds by secretly writing something of her own and getting it published by an even more selective periodical. She shows Amal the magazine with her story in it, and, while he is reading, tells Manda that she will take over making Amal's [[paan]] and gets a pair of beautiful slippers that she has made for Amal. He is very impressed by Charu's writing and urges her to continue, but she responds by crying on his shoulder and saying she will never write again, before composing herself and leaving the room.

During a party that Bhupati throws to celebrate the victory of the [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberals]] in the English parliamentary elections, Umapada sneaks away. He takes money from Bhupati's safe and, telling Charu that Manda's father is sick, he and Manda flee. As the party is breaking up, Bhupati's friend Nishikanta makes an announcement to celebrate the publication of Charu's story, embarrassing and confusing Bhupati, as Charu never mentioned it to him.

The company from which Bhupati gets his paper contacts him about an overdue payment that Umapada said he made months ago, and, after being shown documentation, Bhupati realizes Umapada stole from him. Shattered, he tells Amal that he plans to shut down the newspaper, not for financial reasons, but because he has lost faith in mankind. Guilty over his growing feelings for Charu, Amal packs his things and departs, leaving behind the slippers Charu made him and a note, in which he says he has heard of a job opportunity and encourages Charu to keep writing.

Charu and Bhupati take a trip to the seashore, where she suggests he continue publishing his paper, but broaden its scope, with him and Nishikanta handling politics, and her handling cultural topics. Excited, they rush home, where they find a letter from Amal, who has been staying with a friend in [[Chennai|Madras]] and says he will accept the proposal. Bhupati leaves to talk to Nishikanta, but the weather changes when he is barely out the door, so he turns back. He is shocked to find Charu tearfully crying out Amal's name and he sneaks away, but Charu hears his footsteps. After wandering aimlessly in his carriage, Bhupati returns home, and Charu invites him in. They tentatively reach out to each other, but the image freezes mid-gesture, leaving their reconciliation unresolved.

==Cast==
{{Castlist|
* [[Soumitra Chatterjee]] as Amal Chandra Basu, Bhupati's cousin
* [[Madhabi Mukherjee]] as Charulata, Bhupati's wife
* Shailen Mukherjee as Bhupati Dutta, Charulata's husband
* [[Shyamal Ghoshal]] as Umapada, Charulata's brother
* Gitali Roy as Manda (nicknamed "Mandakini"), Umapada's wife
* Subrata Sensharma as Motilal
* [[Bankim Ghosh]] as Jagannath, the paper merchant
* Dilip Bose as Shashanka, a guest at the party
* Nilotpal Dey as Joydeb, the singer at the party
* Bholanath Koyal as Braja, the servant
* [[Kamu Mukherjee]] as a guest at the party
* Suku Mukherjee as Nishikanta, Bhupati's friend
}}

==Production==
''Charulata'' is based on the 1901 novella ''[[Nastanirh]]'' (''The Broken Nest'') by Bengali author [[Rabindranath Tagore]].<ref>Robinson, Arthur. ''Satyajit Ray: The Inner Eye''. Los Angeles: University of California Press. 1989. {{ISBN|0-520-06905-6}}. pp. 159.</ref> Ray later said that he liked the novella because "it has a western quality to it and the film obviously shares that quality. That's why I can speak of [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart|Mozart]] in connection with ''Charulata'' quite validly."<ref>Robinson. pp. 160.</ref>

