Satyajit Ray's Aranyer Din Ratri to be screened at Cannes Film Festival 2025, Sharmila Tagore to attend

Legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s iconic film Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest) is all set to be screened at the 78th Cannes Film Festival. The movie featured the ensemble cast of Sharmila Tagore, Soumitra Chatterjee, Aparna Sen, Simi Garewal, Rabi Ghosh, Samit Bhanja, Kaberi Basu, Pahari Sanyal, and Subhendu Chatterjee.

The restored version of Aranyer Din Ratri will be exhibited as part of The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project, presented in association with L’Immagine Ritrovata, Film Heritage Foundation, Janus Films, and The Criterion Collection.

Aranyer Din Ratri was awarded the Best Picture Award at the 21st Berlin International Film Festival. While it was released in India on January 15, 1970, in America it got its theatrical release on March 17, 1973.

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Satyajit’s son Sandip Ray expressed his emotions and told ETV Bharat, “I am very happy today. Can’t avoid the truth that I’m also very sad today, as many of the characters in the film are not alive now… Dad did not make a film to reach the international level, they simply rose to that level. Just like Pather Panchali.”

Directors Martin Scorsese and Wes Anderson have done the restoration of the film as they are deeply committed to global film preservation. The latter will be present at the screening as a member of the board at The Film Foundation along with Margaret Bodde (Executive Director, The Film Foundation) and Shivendra Singh Dungarpur (Director, Film Heritage Foundation).

Purnima Dutta, the producer of the film will also be honoured at the film festival. Interestingly, her other films such as Protidwondi and Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne, have also been chosen for restoration.

While Sharmila Tagore will attend screening, her co-star Simi Garewal will skip the event due to illness.