I have a long and intense relationship with Kolkata. This time, I wanted to go on a pilgrimage to see Satyajit Ray’s (1921-1992) home and his famous study. Gratitude to Vipin Vijay, Dean, Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, SRFTI, and team for inviting me to conduct a curation workshop for Arcurea, the international seminar on the archiving, curation and restoration of films at SRFTI Kolkata, in the first place. On this, more in my next column; workshop done, I greedily took in Kolkata. It now has metro stations named Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak, and my respect for the city shot to the stratosphere. 

I arrived at 1/1 Bishop Lefroy Road, a yellow, colonial building, and was welcomed by Sandip Ray, prolific filmmaker and Satyajit Ray’s son. He has directed about 37 films and series—about the same number as his father—including adaptations of Satyajit Ray’s stories, some featuring Ray’s popular characters Feluda and Professor Shonku. If the place was a museum, I could just buy a ticket, gawp and take photos. But this is a family’s private home, and I’m extremely apologetic about intruding on Mr Ray’s privacy and time. By way of justification for this intrusion, I share that I’m a lifelong fan of Satyajit Ray, a film curator and have curated Satyajit Ray’s films over the years.