On the occasion of the birth centenary of Ray, senior journalist B.M. Hanif of ''[[Prajavani]]'' newspaper reported that speculations were rife at the time of the film's release that the story was based on the lives of Rabindranath Tagore, his brother [[Jyotirindranath Tagore]] (who was 12 years older than Rabindranath), and his sister-in-law [[Kadambari Devi]] (who was two years older than Rabindranath), considering the fact that the story takes place in 1879–1880 (when Rabindranath was 19 years old), and that Devi committed suicide in April 1884, four months after Rabindranath was married (at the age of 23) to the 9- or 11-year-old [[Mrinalini Devi]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Prajavani |url=http://epaper.prajavani.net/ |title=Prajavani e-Paper - Read Kannada Newspaper Online by Prajavani ಪ್ರಜಾವಾಣಿ ePaper - ಕನ್ನಡ ePaper ಅನ್ನು ಪ್ರಜಾವಾಣಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಿರಿ |publisher=Epaper.prajavani.net |date=2018-12-17 |access-date=2021-05-18 |archive-date=25 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200525054745/http://epaper.prajavani.net/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Ray spent many months researching the film's historical setting, working for the first time in his career without a deadline for either pre-production or the shoot.<ref>Robinson. pp. 161.</ref> None of the film's interior scenes were shot on location, and Ray worked closely with art director [[Bansi Chandragupta]] to build or remodel all of the sets to accurately portray India in the 1880s. Ray once called ''Charulata'' his favourite of his films.<ref name="Robinson. pp. 157">Robinson. pp. 157.</ref>

==Music==
The ''[[Rabindra Sangeet]]'' "Aami Chini Go Chini Tomarey" was sung for the film by [[Kishore Kumar]], this being the first Rabindra Sangeet sung by him. The recording was done in [[Mumbai|Bombay]], rather than in Calcutta. Kumar did not charge any money for his work on ''Charulata'', nor did he for his work on Ray's 1984 film ''[[Ghare Baire (film)|Ghare Baire]]''.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

==Reception==
On the [[review aggregator]] website [[Rotten Tomatoes]], 93% of 29 critics' reviews of the film are positive, with an average rating of 9.2/10.<ref>{{cite web |title=Charulata (1964) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/charulata |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |language=en |access-date=14 February 2025 |archive-date=28 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171128013404/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/charulata |url-status=live }}</ref> It has been widely regarded as one of the great films of Indian cinema, both domestically and internationally.

[[Penelope Houston (film critic)|Penelope Houston]] of ''[[Sight and Sound]]'' praised the film, stating that "the interplay of sophistication and simplicity is extraordinary".<ref>Robinson. pp. 156.</ref> A review in ''[[The New York Times]]'' stated the film "moved like a majestic snail, as do all Ray films".<ref name="Robinson. pp. 157"/> In 1965, ''[[The Times]]'' remarked that the film's depiction of values seemed influenced by the English, stating that "this stratum of Indian life was more English than England".<ref name="Robinson. pp. 157"/> [[Peter Bradshaw]] of [[The Guardian]] called the film "extraordinarily vivid and fresh."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Bradshaw|first1=Peter|title=Charulata review-a vitamin boost for the mind and heart|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/aug/21/charulata-review|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=21 August 2014|access-date=15 July 2021|archive-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112214051/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/aug/21/charulata-review|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the 1992 Sight & Sound critics' poll of the greatest films of all time, ''Charulata'' received 4 votes.<ref>{{cite web|author=Aaron and Mark Caldwell|title=Sight and Sound|publisher=Top 100 Movie Lists|year=2004|url=http://www.geocities.com/aaronbcaldwell/dimsscri.html|access-date=19 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090729180509/http://geocities.com/aaronbcaldwell/dimsscri.html|archive-date=29 July 2009}}</ref> In 2002, the film ranked 6th in the [[British Film Institute]]'s critics' poll,<ref>{{cite web |title=Top 10 Indian Films |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |year=2002 |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/imagineasia/guide/poll/india |access-date=14 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110515101729/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/imagineasia/guide/poll/india/ |archive-date=15 May 2011}}</ref> and 7th in its user poll,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/imagineasia/guide/poll/userpoll/india.html |title=User Poll: Indian Top 10 |date=2002 |publisher=[[British Film Institute]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080530205427/http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/imagineasia/guide/poll/userpoll/india.html|archive-date=30 May 2008}}</ref> of the "Top 10 Indian Films" of all time.

