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SATYAJIT RAY PRODUCTIONS Presents

Based on the story by PRABHAT KUMAR MUKHOPADHYAY

THE GODDESS

"Parts of this story were given to me

by Mr. Rabindranath Tagore." - Prabhat Kumar

SHARMILA TAGORE SOUMITRA CHATTERJEE

CHHABI BISWAS KARUNA BANERJEE

PURNENDU MUKHERJEE ARPAN CHOWDHURY

ANIL CHATTERJEE MOHAMMED ISRAIL

KALI SARKAR

Cinematography SUBRATA MITRA

Art Direction BANSI CHANDRAGUPTA

Sound DURGADAS MITRA

Film Editing DULAL DUTTA

Coproducer AMINYANATH MUKHERJEE

Music USTAD ALI AKBAR KHAN

Written, Produced, and Directed by SATYAJIT RAY

To the consort of Shiva who bestows all blessings

To our refuge the Three-Eyed Beauty

I offer obeisance

Uncle!

Look!

There's another one!

Look at that!

Hail to the Goddess Durga!

Here.

One letter a day until I return at Christmas, you hear?

What if I have nothing to write?

Then write that.

What if I forget?

I'll show no mercy.

You'll punish me? How?

Forget once and you'll find out.

What's wrong?

Must you go?

Come now! Shall I just forget college and exams?

I have to graduate.

- What's the point? - What do you mean?

You're studying English to get a job.

That means earning a salary. - That's right.

- And that means money. - Right again.

Are you so hard-pressed for money?

Well, then?

Don't rich people study English?

Did Raja Rammohan Roy want for money?

No.

Do you realize your husband is a very educated man?

You know my professors all tell me that?

So people who don't learn English aren't educated?

Is your father not educated?

He is... but in the old way.

Eons and eons lie between him and me.

Understand?

No?

Ignorant girl.

You'll never understand.

Tell me...

Let's say I graduate and get a job far from here.

I'll have to go there.

Will you come with me?

Of course I will.

Wherever you go, I'll go.

You will?

But what if your father won't let me go?

He just can't do without me.

Suppose I persuade him.

What about then?

Would we leave Khoka behind?

- We'll have a Khoka there with us. - We will?

Khoka's not the only little boy in the world.

You mean...?

I'll call out to you no longer, Mother

It has caused me such pain

And still pains me now

I keep calling out to you, Mother

Have you closed your eyes and ears?

Even in your presence

This child of yours suffers

If you should die would your child not go on living?

From house to house I'll wander

Begging for food

But I won't seek your embrace

I'll call out to you no longer, Mother

Mother...

alms for the poor.

I hope all the responsibilities I've given you aren't too much...

little mother.

But what choice do you have?

You might as well indulge an old man's whims.

Om Vishnu...

The true devotee sees the abode of Lord Vishnu

As clearly as the ordinary eye sees the sun

Pure or impure, in every circumstance

He who remembers the Lotus-Eyed One

Is cleansed inside and out

Hush! I can't spend all day looking after you.

Think I have nothing else to do?

Ma!

Don't call to me when I'm busy, you hear?

"Auntie, Auntie!" You've cast a spell on him!

He won't let me feed or bathe him!

Close your eyes.

Don't open them.

Open wide.

Wait here.

Give me that.

- Who gets this? - Jairam.

Come right back.

Jairam!

To the divine force pervading the soul of the universe

To her who embodies all divine powers

To Ambika, worshipped by all gods and sages...

Enough singing.

Be a good boy and lie down.

And no bothering Auntie

by running off to her room every night.

Tonight I'll tell you a story. - Which one?

A wonderful story that not even Auntie knows.

I'll be right back.

Jairam.

O Kali...

Give it here, little mother.

The moment I call on the Mother, my little mother comes.

How many others have such a mother?

Five years ago...

when I couldn't walk without a cane...

Uma's mother passed away.

You weren't here yet.

You know what I decided?

I was restless and unhappy at home.

I thought...

I'd leave the estate in Taraprasad's hands...

and go off on a pilgrimage.

But that didn't happen.

Because you came along...

and lit up my home with your presence.

So I decided to stay.

In my old age I've found a new mother.

By the grace of the Goddess, of course.

Now where would I go without her?

What do you say?

You know who I'm worried about?

That Westernized husband of yours.

There's no understanding young men today.

Only you can control him.

Does he know your worth?

Does he?

Does he write to you regularly?

Or does he keep you waiting?

Well? Does he?

Does he write every day?

What if you'd scared me to death?

That'd be funny.

Oh really?

Then who'd tell you stories? - Mother.

And put kohl around your eyes?

Mother.

And give you candy?

Then go sleep in her bed.

