A Student Discussion on the movie Two, a Film Fable by Satyajit Ray
Taabeer’s choice of film for their discussion on 16th September was Two, a black and white dialogue-less film directed by renowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray. Made at ESSO’s request, the film follows a silent exchange of friendship and rivalry between two young boys.
Discussion began after the film was screened. The 12-minute film touched many aspects of Indian society that were as true then as they are now. Ray’s masterful use of symbolism, imagery and sound were the key facets of the film discussed. The only two characters of the film, two boys from different backgrounds spending their leisure time in sight of one another, act as symbols of many things: rich and poor, privileged and marginalised, America and the global south. The story plays on binaries. Power relationships and social dynamics percolate the playtime and so were the central themes expounded upon.
Attention was also brought to the inequity that has come to characterise any suppositions of the modern, and the despondency that fosters. With the opening up of Indian markets came a boost in consumerism that had burrowed into the life of one of the boys and was conspicuously absent from that of the other. Equally as integral to the discussion were the themes of company and isolation, the idle boredom that led the more privileged boy to competitive displays of aggression. Parallels were drawn between the two boys’ lifestyles and the east-west dichotomy, the violent economic imperialism of one over the other.
A discussion on a film would be incomplete without addressing the choices of frames and score. Camera angles and the way the framing of the shots portrayed the lives of the boys and served to present the narrative was also deliberated upon. The aural trajectory of the film from haunting flute music to the mechanical whirring of toys was also examined.
Discussion began after the film was screened. The 12-minute film touched many aspects of Indian society that were as true then as they are now. Ray’s masterful use of symbolism, imagery and sound were the key facets of the film discussed. The only two characters of the film, two boys from different backgrounds spending their leisure time in sight of one another, act as symbols of many things: rich and poor, privileged and marginalised, America and the global south. The story plays on binaries. Power relationships and social dynamics percolate the playtime and so were the central themes expounded upon.
Attention was also brought to the inequity that has come to characterise any suppositions of the modern, and the despondency that fosters. With the opening up of Indian markets came a boost in consumerism that had burrowed into the life of one of the boys and was conspicuously absent from that of the other. Equally as integral to the discussion were the themes of company and isolation, the idle boredom that led the more privileged boy to competitive displays of aggression. Parallels were drawn between the two boys’ lifestyles and the east-west dichotomy, the violent economic imperialism of one over the other.
A discussion on a film would be incomplete without addressing the choices of frames and score. Camera angles and the way the framing of the shots portrayed the lives of the boys and served to present the narrative was also deliberated upon. The aural trajectory of the film from haunting flute music to the mechanical whirring of toys was also examined.
Written by Mrittika