Union I&B ministry announces year-long celebrations for Satyajit Ray centenary

Paying homage to legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray, the Union information and broadcasting ministry has announced that it will organize year-long centenary celebrations of the filmmaker in India and abroad.

However, given the current pandemic situation in the country, the celebrations will be held in hybrid mode, through the year. The Press Information Bureau of the ministry shared a tweet about the celebrations:

A series of activities are being planned by media units of the ministry like the Directorate of Film Festivals, Films Division, National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), National Film Archives of India (NFAI), and Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), Kolkata. Other government ministries and departments, including the ministry of external affairs and culture ministry, will play a role in organizing these events.

The celebrations include the organization of Satyajit Ray film festivals in India and abroad, Ray retrospectives at the 74th Cannes Festival and the 52nd International Film Festival of India, the restoration and digitization of all the available films and publicity material of Ray by the NFAI, and the unveiling of a statue of Ray at the SRFTI campus.

The ministry also announced that in recognition of the auteur’s legacy, the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement award for excellence in cinema has been instituted from this year. The award will be presented at IFFI every year beginning with the 52nd edition scheduled to be held in Goa in November. The award consists of a cash prize of Rs10 lakh, a certificate, shawl, a Silver Peacock medal and a scroll.