Tell me a story.

What story?

What story?

About the witch.

Which one? There are lots of witches.

The one who chomps

on the bones of little children.

Once upon a time there was a witch...

Mother...

why didn't you say anything

all this time?

Father!

What are you doing?

Kneel down before her, son. I had a dream.

She's the incarnation of the goddess Kali.

All my prayers and devotion have not been in vain!

Today my life is complete!

Mother!

What's wrong?

What is it?

Mother is in a trance!

How are you feeling?

Whose room is this?

It's yours from now on.

Why?

Why? Father-in-law said so.

You won't have to run up and down the stairs.

You'll be too busy.

You're an incarnation, after all.

Where's Khoka?

He's around somewhere, but he's keeping his distance.

All the noise and fuss has gotten to him.

I'll be going. The maid will stay with you tonight.

Sister-in-law?

Yes?

Would you write to my husband?

Of course. Don't worry.

What's next, for heaven's sake!

Mother, I've sinned so much!

I'm just an ignorant woman. I never sinned knowingly!

Please forgive me!

Dear brother-in-law, you must return at once.

I can't say more in a letter.

All will be clear when you return.

Home so early?

Will wonders never cease!

If Doya can suddenly become a goddess,

why can't I suddenly be a good boy?

Quiet! You'll wake Khoka.

Khoka?

Will you look at that!

We're all being good boys tonight.

Why the sour puss?

Blow the conch! Let's celebrate!

Khoka's back -- - Let me go!

What's wrong?

Aren't you ashamed of yourself?

You're my wife!

Falling at her feet just like your senile old father!

Have you no mind of your own?

Should I go against my father's wishes?

What has going along with them gotten you?

Think he cares a whit about you or me?

If not for Khoka, he'd --

By pleasing my father, I please all the gods...

Does one become an incarnation just like that?

The whole thing's ridiculous!

Jealous, are we?

Very well. I'll kneel at your feet too.

Stop that!

- What do you want me to do? - You might stop shouting.

Everything is Father's.

All the piety...

all the achievements...

all the respect...

all...

the money.

And what do I have?

I had a wife once, but she won't let me touch her.

When you reek of alcohol?

It's not mere alcohol.

It's an offering blessed by the divine!

Get up right now.

With Mother Doyamoyee's blessing,

it's an offering to the Goddess!

- Your name? - Kenaram Ghosh.

Which Ghosh? Of the caste of herdsmen?

Or scribes? - Scribes.

You're a scoundrel.

Your father's a scoundrel,

as was his father before him.

Going back seven generations...

it's an entire lineage of scoundrels!

I won't listen to this!

He's insulting my ancestors!

Should I fear him because he's drunk? Guard!

A scoundrel, am I? You're the scoundrel!

Don't be mad, friend. I'll prove it.

If I fail, you can beat me over the head with your shoe,

and my father, and my father's father...

This tragic mood of yours can't be just about exams.

Exams?

Good heavens, no!

Exams are just a formality so they can fail me officially.

You're too much!

Me worried about exams!

Then what is it?

You haven't a care in the world, my friend.

You have a wife.

You'll graduate and land a good job.

If not, your father has money.

You have money too.

- Think so? - Of course you do.

I'll inherit nothing. My father will keep it all.

What are you saying?

Total disinheritance.

He'll disown me.

Is it something to do with... you know...?

No, nothing like that.

Then what?

She's a widow.

What a sorry Romeo!

Uma...

if you could just see her.

She is...

Is this a joke?

Do you know me so little?

All right. Not to worry.

You mean you think there's a chance...?

You've heard me debate, right?

- You'll debate my father? - No!

I'll convince him!

I have all the latest arguments about widows remarrying...

at my fingertips.

But you must introduce me. - To my father?

To her too!

I have to meet this mystery woman I'm fighting for, don't I?

All right! I'll do that.

Good night.

No other letters?

No, sir.

- Just that one? - Yes, sir.

- What time do you get up? - I don't know exactly.

They water the streets early. That wakes me.

Wake me then too. I need to study.

She resides in the heart as all intelligence

She liberates and bestows joy To her I offer obeisance

She sustains the spiritual and the material

She holds the power to destroy the universe she creates

She watches over the wretched who seek her protection

She ends all suffering To her I offer obeisance

To the consort of Shiva who bestows all blessings

To our refuge, the Three-Eyed Beauty

I offer obeisance

Mother, I've come to you.

If there's any mercy in your heart,

if you have the power,

please heal my orphaned grandson.

What's wrong with him?

He's been sick for a week.

I've done everything I could.

This morning the doctor could offer no hope...

so I thought I'd come to her.

She's the incarnation of the Merciful One.

She can do anything she wishes.

