Sahajatrir Katha

🔹 Author: Ramesh Sen
🔹 Genre: Autobiography - Biography - Memoir
🔹 Format: Hardcover
🔹 ISBN: 9789354253591
🔹 Pages: 256
🔹 Weight: 375 grams

📝 Book Summary:
A 15–16-year-old boy came to Kolkata to play football and found himself caught in the midst of the riots of 1946. Returning to Dhaka, he faced a similarly turbulent atmosphere. Having already distanced himself from his family, he set out for Kolkata in search of a better future.

The early 1950s saw glimpses of the Bengali film industry through the memories of Ramesh Sen, popularly known as Punu Sen in the Tollygunge film circles, where he was closely associated with Satyajit Ray. His first mentor was the renowned film editor Ardhendu Chattopadhyay, under whom legends like Dulal Dutta (Ray’s lifelong editor) also trained.

Punu’s journey led him to Satyajit Ray’s film unit, where he worked as an assistant on Pather Panchali and Aparajito, before moving on to collaborate with Ritwik Ghatak on four films and later with Tarun Majumdar. However, his heart remained with Manikda (Satyajit Ray). By the mid-1960s, he became a key associate of Ray and remained deeply involved with the Ray family until his last days.

Ramesh Sen’s memoir is not just a personal narrative but a historical testimony of a golden era in Bengali cinema, Satyajit Ray’s filmmaking journey, and the cultural evolution of Kolkata.

🖋 About the Author:
Ramesh Sen was born in Narayanganj, Bangladesh, and completed his schooling in Dhaka. He lost his father at an early age and moved to India during the Partition. After completing his matriculation, he discontinued formal education.

Settling in Kolkata, he lived for some time with Suchitra Sen’s father-in-law, Adinath Sen, in Ballygunge. His introduction to the film industry began at the studios, where he trained under Ardhendu Chattopadhyay as an apprentice editor. He worked with Sunanda Devi’s production house before gaining recognition in the industry as Punu Sen.

Punu joined the Pather Panchali unit as an assistant to editors Dulal Dutta and Sukumar Sengupta. From then on, he considered Satyajit Ray his mentor. He collaborated with legendary filmmakers like Ritwik Ghatak, Mrinal Sen, Tarun Majumdar, and Rajen Tarafdar. From Nayak onwards, he became Satyajit Ray’s direct assistant director and remained one of his longest-serving associates. He was also a guiding force in Sandip Ray’s filmmaking career, staying closely connected with the Ray family until his passing.

📚 Other Works by the Author:

• Memoirs of a Filmmaker's Assistant