Bimal Roy () (12 July 1909–7 January 1966) was one of the most acclaimed
Indian film directors of all time. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films like
Do Bigha Zamin,
Parineeta,
Biraj Bahu,
Madhumati,
Sujata, and
Bandini, making him an important director of
Hindi cinema. Inspired by
Italian neo-realistic cinema, he made
Do Bigha Zameen after watching,
Vittorio De Sica's
Bicycle Thieves (1948). His work is particularly known for his
mise en scène, which he employed to portray
realism. He won a number of awards throughout his career, including eleven
Filmfare Awards, two
National Film Awards, and the International Prize of the
Cannes Film Festival..
Madhumati won 9
Filmfare Awards in 1958, a record held for 37 years.
Biography
Bimal Roy was born on 12 July 1909, to a
zamindar family in Suapur, then part of the
Bengal province of
British India and now part of
Bangladesh. Bimal Roy moved to the
Calcutta and entered the field of cinema as a camera assistant with
New Theatres Pvt. Ltd. During this time, he assisted director
P.C. Barua on the hit 1935 movie
Devdas, starring
K.L. Saigal. In the 1940s and 1950s Roy was part of the parallel cinema movement in post-war India. He was famous for his romantic-realist melodramas that took on important social issues while still being entertaining. He was a filmmaker of great and in-depth understanding of human...
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