Nayak

1966

2h 0m

Drama

Adventure

List

100%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

92%

Audience Score

250+ Ratings

While riding in a train on his way to collect an award, movie star Arindam (Uttam Kumar) encounters reporter Aditi (Sharmila Tagore) and begins pouring his heart out to her, almost against his will. By the end of the journey, he is so distraught over the feelings that have been dredged up about his personal life, he's contemplating suicide. He is dissuaded by Aditi, who destroys the notes she'd taken. When the train arrives, Arindam is ready to perform for his public as if nothing had happened.

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Penelope Gilliatt

New Yorker

It is the achievement of a great film director working outside of his usual style, fumbling sometimes with surrealism... but sometimes illuminating it by lines that suddenly show character in movement.

Mar 6, 2024

Full Review

Pat Graham

Chicago Reader

Satyajit Ray's 1966 feature comes at the tail end of his early realist period, which included most of the films that won him his reputation in the West.

Jul 14, 2007

Full Review

New York Times

Mr. Ray, best known for his Apu trilogy, handles the proceedings with formidable deftness marked by a penetrating vision of performers and film-making.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 9, 2007

Full Review

Jimmy Cage

Jimmy Cage Movie Reviews (YouTube)

NAYAK is a wonderful film that once again proves Satyajit Rays keen sense of profound characters and places. Uttam Kumar shines in the role of the two-edged hero who is caught in a jumble of desire, accomplishment and remorse.

Rated: 8/10

Apr 8, 2022

Full Review

Arun A.K

Film Inquiry

The Hero takes a compassionate look at the shortcomings of human nature that make a person fall prey to greed and moral corruption.

Jun 3, 2021

Full Review

Nicholas Bell

IONCINEMA.com

A thoughtful, meditative portrait concerned with the price of fame, The Hero is another generously performed think piece from one of Ray's most prolific periods.

Rated: 3.5/5

Aug 25, 2020

Full Review

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Audience Member

"Nayak" offers the perfect example of a master filmmaker holding his cards close to his vest, slowly revealing subtle glimpses of his underlying purpose until his sweeping cinematic vision is finally permitted to wash over us. The final moments of the film hit us like a breathtaking catharsis, the progressive buildup to which require a degree of concerted patience on the part of the viewer which is well worth the effort. The film produces a small but charming menagerie of characters in a constrained chamber format, contrasted against brief yet artful and compelling windows into the subconscious of our illustrious hero. It is at times leisurely and challenging, yet we find ourselves increasingly spellbound as we delve ever more deeply into the intermingling lives of the characters and the turbulent mindset of our hero. While it is not necessarily Ray's finest work, Nayak is a compelling portrait of the tortured perspective of the seemingly self-assured artist, fully worthy of comparison to Fellini's 8 1/2.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Full review on my blog max4movies: Nayak (international title "Nayak: The Hero") is an Indian Bengali-language drama about a famous actor traveling to Delhi to receive an important award. At the height of his career, he is confronted with his past as a struggling theater actor, when an educated young woman interviews him. The movie is a thoughtful drama, that pays great attention to its characters, who behave in an authentic and believable way. Without becoming pretentious, the movie addresses several important social issues – while not shying away from also criticizing how the movie industry often only produces cheap entertainment. In addition to the mostly efficient writing and the strong and down to Earth performances, the cinematography is marvelous and makes for some memorable scenes.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/21/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The Countenance and depiction of Nayak Played by Uttam kumar is inspiring..

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A superb Satyajit Ray film based on his own original screenplay. Uttam Kumar is just brilliant.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

gr8 movie. one of the best Bengali movies ever made

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I might be beginning to really fall in love with Ray. Did Sharmila Tagore kill it a leetle bit? maaybe.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

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Satyajit Ray

Director

Uttam Kumar

Arindam Mukherjee

Sharmila Tagore

Aditi

Bireswar Sen

Actor

Somen Bose

Actor

Premangshu Bose

Actor

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Synopsis

While riding in a train on his way to collect an award, movie star Arindam (Uttam Kumar) encounters reporter Aditi (Sharmila Tagore) and begins pouring his heart out to her, almost against his will. By the end of the journey, he is so distraught over the feelings that have been dredged up about his personal life, he's contemplating suicide. He is dissuaded by Aditi, who destroys the notes she'd taken. When the train arrives, Arindam is ready to perform for his public as if nothing had happened.

Director: Satyajit Ray
Screenwriter: Satyajit Ray
Production Co: R.D. Banshal & Co.
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Original Language: Bangla
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 20, 2018
Runtime: 2h 0m

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