''Charulata'' was awarded the [[Silver Bear for Best Director]] at the [[15th Berlin International Film Festival]],<ref>{{Cite news|title=Charulata|last=Malcolm|first=Derek|date=22 August 2014|work=[[London Evening Standard]]|page=43}}</ref> but, much to Ray's dismay, it was rejected by the [[Cannes Film Festival]], a move protested by the likes of [[David Lean]] and [[Ingmar Bergman]];<ref name="thehindu.com">{{cite web | last=Gupta | first=Ranjan Das | title=Ray at Cannes | website=The Hindu | date=2011-04-30 | url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Ray-at-Cannes/article14906744.ece | access-date=2021-05-18 | archive-date=25 September 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925040900/https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/Ray-at-Cannes/article14906744.ece | url-status=live }}</ref> reportedly, the film was also an all-time favourite of [[Jean-Luc Godard]].<ref name="thehindu.com"/> However, it was later shown as part of the Cannes Classics section of the [[2013 Cannes Film Festival]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.screendaily.com/news/cannes-classics-2013-line-up/5054402.article?blocktitle=Latest-News&contentID=1846|title=Cannes Classics 2013 line-up unveiled|work=Screen Daily|access-date=2013-04-30|archive-date=7 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201007213722/https://www.screendaily.com/news/cannes-classics-2013-line-up/5054402.article?blocktitle=Latest-News&contentID=1846|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Awards===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
|-
! Year
! Award
! Category
! Recipient
! Result
|-
|1964
|rowspan="6"|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards]]
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Films|Best Indian Films]]
|rowspan="4"|[[Satyajit Ray]]
|{{won}}
|-
|rowspan="5"|1965
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Director Award|Best Director]]
|{{won}}
|-
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Screenplay Award|Best Screenplay]]
|{{won}}
|-
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Music Director Award|Best Music Director]]
|{{won}}
|-
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Actor Award|Best Actor]]
|Shailen Mukherjee
|{{won}}
|-
|[[Bengal Film Journalists' Association – Best Actress Award|Best Actress]]
|[[Madhabi Mukherjee]]
|{{won}}
|-

|rowspan="3"|[[15th Berlin International Film Festival|1965]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1965/03_preistr_ger_1965/03_Preistraeger_1965.html |title=Berlinale 1965: Prize Winners |access-date=2010-02-20 |work=berlinale.de |archive-date=19 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150319033406/http://www.berlinale.de/en/archiv/jahresarchive/1965/03_preistr_ger_1965/03_Preistraeger_1965.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|rowspan="3"|[[Berlin International Film Festival]]
|[[Golden Bear]]
|rowspan="3"|Satyajit Ray
|{{nom}}
|-
|[[Silver Bear for Best Director]]
|{{won}}
|-
|OCIC Award
|{{won}}
|-
|[[12th National Film Awards|1965]]
|[[National Film Awards]]
|[[National Film Award for Best Feature Film|Best Feature Film]]
|R. D. Bansal and Satyajit Ray
|{{won}}
|-
|1968
|[[Valladolid International Film Festival]]
|Golden Spike
|Satyajit Ray
|{{nom}}
|}

