Stephen King’s The Shining, Parineeta by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, and Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower—cinema buffs will be quick to point out that all these books have been adapted into feature-length films.
Film adaptations of books have always been disputed creations; many avid readers will agree that seldom does a film match the book it is adapted from. This week, three cinema bloggers talk to us about the one film adaptation they feel is as good as the original book.
A cinematic gem that does justice
Hargun Kaur Sabharwal remembers reading O’ Henry’s short story, The Last Leaf in school. Sabharwal feels Vikraditya Motwane’s Lootera (still above) vividly captures the essence of the American writer’s words. “I read that book [The Trimmed Lamp, and other Stories of the Four Million as a 15-year-old.” Elaborating on the last scene of the film, Sabharwal adds, “I love how the connection is built from the beginning to the end. Ranveer’s character creates a leaf, hangs it on the tree, and then dies by falling from the tree… the way it has been shot is really evocative.” Talking about masterful cinematography, Sabharwal says, “The story is short... not more than 12 pages, but the film does justice to the same.”
Navigating through a complex set of emotions
Aryama Sen (22), creator of ‘Indigenous’—an Instagram page on Indian cinema—talks about Satyajit Ray’s Aranyer Din Ratri (still on right), which she recommends as a must-watch for cinephiles. Adapted from Bengali poet and historian Sunil Gangopadhyay’s book of the same name, she says, “Ray brought out a lot more subtlety and nuance, which makes it better than the book... the relationship between the characters have been brought out prominently [in the film].’’
A deeply-felt film about a bygone era
Basundhara Ghosh (30) who runs the blog ‘Gangs of Cinepur’ on Instagram recommends ace director Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali (still on right), adapted from Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay’s novel Pather Panchali. “Ray has gone to great lengths to make sure the cast was on point and found non-actors to do the job. That makes it better because you see faces you actually expect to be in such a setting,” she says