Satyajit Ray was a master in portrayal of death scenes: Aparna Sen

The director extolled the auteur at the 'Satyajit Ray Memorial Lecture' and enumerated memorable instances from several of his films. "Ray can be called a master in the portrayal of death scenes in Indian cinema and mostly in his usual understated style.

"Deaths of Indira Thakran in 'Pather Panchali', Harihar and Sarbajaya in 'Aparajito', Aparna in 'Apur Sansar', Biswambhar Roy in 'Jalsaghar' will always be remembered," Aparna said. She added the death of Durga in "Pather Panchali" was "the most dramatic" one in Ray's films.

The "Sonata" director also recalled the days when Ray cast her in "Samapti" as Mrinmoyee and shared how he directed her. "I remember what he (Ray) had told me at the last close- up shoot. Put the tip of your finger in your mouth and think of lovely wonderful things.

"It was undoubtedly a piece of masterly direction. For a young girl who is confused about how romantic love is made of," Aparna said. As a soft-hearted human being, Aparna said Ray never depicted villains in a true sense in his cinema till his 1964 film "Charulata".

"As a compassionate human being, Ray's compassion embraced his characters. He had never depicted his villains in black and white for long till 'Charulata' in 1964. "Before 'Charulata', we hardly came across a villain in Ray's work till he brought up the character of Umapada, brother-in-law of Charu's husband Bhupati," she said.

At the event, Aparna denied the claim Ray had projected India as a poverty-stricken country before the world. "In fact, he had rather given a face to India's poverty in his works," she asserted.

• Aparna Sen
• Satyajit Ray
• filmmaker