Jalsaghar

Jalsaghar (The Music Room) 1958

Year - 1958
Producer - Satyajit Ray Productions
Screenplay - Satyajit Ray
Based on - The short story Jalsaghar by Tarasankar Banerjee
Photography - Subrata Mitra
Editor - Dulal Dutta
Art Director - Bansi Chandragupta
Music - Vilayat Khan
Sound - Durgadas Mitra
Length - 100 min.
Print - Black & White

Cast:
Huzur Biswambhar Roy - Chhabi Biswas
Mahamaya - Padma Devi
Khoka - Pinaki Sen Gupta
Mahim Ganguly - Gangapada Bose
Taraprasanna - Tulsi Lahari
Anantra - Kali Sarkar
Ustad Ujir Khan - Ustad Waheed Khan
Krishna Bai - Roshan Kumari

The action occurs in a palace in Nimitia, in Bengal, at the beginning of the century. On his terrace, smoking a hookah, the zamindar has his memory stirred by the sound of some music from the coming of age ceremony of his neighbor's son. He recalls his own son's initiation and the recitals in his salon to which he invited the finest musicians, the most beautiful singers, the greatest dancers. Now his wife and his son are dead and his status as an important landowner has declined. Goaded by his neighbor, an arrogant pretender who boasts of his taste in music, the zamindar opens his salon once again and ruins himself with a final recital. He savors the music. He savors his victory and toasts his ancestors. At dawn, he departs on his horse and leaves this elegant world behind.
The original negative of this film was lost in a fire.