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Charu is adored by her husband who is one of the most respectable aristocrats in the higher social echelons in colonial Calcutta,their political intellectual discussions are just as enthusiastic as their exploration of the intricacies of mozart,ibsen ,literature ,piano and music ,this is a private sacred intimate milieu where a virtuous woman finds herself heeding thoughts which are ambivalent to her breeding ,she spurns herself and almost becomes a stranger to herself ,as if in self-loathing .
The internal psychological strife is beautifully depicted through the reactions of other characters surrounding her ,the daily domestic chores and her observaviotions of the street life from her balcony,which is almost a voyeuristic pleasure .
The Edwardian decor of the town house and the cloistered garden are the backdrop to this shy and mellow drama,it is too quaint to call it a romance and it is too bold in it's conclusion to be labelled as anything but a ground-breaking drama .
It finally is a profoundly poetic look at the attitudes to matrimony and the development of a relation between a man and woman ,Ray is neither preacing nor sermonising ,he observes a slice of a domestic event and very naturally translates it upon the screen.
The performances by Soumitra Chatterjee as the young man who escapes from the house to get away from his feelings and Mahdabi Mukherjee as Charulata are poetically realised against a desperate passion ,which is all consuming but still very potent ,the scene stealer is the husband who walks away with all the plaudits in the shocking yet liberating finale .
The trivia here are more important then the most crucial details and the culture is explored with a sensitivity yet sophistication which makes this one of the greatest comments on human relationships in cinema ,that the fragility of this exquisite piece is streamlined to the very end in a perfect balance is to the credit of a ray of genius called SaTyajit Ray.
Having said that, it is possible to follow the story very easily as it is straightfoward.
Ultimately its a story of trust, betrayal and loneliness set in the 19th century. The characters consist of Bhupati-- a crusty feudal lord, with liberal views and a fascination with England and all things English. He is distant,aloof and preoccupied with british politics and running his newspaper which like him, is dry and unpopular. But he loves his wife dearly though has trouble expressing his love. Charulata, his wife, is imaginative, young and lonely in a loving through unexpressive marriage. And in the midst of this life comes the Bohemian brother of Bhupati- Amol, a budding author of doubtful literary credentials who comes in like a storm and catches Charulata's imagination and heart. Also coming into the mix is Charulata's evil brother who is out to embezzle Bhupati's money. What follows is a story of how love brings out the best in people, how trust and betrayal walk hand in hand, and of relationships broken and hearts that never heal.
Satyajit Ray is in his elements as one unforgettable scene melts into another-- leaving behind words not spoken, looks of smouldering passion not exchanged and tears that well up in the eyes and yet vanish with a smile....
A masterpiece...a Picasso on film
What more can one say.....
A film is like art in motion, a dynamic canvas trying to create impressions in your mind through the images and sounds that it presents frame-by-frame. And this film accomplishes that task to a superlative degree; right from the start where, over a few scenes, lucid camerawork and adroit focus capture Charu's boredom and solitude with alacrity. Near-flawless compositions with occasional sprinkling of eloquent imagery, dominate the whole film. Some of the most moving images are: 1) A singing Charulata going up and down on a swing, her feet intermittently touching the ground while a contemplative Amol lies at some distance on the ground. The camera covers this shot both from the front when we see only Charulata and also from the side when Amol dominates the frame with Charulata swinging in the background. It produces a dreamlike effect. This is the strongest metaphor of Charulata's yearning for Amol.
2) Charulata's recollection of her childhood which inspires her to write - a brilliant montage of diverse scenes, such as a river, dancing men, a village fair and fire crackers, juxtaposed over a big close up of her face.
3) The final freeze shot, symbolising the indelible fracture in Bhupati and Charulata's marriage.
Music plays a significant role and qualifies most of the scenes. Acting perhaps ceases to be of supreme importance in such a masterful work but the very fact of the film's quality is testimony to good acting, though Amol (Soumitra Chatterjee) appears slightly theatrical in a few scenes and Bhupati's mannerisms a little arcane in the context of contemporary Bengali civility (which is perhaps irrelevant).
Ray himself has talked of 'Charulata' as his most consummate work, and we can understand why. Here he successfully blends picture and music, with his usual fluent style of narration, to create a deft composition, which is both adroit and expressive - adroit in its adaptation of technique and expressive as a work of art.
"Charulata" (The Lonely Wife) is based on the short story "Nastanirh" (The Broken Nest) by Pulitzer Prize winner Rabindranath Tagore (whose work I have yet the pleasure of perusing). The story takes place in the late 19th century India and tells the tale of a lonely housewife Charu (short for Charulata), very reminiscent of Flaubert's Emma Bovary. Charu and her rather detached, older husband Bhupati live a quiet, well-to-do life. She is a very beautiful woman, with tons of money and all the time in the world to enjoy her passions - the arts, literature and poetry. Yet her workaholic husband seems to be more concerned with his job than his marriage. And alas, she is all alone, ailing from that distasteful disorder of ennui that seemingly plagues so many kept women.
However, the sun shines a bit brighter for our heroine when Bhupati's young, handsome cousin Amal arrives for a visit. Bhupati, who is far from a heartless man and feels sympathy for his wife's cheerless plight, encourages his cousin to befriend his wife as they both have so much in common (he loves poetry and the arts as well). Well, I won't go any further in relating the story line, but as most of you can guess...
I have read in several different articles that this was Ray's favorite film. That is quite a boast when you consider how many classic, award-winning films this man had been a part of. I just love this guy's directing! He was an artist who was able to evoke any emotion he wanted from his actors. There is typically not a whole lot of dialogue in his films, and he was definitely not one to use any effulgent effects, however I have never seen a director so adept in capturing the intimate feelings of his characters. Ergo, I would be remiss to not give kudos to the fine cast as well - Madhabi Mukherjee as Charlu, Soumitra Chatterjee as Amal, and Shailen Mukherjee as Bhupati. All three give standout performances, especially Madhabi as Charlu and it's no wonder why Ray loved having her as his lead actress for several other films.
There is no violence, foul language, nudity, crude humor, etc... in this 1964 classic. It's a charming story directed by one of the world's greatest story tellers - simple, yet stylish and sophisticated at the same time. I can't recommend it enough!
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