Maa (Bijoya Ray) loved Uttam Kumar's acting: Sandip Ray

Even if he is in mourning, his mind is flooded with memories. There was a time when their Bishop Lefroy Road residence would be filled with the chatter of guests ' friends from abroad, unit members of his father's films, actors, relatives ' and his mother would take care of all with a smile. With Bijoya Ray, wife of master filmmaker Satyajit Ray, breathing her last on June 2, an era has come to an end.In an hour-long chat, son Sandip Ray talks about the footprints she left on the sands of time. Excerpts:
Behind every successful man, there's a woman'
It was very true even in my father's case. From Pather Panchali till he breathed his last, maa was involved with him in every possible way'
Bijoya Ray was a talented Rabindrasangeet singer, but she took immense interest in Hollywood musicals too'
Even as a child, she would take interest in Hollywood songs. Her love for western classical music grew with time. Both my parents would listen to western classical music. They would buy records and listen to them together. Back then, you could get the notations of western classical music. They were perfectly clued into those notations. So, when baba started scoring for his own films, he would follow the notations. They had deep interest in Hollywood musicals. During the war (World War II), those films would release in India first. They loved the works of Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Gene Kelly' Baba could whistle well and maa would approve of his tunes by listening to his whistling. When baba started scoring for his own films, he would compose with western notations. But musicians, back then, were used to Bangla notations. So, baba turned to maa for help. When the transition from western to Bangla notations happened, everyone was in for a surprise.
Despite being praised by Tagore for her unique voice and her father's (barrister Charu Chandra Das) intention of sending her to Paris for training, she didn't
pursue a career in music'
After marriage, she left everything to take charge of the house and started helping baba in his ventures. Had she pursued music, she would have earned a name for herself. But maa always wanted to keep a low profile. During Pather Panchali, she pawned her jewellery box to keep the shoot going. Baba, on the other hand, sold off his records and books apart from using the salary he would get by working at an ad agency. If he didn't get such encouragement from maa, I don't know if he would have managed to carry on. Maa knew the authentic tunes, but she would be nervous in front of the mic. So, she moved away from singing, which is a pity.
Bijoya Ray, it's known, helped artistes pick up the songs; Madhabi Mukherjee was among them. Satyajit Ray too was no exception'
During Monihara, Rumadi (Guha Thakurta) picked up nuances of Baje koruno surey from her. It was the time of spool recorders. When my father later decided to make Kishore Kumar sing Ami chini go chini, maa recorded it in spool and sent it to him in Mumbai. Kishoreda picked up the song on hearing it. She also helped Madhabidi during Charulata...
Wasn't she also the first one to read Ray's scripts?
Even before becoming a writer, baba would make maa read all his scripts. He would give her a pencil to make changes, if there were any. Maa would give suggestions. Baba would either take them or discuss them at great length. I've seen 90% of her suggestions being taken. Maa would also take care of the costumes in his period films. She would go to either the National Library or Bourne & Shepherd for research. Maa had a sharp memory and baba would totally rely on her. If it was the costume of a woman, he would leave it entirely on her. Maa would take care of what we now call the look test. So, when a young Sharmila Tagore came to our house, the onus fell on maa to transform her into a village belle. When baba would go to buy the props, maa would accompany him. Together, they would buy everything from antique furniture to sari borders. She would also hold the unit together. She would make sure if the unit members were reaching on time, if they were getting proper food to eat. From what to eat to when it was reaching them, she took care of everything. Maa ensured that baba didn't have to worry about things other than his immediate work. When baba took ill, she went the extra mile to take care of things.
Going back a little, Bijoya Ray was also an actress and worked in films like Sesh Raksha and Sandhya, apart from a few in Mumbai. But she gave that up too'
I wouldn't say she was hugely interested in acting ever. She lived in Mumbai for some time and had a huge circle of friends, some of whom were already working in films. So, it was more of fun than anything else. After registering their marriage in Mumbai, when she moved back to Kolkata, she realized baba needed support for his works. All the more because despite his lucrative job, he wanted to break away for the love of cinema. Not everyone was happy with his decision, but maa stood by him.
