Goodle Doodle on filmaker Satyajit Ray's 92 birth anniversary
Goodle Doodle on filmaker Satyajit Ray's 92 birth anniversaryGoogle

Google India on Thursday has come up with a new doodle commemorating filmmaker Satyajit Ray's 92nd birth anniversary.

The new doodle, reminiscent of the black and white era, is of a scene from Ray's most celebrated Bengali film "Pather Panchali".

The famous scene pictures the young protagonists, Durga and Apu, running through the field with Kaash flowers in full bloom.

"We are constantly inspired by great stories and people. Our humble tribute captures a scene from Ray's first film. Visitors to Google India homepage will be greeted with information on Ray's life and movies," said Sandeep Menon, director-marketing, Google India

Born on 2 May 1921, Ray has donned various roles of writer, illustrator, graphic designer music composer and film critic.

Apart from having 36 films to his credit, Ray has also made several documentaries and short films most of which have been revered over the years.

Ray also wrote famous fictional detective series featuring prominent characters like Feluda and Professor Shonku.

"Pather Panchali", which was released in 1955, was the first film Ray made by investing his own money. The film was later funded by the government. From the casting to promoting the film, most of the work was done by Ray alone.

The film is the first installment of the Apu trilogy which also consists of "Aparajito" (1956) and "Apur Sansar" (1959). All three films won many national and international awards.

Ray is best known for making films which explore the larger canvas of life. His remarkable films also include "Charulata", "Devi", "Jalsaghar", "Mahanagar", "Nayak", "Sonar Kella" and "Aranyer Din Ratri". He had launched actors like Soumitro Chatterjee and Sharmila Tagore through his films.

Ray was honoured with the Academy Award in 1992 for his immense contribution to the world of cinema. He received the award from his deathbed at a hospital in Kolkata.

Weeks after he was bestowed the award, Ray died on 23 April that year due to heart complications.

Ray has influenced several noted directors through his craft of filmmaking like Martin Scorsese, Bertrand Tavernier, Alexander Payne, Wes Anderson, Ismail Merchant, Mira Nair, Aparna Sen, Semih Kaplanoglu,Tizza Covi, Rainer Frimmel, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Raghubir Sing and Shyam Benegal.