==Preservation==
The [[Academy Film Archive]] preserved ''Charulata'' in 1996.<ref>{{cite web|title=Preserved Projects|url=http://www.oscars.org/academy-film-archive/preserved-projects?title=&filmmaker=satyajit+ray&category=All&collection=All|website=Academy Film Archive|access-date=11 August 2016|archive-date=15 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160815062125/http://www.oscars.org/academy-film-archive/preserved-projects?title=&filmmaker=Satyajit+Ray&category=All&collection=All|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Home media==
In 2013, The [[Criterion Collection]] released a restored high-definition digital transfer of the film with new subtitle translations on DVD and Blu-ray.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2872-charulata-calm-without-fire-within|title=Charulata: "Calm Without, Fire Within" – From the Current – The Criterion Collection|access-date=2015-03-19|archive-date=17 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150317044952/http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2872-charulata-calm-without-fire-within|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, ''Charulata'' was 2013's ninth most-watched foreign-language film on television, with 113,600 viewers on [[Channel 4]].<ref>{{Cite report |url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/downloads/bfi-statistical-yearbook-2014.pdf |title=Statistical Yearbook 2014 |date=2014 |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] (BFI) |pages=141 |access-date=25 April 2022 |archive-date=1 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220501005443/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/downloads/bfi-statistical-yearbook-2014.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Tribute==
[[File:Charulata1.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Reversal of the gaze: Charulata ([[Madhabi Mukherjee]]), sitting on her swing and looking at Amal]]
The film contains a famous scene in which Charu ([[Madhabi Mukherjee]]) sings [[Rabindranath Tagore]]'s song "Fule Fule Dhole Dhole" on a swing while looking at Amal ([[Soumitra Chatterjee]]). The scene is referenced in the 2005 [[Bollywood]] film ''[[Parineeta (2005 film)|Parineeta]]'' during the "Soona Man Ka Aangan" song sequence. Indeed, ''Parineeta''{{'}}s Lalita ([[Vidya Balan]]) is dressed to resemble ''Nastanirh''/''Charulata''{{'}}s Charu. Furthermore, ''Parineeta'' is based upon the 1914 novel ''[[Parineeta (novel)|Parineeta]]'' by [[Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay]], a contemporary of Tagore who also wrote novels concerned with social reform.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050611/asp/nation/story_4854277.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050616031700/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050611/asp/nation/story_4854277.asp |url-status=dead |archive-date=16 June 2005 |title=The Telegraph - Calcutta : Nation |publisher=Telegraphindia.com |date=2005-06-11 |access-date=2011-05-31 |location=Calcutta, India |first=Pratim D. |last=Gupta}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mag/2005/08/07/stories/2005080700510500.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060917133051/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/mag/2005/08/07/stories/2005080700510500.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2006-09-17 |title=Magazine / Lifestyle : Something new, something old |date=2005-08-07 |access-date=2011-05-31 |work=[[The Hindu]] |location=Chennai, India}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Antani, Jay. "[http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/film_review.asp?ID=1080 Charulata review]." ''Slant Magazine'', April 2004.
* Biswas, Moinak. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20060523005503/http://www.ipv.pt/forumedia/5/9.htm Writing on the Screen: Satyajit Ray’s Adaptation of Tagore]"
* Chaudhuri, Neel. "[http://www.sensesofcinema.com/2004/cteq/charulata/ Charulata: The Intimacies of a Broken Nest]"
* Cooper, Darius.''The Cinema of Satyajit Ray:Between Tradition and Modernity'' Cambridge University Press, 2000.
* Nyce, Ben. ''Satyajit Ray : A Study of His Films''. New York: Praeger, 1988
* Seely, Clinton B. "[http://www.parabaas.com/rabindranath/articles/pClinton1.html Translating Between Media: Rabindranath Tagore and Satyajit Ray]"
* Sen, Kaustav "[https://web.archive.org/web/20060526170949/http://www.indiastar.com/KaustuvSen.html Our Culture, Their Culture:Indian-ness in Satyajit Ray and Rabindranath Tagore explored through their works Charulata and Nashtanir]"
Charulatha (ചാരുലത) Rabindranath Tagore, Translated into Malayalam by Leela Sarkar. Green Books, 2010.

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070629130207/http://www.satyajitray.org/films/charu.htm Official website]
* {{IMDb title|0057935}}
* {{TCMDb title|id=70694}}
* [https://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2872-charulata-calm-without-fire-within ''Charulata: “Calm Without, Fire Within”''] an essay by Philip Kemp at the [[Criterion Collection]]

{{Satyajit Ray}}
{{NationalFilmAwardBestFeatureFilm}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:1964 films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Satyajit Ray]]
[[Category:Bengali-language Indian films]]
[[Category:Films set in Kolkata]]
[[Category:Films based on works by Rabindranath Tagore]]
[[Category:Films based on Indian novels]]
[[Category:1964 drama films]]
[[Category:Indian black-and-white films]]
[[Category:Films about women in India]]
[[Category:Memorials to Rabindranath Tagore]]
[[Category:Best Feature Film National Film Award winners]]
[[Category:Films with screenplays by Satyajit Ray]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1870s]]
[[Category:Films about writers]]
[[Category:1964 Bengali-language films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Satyajit Ray]]

Charulata - Revision history

LoganConger6625 at 10:26, 20 March 2026