Pather Panchali is an amazing story  that truly makes one think about the circumstances of others. The movie was published in 1955, and while it is not some action packed Hollywood blockbuster, it is an emotional story that I believe conveys the hardships of what life was like for these families in 1950s India. The characters themselves represent accurately what was going on, and while some of them do seem to be a bit hostile, when you look at the overall situation you come to realize that they too are just trying to protect their families. The movie mostly follows the family of Durga, her brother Apu, as well as her Auntie, mother, and father. The family, as well as most of the village, is extremely poor and survives on very little food. As such, Durga often steals fruit from the neighbors orchard, which leads to some hostility between the two families. Durga’s father is a scholar and thus is the main hope for the family as he is seen as the main source of income. However, due to a series of unfortunate events he is often left without work or pay, and is thus forced to travel for many months in order to find a job. Even when he does manage to get paid for three months work, the total pay comes out to be 24 rupees. It should be noted that around the time of the 1950s, 13 rupees was approximately equal to a dollar. This shows just how little people had.

Yet I think it is important to note that despite not having a great amount of wealth, and that they were often stressed over how they would make it, the family as well as the village in general seemed to live a relatively happy life, but also that when someone else was in trouble, the village would come together to support them, such as in the case of when Durga became ill. IT is unfortunate that in the end Durga did not manage to make it, but I believe that this highlights the overall living conditions of India during the time, as it was mostly just a fever that wound up killing her(even though the doctor said she would be fine).

Overall, this movie was extremely enjoyable and I believe that it really conveys the message that the people of India during the 1950s were very strong willed despite the rough conditions they lived in. The movie is powerful and can be extremely emotional especially when some of the characters who become the main focus point of the movie go from being relatively healthy, to seriously ill in just a few moments. I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in 1950s India, or just a good movie in general.