Yesterday Once More

“The damage to Aparajito was almost 80 per cent. Apart from continuous scratches,dust and grains,there were holes in the negatives. The intention was to bring back the film’s original look,” says Rajneesh Nikale,Senior Manager,Films and Digital Films Restoration,at Mumbai-based restoration studio,Pixion. “A Ray film cannot be restored like a Karan Johar film; a different kind of aesthetic needs to be adhered to,” he adds.

Now,56 years after it was released,Aparajito is being made available at film stores as a restored DVD,along with 79 other films that are part of a mammoth restoration project being undertaken by National Films Division Corporation (NFDC). The films were preserved in storage vaults at National Film Archives of India (NFAI) in Mumbai. “The damage to these negatives ranged from moderate to severe; there were scratches,tears and colour-fading,” says D Ramakrishnan,General Manager,NFDC,who floated the restoration tender in 2009. The project comprised restoration of 80 films including Ketan Mehta’s Mirch Masala (1987),Kalpana Lajmi’s Rudaali (1993),Kundan Shah’s Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron(1983),Ray’s Jalsaghar (1958) and Sudhir Mishra’s Main Zinda Hoon (1988),among others,some of which were being run on the television lately,albeit with bad-quality prints. NFDC is spending Rs 10 crore on the project and 30 titles have already been released. The rest are also expected to release within this year.

Another Ray film that could have been lost forever is Jalsaghar — the story of a music-loving zamindar who clutches on to his refined tastes and refuses to change with the times. The film,considered a more commercial project by Ray,even features a stellar performance by Begum Akhtar,who regaled the audiences with the ghazal Bhar bhar aye akhiyaan in a song and dance sequence. Jalsaghar had to be restored through a positive print since no negative existed. “Most of the optical quality of the film was very inconsistent in comparison to the original imaging acquisition. There was dust,scratches,bumps,continuous line scratches,molds,patches and flickering in the source print,” adds Ramakrishnan,who goes on explain that how in case of Kalpana Lajmi’s Rudaali,there was a green line running through parts of the film. A part of the negative was curled up and damaged. The restoration was done from a dupe negative. “Hence,there is extreme loss of detail in the source of material from which it was restored,”

he says.

But why did it take so long for NFDC to realise this damage and begin with the project? “NFDC had been going through losses. The revamping and restructuring took time,” says Ramakrishnan. While the video restoration was done at studios such as Pixion,Avitel Post Studios and Prasad efx,audio restoration was done by Pune-based Cameo Studios. Cinematographer AK Bir and sound designer Nakul Kamte are working as consultants on the project. “These films have always played an important role in the culture and history of our nation. Hence,there is a vital need for digital film restoration,” says Sanjay Yashroy,COO of Pixion.

It is not only the history,but these films will also allow today’s generation,which is untouched by the severity of those times,feel the poetic range of Ray’s cinema,Lajmi’s complex characters,Mishra’s exciting screen writing and Mehta’s strong female characters. “Frame-by-frame restoration is required for these films. These masterpieces deserve this attention,” says Nikale.