She could also spot talents with effortless ease. Apu (Subir Banerjee), among others, was her find'
Maa had a keen eye for talent. When Kishore Kumar was about to sing a Rabindrasangeet in baba's film, there was a huge outcry. Maa kept encouraging him and asked him to go by his gut feeling.
Kishore Kumar was even considered for Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne'
Maa was close to Anup Ghoshal's family since her Patna days; he finally lent his voice to the film. I knew him since the time we used to live in our Lake Avenue house, where he would often come down for a musical adda. Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne went through many ups and downs and even got stuck in the cans. Kishore Kumar was at the top of his game then and couldn't have dedicated so much time. So, maa asked my father to consider Anupda' Baba made him sing a few of his composed songs and played the piano at an adda at our residence, which sealed the deal.
She was a big fan of detective stories'
Baba had a soft corner for Arthur Conan Doyle. He read Agatha Christie, but mostly (Hercule) Poirot. He wasn't too much into Miss Marple. But baba thought Agatha Christie's stories had too many suspects and there were attempts to confuse people to no end. But maa loved Poirot, Miss Marple and other mystery stories. So many times did she read a book that it would often be in tatters. Later, she would ask me to buy a new edition of those books. Maa also loved British romantic novels. I remember buying the Georgette Heyer series for her many
times over.
What was her take on Feluda?
Baba had not planned Feluda as a series. Inspired by Conan Doyle, he wrote the first story for young readers. The first one, Feludar Goyendagiri, didn't mention the sleuth's mannerisms. Before that, he had already written Bonkubabur Bondhu and Prof Shonku. Unlike baba, maa wasn't a fan of sci-fi novels, but that's another story. So, when Feluda was written, baba gave maa the first draft to read. Usually, it would always be the final draft. He asked for her inputs to see if the motive was sounding right. Maa never made changes, as she liked the story and I still have that draft. When Feluda became popular and many stories were written in quick succession, maa became more alert. The detective's mannerisms were incorporated. Whatever baba used to like or dislike would get reflected in Feluda's character as well. Shonku and Feluda and to a large extent, Sidhu jyatha, are all Satyajit Ray. When the series was being developed, maa said there was need to be careful. Baba started writing for Sandesh without knowing Feluda would be big. Later, when the publishers gave him his fist cheque, he was pleasantly horrified. He didn't know he could make money by writing. We later heard how Feluda had become popular among the grown-ups too. Sunil Ganguly would first read Feluda before moving onto other stories, when they started coming out in a magazine. Baba also shared his concern with maa about how to continue writing stories for children that neither had violence nor love triangles. Conan Doyle had to once bring back Sherlock on public demand. Though baba was not pushed to that brink, he was concerned nonetheless. They would often discuss, 'ebar ki'.
Is it true that Ray wanted bits of Soumitra Chatterjee, Subhendu Chatterjee, Barun Chanda and Dhritiman Chatterjee in his Feluda?
Baba did Sonar Kella because the character of the little boy, Mukul, was of huge interest to him. Also, it marked the entry of Jatayu in the series and again, baba was lured by the prospect of capturing Rajasthan in colour. Back then, Jaisalmer wasn't explored on celluloid. When things fell into place, he gave a serious thought to Felu. Though he said a fresher would be good, he wanted bits of Soumitra Chatterjee, Subhendu Chatterjee, Barun Chanda and Dhritiman Chatterjee in him. He couldn't have found anyone like him and Soumitra kaku was finalized for the role.
Wasn't Bijoya Ray also very fond of Uttam Kumar?
Uttam Kumar was my mother's very favourite. Why just her, my mashi-pishi were all his fans! But that didn't influence baba, as he too was extremely fond of him and wanted to cast him in a different role. Maa was very happy when baba took him for Nayak. Back then, many asked him, 'So at last, you too are working with a superstar'. But maa was very happy and stood by him like a rock. Baba had seen a lot of his films and was aware of his mannerisms. When the script was given to Uttam Kumar, he said there was nothing much to learn by heart as that's how he spoke. He was quite amazed and said, 'Manikda, apni amar eto chhobi dekhechhen!'. My father said, 'Tomar boudir pallaye porey dekhte hoyechhe'.
