Sandeep Ray on the death of Uma Dasgupta of Pather Panchali fame, “She was an absolute natural actor, there were no retakes at all!”

By Subhash K. Jha -

November 19, 2024 - 12:48 PM IST

When Uma Dasgupta, Satyajit Ray’s Durga from Pather Panchali, passed away, his unconquerable son Sandeep Ray spoke on how the master creator selected Uma without any audition. “She came to our Lake Avenue house with somebody whom my father knew,” he said. “And my father talked to her for a little while and she was cast. It's as simple as that! No audition, nothing at all. My father treated both Uma and Subir Banerjee (who played Apu) as adults, you know. No chocolates, no, you know, nothing. He never used to do that. He never pampered even his adults, no matter how big a star.”

Sandeep Ray on the death of Uma Dasgupta of Pather Panchali fame, “She was an absolute natural actor, there were no retakes at all!”

Sandeep is happy Subir who played Apu in Pather Panchali is still with us. “Unfortunately, we've lost contact,” he said. “It's very unfortunate. We lost contact with Uma also. There were many occasions. The anniversary celebrations. I mean, there were a lot of occasions. We always contacted her. And she was very aloof. She didn't come most of the time, you know. She didn't come. She was never interested in acting, especially after Pather Panchali. And she became a housewife. And, you know... Normal Bengali housewife. She hated the spotlight. That was so strange and yet so admirable, you know. She was very special. She was impeccable as Durga. I mean, she is absolutely out of this world. And what a presence!”

Sandeep reveals Uma was a natural-born before the camera. “The strangest part is that she was not, you know, a professional actress. She was not! She only starred in one film and she was so, you know, so striking with her work. It takes a lot of guts with that kind of adulation to spurn all offers. It must have been very difficult. That height of excellence in her first film would have been impossible to match. I have very faint memories, you know. I was about two years old. And after that, she didn't, keep in touch. She became a recluse. She was very shy. She was so good in that film. Oh, my God! We cannot imagine Pather Panchali without her. Without Durga,” he said.

Sandeep agrees Pather Panchali is timeless. “It just doesn't age,” he said. “There is a certain universal resonance about it. My father was so satisfied with her(Uma)’s work, you know. He didn't tell her anything. Just gave her the basic instructions. And she did her job. An absolute natural born. Absolute natural. And there were no retakes at all.”