Directed by Abhishek Chaubey, Vasan Bala and Srijit Mukherji, Netflix’s Ray is a four-part anthology based on master auteur Satyajeet Ray’s short stories. Since the release of its first season on June 25 it has been getting mixed reviews from critics and viewers.
Sandip Ray, the son of writer-director Satyajit Ray, has said that he hasn’t yet seen Ray, but is aware of the mixed reception that it has received. “I will soon see all the four works to have my own opinion but I will form that opinion only as an individual,” he said. “I am hearing both praises and criticisms and that is quite natural for any work of art, including something adapted from the works of a personality like Ray.” Sandip added.
Sandip Ray who himself has adapted his father’s works in the past said that he was never meant to be involved in the making of Ray. “A few months back, Netflix India executives came to me asking for my permission to adapt my father’s stories. I gladly gave them my permission. But after that, they did not contact me even once. They did not ask for my approval or insights into the stories. I was not shown the final script, nor was I consulted about the final product.”
In an earlier interview, Viacom18 COO Ajit Andhare had revealed that they’d scored the rights to 12 Ray stories from Sandip. Ray recieved 87% score on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.
The filmmaker joked in an interview that he’d be happy for Satyajit Ray to watch his film, hypothetically, on the condition that he’s near the exit door so that he’s able to make a quick escape. Vasan Bala joked that he’d feel like a plagiarist.
Created by Sayantan Mukherjee the four-episode series consists of four different stories- Spotlight (directed by Vasan Bala, starring Harshvardhan Kapoor and Radhika Madan), Forget Me Not (directed by Srijit Mukherji, starring Ali Fazal), Hungama Hai Kyon Barpa (directed by Abhishek Chaubey, starring Gajraj Rao and Manoj Bajpayee) and Bahurupia (directed by Srijit Mukherjee, starring Kay Kay Menon).