Even as a homemaker, Bijoya Ray was a perfectionist'
Maa would celebrate my birthdays in a lavish manner. She would subscribe to British housekeeping magazines and keep a file of interesting recipes. She would knit very well and read books in plenty. Maa cooked Continental food amazingly well and would organize two such dinners a month. A superb manager, she would keep my father's wallet. She was his bank and he would just hand over the money to her. Maa has singlehandedly looked after my studies. Now, people talk about time management. My parents had long back showed how to do it. Our house would be frequented by people and maa used to usher them in, keep a track of our needs, do the groceries, while baba was away. Baba, on his part, wanted us to have at least one meal together. He gave a lot of importance to food. Though he was a fast eater, we would talk about many things over a meal.
What about the card parties at home?
Though baba wouldn't be there, many actors would come down to take part. Robi Ghosh was a constant at these parties. Back then, artistes weren't that busy. There was no concept of television soaps and all they would do were either films or theatre. Sitting in the next room, I would hear peals of laughter. Many would accuse each other, 'ei cheat korchhish'. Our house would be filled with people. On long train journeys to shooting locations though, baba too would join in.
Bijoya Ray had mentioned her love for perfumes in Amader Katha'
She loved perfumes but never had a huge collection. Baba's friends would bring her perfumes from abroad. When baba went abroad, he would carry a long list. She had only one expensive taste ' perfumes. A simple person, maa would always wear saris. She never took time to dress up and wasn't into makeup.
How did she cope with the loss after Satyajit Ray's death?
We knew baba was not going to recover after his back-to-back heart attacks in '83 and '84. Doctors in Houston, where he had his bypass surgery, gave us a clear picture. But maa showed tremendous courage in taking care of things. She would lend him the strength he needed. Baba knew he was becoming weak, but maa would always encourage him. After baba left, I thought we would lose her too. It had a disastrous effect on her health, as she would suffer from asthma even as a child. But maa immersed herself in writing Amader Katha. She had always maintained a diary. Apart from the daily budget, it also had the mention of important dates and events like baba getting an award or the start of a shoot. That's why Amader Katha is so authentic.
There was a time when she would write for Sandesh'
All her life, she was busy with baba. She would take care of the shoots, his medicines and the general looking after. She would keep all the worries to herself and share it with us, sparing baba to do his work. She used to write very well and her letters are a treasure trove. Baba, who would write regularly for Sandesh, would give maa his stories to see if they were fine.
There must be many such memories'
Together, my parents would discover new things. When someone told my father why he didn't have a club membership despite being 'Satyajit Ray', my father asked, 'Which club has a good library?' Calcutta Club's name was promptly thrown up. My father did a recce as if he was visiting a shooting spot. He never used to drink and also didn't like following a dress code. Maa would accompany him to the club. During Shatranj Ke Khiladi, my mother would check out private collections to find the right props. She was hugely interested in period pieces and baba too had deep interest in the British Raj. Maa, with a couple of our relatives, formed an organization, Begum, and would exhibit costume jewellery. She would request my father to attend the exhibitions. Baba would sit in one corner and people, who came there, would also manage to get a Satyajit Ray autograph! Everyone would eat together and it was more of a
carnival.
Coming to your films, did she continue to have a say?
I always gave a lot of importance to what my mother was thinking. Together, we would visit plexes ' till she could ' to catch films. She continued to be clued into my works. So, when I took Benu (Sabyasachi Chakrabarty), and got him introduced to my mother as the new Feluda, maa was thrilled. Benu has a strong presence and maa was happy.
She knew how to keep pace with time. Despite being modern in her outlook, she was a Bangali at heart. I haven't come across a fighter like her.