Adapting a classic story written by his grandfather, Upendrakishore Ray, he also created the musical score, costumes and choreography for this production, which promised to be of a grander scale than his previous work. But the proposed budget for this film always on the rise larger that inflation rate, forcing Ray to cut costs by shooting the film in black-and-white (color was reserved for the surprise final shot. I often thought color was introduced to depict the color that came into Googa Baba’s life after their dream of acquiring princesses was fulfilled. Blame it on my overworking pituitary gland.
“Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne” follows the unlikely friendship of two severely untalented young musicians. Goopy is a grinning bumpkin who yearns to be a great singer. However, his attempt to serenade the local maharajah with a morning raga(with an unlucky Tanpura) results in his being banished from his homeland. Wandering through the woods, he finds a soulmate with a similar problem: a would-be drummer who also got banished. Goopy nicknames his new friend Bagha Byne (tiger-like drummer) following their chance encounter with a tiger. The shot where the freeze frame technique has been used has been one of the many firsts introduced by Manikda(Ray's pet name) in Bengali movies.
If the living are unimpressed with Goopy and Bagha’s music, the dead love it. In what may be one of the most creatve musical sequences put on film, the ghosts of the forest perform a six-and-half-minute dance for Goopy and Bagha. The dance sequence is actually four separate numbers intertwined into a story of styles and moods (a traditional Bengali dance laced with satirical choreography mocking class pretensions and wars). The sequence concludes with the arrival of the blue-skinned, gold-toothed King of the Ghosts, who grants Goopy and Bagha three wishes. Many claim Ray lend his voice for the Ghost King, though veracity of the same is debatable. They wish for the ability to have instant access to food, to travel anywhere they desire, and the ability to perform their music so everyone will love what they create. Point to be noted on the third wish - they want to make people happy with their performances. Another PR coup where your interests are branded as wishes of others.
Their wishes are granted and they are each given magical slippers that helps fuel their wishful desires.
The duo land up in the Kingdom of Shundi, where the local monarch is holding a contest for new court musicians. Shundi is interesting– an epidemic ensures no one outside of the king have the ability to speak. Goopy and Bagha sweep the competition and become both court magicians and royal confidants.
The King of Shundi tells the pair about his twin brother, who is the King of Halla, a neighboring kingdom. Halla is actually controlled by an evil prime minister and a malevolent wizard (who wears diamond-shaped sunglasses!), and they are preparing a war against Shundi. Halla’s king is kept drugged and used strictly as a puppet. I sometimes wonder about the supply of this drug which evokes battle cry in a docile personality. Goopy and Bagha, using their music and magic, infiltrate Halla and manage to stop the war just as the Halla troops are about to charge into battle – on camelback, no less. They even find the potion to restore speech to the people of Shundi. For their bravery, Goopy and Bagha get to marry the daughters of each king (one daughter per man, of course – after all, only kings can have harems!). Irony, daughters are treated as commodities! Rajkanya ki kom poritechhe??(is there a dearth of princesses?) is a classic example of how women were treated since time immemorial.
“Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne” gets a lot of its energy from its stars: Tapen Chatterji as the tall, somewhat dim but good-natured Goopy (his singing is dubbed in by Anup Kumar Ghosal) and Robi Ghosh as the short, squat, scowling Bagha. Bagha is more practical and has a better sense of the life.
The real attraction, though, are the supporting players:
- Santosh Dutta in a dual role as the twin monarchs(an actor as versatile as one can be. Those have seen Jana Aranya, Hirok Rajar Deshe and Sonar Kella, all by Ray would know what I am referring to)
- Jahar Ray as the eye-rolling evil prime minister(probably the only evil character played by him in his lifetime, he was more famous as a trend setter comedian alongwith Bhanu)
Prasad Mukherjee as the lovable, cute King of the Ghosts(Ray gave a new dimension to ghosts who are often evil) - Harindranath Chatterji as the wildly wicked magician Borfi(note the word... borfi is a much well loved sweet)
The actors overplay their roles with the exaggerated fun and fury of a Christmas pantomime – and the effect works within the context of the film’s fantasy-adventure settings. Ray’s songs are also beguiling, moving the story along with a cheerful pep.
“Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne” was the master's most commercially successful film. The web site SatyajitRay.org quotes a letter that the filmmaker wrote six months after its release: “It is extraordinary how quickly it has become part of popular culture. Really, there isn’t a single child in the city who doesn’t know and sing the songs (from the film).”
The magic of the movie comes from the simplicity it exudes. Though you know things are fantasized you love to believe in them. Ray brings out the whole theme of 'Wish fulfillment' which perhaps we all store preciously in secret cabinets of our heart.You really do not hate the negative characters, there is nothing that makes them cruel.
The little 'Bagha' mannerisms of needing to wash hand even in the prison, the love for food all around(Ray himself liked good food), the way a handful of actors have etched various characters all along the journey leaves marks that make you want to watch the movie repeatedly.
A non bengali friend of mine once opined after seeing this movie -"It is difficult not to envy Bagha and Goopy. Probably there is one in each of us and that is why the story is such a hit".
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