Abhijan (Bengali pronunciation:; transl. The Expedition) is a 1962 Indian Bengali-language neo-noir road drama film written, scored and directed by Satyajit Ray. Produced by Bholanath Roy under the banner of Abhijatrik, the film is based on the 1946 eponymous novel by Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay. It stars Soumitra Chatterjee as Narsingh, a proud and hot-tempered Rajput taxi driver who loses his license after rash driving and gets entangled in a shady smuggling ring while reinventing his life on a drift to a rural town. The film also features Waheeda Rehman, Ruma Guha Thakurta, Gyanesh Mukherjee, Rabi Ghosh and Charuprakash Ghosh in other pivotal roles.
The film marks the fourth collaboration between Ray and Chatterjee, and also Rehman's debut in Bengali cinema. It was predominantly shot across Birbhum, especially in the Mama Bhagne hills, as a thematic motif where the rocks are seen as symbols of human being carrying its sin accumulated over time. Soumendu Roy and Dulal Dutta handled its cinematography and editing respectively.
Abhijan was theatrically released on 28 September 1962. It was critically and commercially successful. Chatterjee's character is often regarded as one of the most memorable onscreen characters in Indian cinema. Its influence also extends to world cinema, influencing films from British cinema, including Martin Scorsese's 1976 cult-classis Taxi Driver, starring Robert De Niro. At the 10th National Film Awards, Abhijan won the award for Second Best Feature Film. Apart from it, the film also received four accolades at the 26th Annual BFJA Awards, including Best Film, Best Director (Ray), Best Actor (Chatterjee) and Best Supporting Actor (Ghosh).
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
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