Dear Uma, dear Durga

Durga is dead. Harihar's family is leaving the village of Nischindipur. Leaving the village filled with memories, Apu will go far away, to Kolkata. All the belongings are being loaded onto a bullock cart. Mother and father are busy. Apu thought to check what secret items he should take with him. While moving a clay pitcher from the top shelf, something rolled down. Apu saw a golden box, the very same one that had been stolen from Sej Thakurun's house the previous year.

In the novel, there is a golden box, but in Satyajit Ray's film, a golden necklace is shown instead. In the novel, Apu throws the golden box into the bamboo grove, but in the film, Apu throws the golden necklace into a pond filled with water lilies. The scene in the film is even more significant—the golden ornament sinks into the water, and as the water recedes a little, it slowly gets covered again. This symbolizes that all memories of Durga remain there, and it is as though Durga is closing the door to all worlds.

On November 18, Uma Dasgupta, the actress who played the character of Durga, passed away. She had acted in only one film in her life. Apart from Pather Panchali, she never appeared in any other film, perhaps seeking immortality through her role as Durga. She was a teacher at Jadavpur Vidyapith, where she taught Mathematics and English. She had been there from 1984 until 2000. In her later years, she became very ill and seldom left her home.

The year 2021 marked the centenary of Satyajit Ray’s birth. During this celebration, everyone associated with Pather Panchali was honored at Nandan. Subir Bandyopadhyay, who played the character of Apu, had hoped to meet his "sister" that day. During the making of Pather Panchali, Uma Dasgupta had become Subir's real-life sister. However, due to her illness, Uma Dasgupta could not attend the Nandan event. It had been a long time since Subir had met her, and he never got to meet her again.

After Uma's death, Subir Bandyopadhyay expressed his sorrow to the media, recalling, "I was only 9 years old at that time, and Uma Di was 14. I didn’t understand much about shooting. We were shooting together, at Garia's Boral. The scene where we were to see the train was shot at Palsit near Shaktigarh. From the beginning, she always took care of me. We ate together, joked, and had fun. It felt like we were true brother and sister."

With Uma Dasgupta's death, literature and cinema lovers in Bengal have repeatedly recalled the death of Durga. Many on social media wrote that Durga died three times — once in the novel, once in the film, and now with the death of Uma Dasgupta. Perhaps no other character in Bengali literature has caused as much grief as Durga’s death did. Even though Devdas also died, and many cried for him, the death of Devdas and Durga were not the same; it left a different kind of mark on the readers' minds.

In the timeless Bengali tradition, the character of Durga was created by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay as a symbol of a simple village girl. Satyajit Ray gave it a brilliant cinematic portrayal. Like all the other characters in Pather Panchali, he chose Uma as an amateur actress. Uma Dasgupta had been involved in theater since childhood. Satyajit Ray had a connection with the headmaster of the school where Uma studied, and through this connection, Ray found Uma for the role of Durga. Initially, Uma's father did not want her to get involved in acting, but eventually, Satyajit Ray convinced him.

What was special about Uma in the role of Durga in Pather Panchali? First and foremost, it was her enchanting face. In it, she captured the essence of a poor, mischievous girl who loved to roam the woods and did not hesitate to steal any favourite thing when needed. Though simple, Durga's eyes had a sharpness to them, reflecting intelligence. In Pather Panchali, two characters were crucial: Indir Thakrun and Durga. Without the character of Indir Thakrun, it would have been difficult to make Pather Panchali, as Satyajit Ray mentioned. Similarly, he was deeply concerned about casting for the roles of Apu and Durga, having seen many children for these characters.

Indir Thakrun was portrayed by Chunibala Devi, who undoubtedly did an outstanding job. Indir Thakrun and Durga are essentially two versions of the same character at different ages. Indir Thakrun is neglected, survives by begging, and lives as a dependent in Harihar's house. Both of their deaths in the film are tragic. Indir Thakrun dies alone in the forest, and it is Durga who first notices her death. When Durga shakes Indir Thakrun, she falls to the ground, and the pitcher in her hand rolls down the slope, touched by Durga’s hand. The symbolic interpretation of this scene can be understood as follows: one day, just a little later, Durga too will fall like this

Durga’s death, due to her absence, is painful, but the pain is even greater for Apu. Perhaps Harihar and Sarbojaya didn’t feel as lonely in the face of their daughter’s death because they still had each other to rely on. They still had dreams for the future. But Apu is left with nothing. In the movies Aparajito and Apur Sangsar, we see Apu endure the deaths of those closest to him one after another. His father dies, his mother dies, his beloved wife dies, and as he grows older, he becomes more and more lonely. Eventually, he leaves his home in a state of madness, only to return later, driven by the love for his son. In the final scene of Apur Sangsar, Apu, carrying his son on his shoulder, walks the path of eternity, yet he still feels a profound loneliness. The death of every loved one in Apu's life reminds us of Durga. Durga was not only like Apu's sister, but also like his mother. We see in the film that from a very young age, Durga protected Apu just as a mother would.

What is it that causes the deep sorrow within us when Durga dies? It’s not that we haven’t seen such deaths before. We witness countless deaths around us every day. We often see many hungry, neglected boys and girls on the streets, but their lives don’t leave as much of an impact on us. Yet, when we read in Pather Panchali about Durga’s longing for the mangoes she found, we feel our hearts aching. We feel more sorrow for Apu and Durga because we know their entire story. They belong to a poor family, where their parents can’t even provide them with enough food. Their laughter and play touch our hearts deeply. Their struggle feels like our own. Sometimes, we feel as if we are Apu and Durga.

We know that Durga is also called Uma. In Hinduism, Goddess Durga is considered the primal force of nature and creation. She manifests in the form of a mother. In Pather Panchali, while Durga appears as a daughter and sister, there is an inherent maternal aspect in her, especially in her deep love for Apu. Through Pather Panchali, both the novel and the film, Durga becomes etched in our hearts forever. In the same way, Uma Dasgupta has also become a part of our memories. She proved once again that art is greater than life, as she only acted in Pather Panchali and never appeared in any other film.

Perhaps, if Uma had not embodied Durga so deeply, the audience might not have remembered her with such profound affection. Uma herself may have wanted to surrender entirely to the character of Durga, perhaps forgetting herself in the process. That is why she never acted in another film and, in her later years, distanced herself from the public. Even though Uma has now gone into eternal seclusion, she will remain forever in our memories as Durga.