Fay Roberts’s second sonnet this year is inspired by Satyajit Ray’s groundbreaking novel adaptation: Bengali movie, Pather Panchali (1955), written by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay (author of the autobiographical novel) and Satyajit Ray, and starring Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Sarbojaya Ray, Chunibala Devi, Uma Das Gupta, and Subir Banerjee.
A mother’s worries never seem to end,
and father’s dreams are solipsistic, vast,
so what is she to do but scrape and mend,
and cling to hopes betrothed to class and caste?
A web of obligations resonates
in sickness and in health, and dimly lit.
As seasons come and go, she numbly waits,
her daughter not content to fret and sit.
She runs, and climbs, and perturbates, and cares,
and swears that she will never be a wife.
And what’s the punishment for she who dares
the crime of wanting better for her life?
You’ll find out, being hitched to faulty stars,
what disappointing creatures poets are.
 |
| Image of Karuna Bannerjee as Sarbojaya Ray from the Cinematograph review |
If you have access to Wikipedia, you can watch the 2:04 long, Bengali language movie here (or on Amazon Prime with very different subtitles and worse image quality). Content warnings include: poverty, death, casual family violence. Let us know what you thought if you’ve seen it!
No comments:
Post a Comment