Come up here, Nibaran.

He hasn't opened his eyes since last night.

He's just lain like this.

You can work miracles with your mercy.

He's all I have.

Don't worry, Nibaran.

There's no medicine more powerful

than the water that has bathed her feet.

Son...

open your eyes.

If you leave me, I'll have no one.

Open your eyes.

I'll sing your praises as long as I live, Mother.

Please help him.

Father.

When did you get back?

Have you heard? - What's the meaning of this?

My years of devotion have borne fruit.

The Primordial Deity has come into our home

as my daughter-in-law.

What are you saying?

What am I saying? Don't you understand?

No!

It's Doyamoyee, your wife!

She's the Goddess incarnate!

- You've gone mad! - What?

You've gone mad, Father!

I've gone mad?

Of course! You've lost your mind.

How else could you believe such a thing?

Can it be?

Have I really lost my mind?

Have I gone mad? No, I haven't.

Listen.

I'll recite something for you.

Something I memorized when I was your age.

It's from our ancient epic, the Raghuvamsa.

To find the right words I worship the parents of the universe

Parvati and Parameswara, as inseparable as word and meaning

How far my meager intellect is from that race sprung from the sun!

I'm seeking to cross an ocean in a tiny raft

In my foolishness I become a laughingstock

A dwarf straining to reach the fruit of towering trees

Can I string together the jewels left by my worthy predecessors

Who used their diamond-dipped tools

To bore holes in the gems they gathered?

Here I am, a fool writing about the pure-born

Who rule over vast lands

And drive their chariots up to heaven

Shall I go on?

How did you decide she's an incarnation?

What proof do you have? - Proof?

Proof?

Never have I had...

such a clear vision in a dream.

Never.

A dream?

You had a dream?

All this is because of a dream?

You laugh?

For 40 years I've followed the path of devotion...

and worshipped the Goddess faithfully.

Not once have I neglected my prayers.

You know that very well...

and yet you laugh.

Whatever you say, I'll never be convinced!

Are you saying I'm lying?

Perhaps you had a dream.

If you say so, you must have.

But I'll never believe...

that Doyamoyee is the Goddess.

You don't believe in incarnations.

Is that what you're saying?

Father...

you're not the only one...

who got to know her these past three years.

I did too.

And I know she's a human being.

I won't let this adulation continue.

Let go of me, Father! I won't allow --

Kanu has opened his eyes!

Would you like more proof?

A dead child lives again!

Is such a thing possible without Doyamoyee's blessings?

Uma...

go bow down before her.

All praise to the Goddess!

Sister-in-law, how did this happen?

How would I know?

I've never seen anything like it.

I can't understand it.

Perhaps you can make sense of it.

What does my brother say?

When your father called her "Mother" and fell at her feet,

your brother did the same.

What else could he do?

He fell at her feet?

Wait till you see the lavish ceremony tonight.

Uncle!

If I'd known beforehand

That you would leave me

I'd have bound you tight

With the chains of my heart

All my days and nights I spend wondering...

Doya.

Do you believe all this?

Tell me, Doya. Do you believe this?

That you're not human? That you're the Goddess?

An incarnation?

Listen to me. You needn't say a word.

I know you're exhausted.

Just shake your head and say no.

Do you believe what's happened?

That what Father's saying is true?

Just say no. Just once.

That's all I ask.

You're frightened, aren't you?

I know you are.

But I don't believe all this,

and I know you don't either.

A young girl like you can't speak up.

But I can't let you --

We'll run away.

Right now.

We'll go to Calcutta.

I've arranged everything. It will be easy.

There's a boat waiting.

The riverbank isn't far. It's an effort, but you can make it.

Right?

Come on. Let's go.

Let's go.

What's the matter?

What is it?

We don't have much time. Come on.

What if I am the Goddess?

What if I am?

Have you lost your mind too?

That child was cured.

He opened his eyes.

What does that prove?

Such things happen all the time.

You don't understand.

What if I am...?

If you were, wouldn't you know it?

Do you feel you've changed inside?

Do you feel no longer human?

No longer my wife?

If we run away like this...

what if something bad happens to you?

Listen to me.

You're my wife.

I'm your husband.

That much is the truth. No one can deny that.

We were married in a religious ceremony.

For three years we've --

Have you forgotten everything?

I can't live without you.

Don't you love me?

Don't you love me?

Listen, Doya.

If you give in now, you'll regret it later.

And you won't have me beside you.

Let's go.

Once we're away from here, all your doubts will vanish.

Come on. Let's go.

No.

Don't ask me to leave.

I'm afraid.

I'm so afraid.

I beg of you. Don't ask me to leave.

I'm afraid.

Don't cry, Doya.

Look at me.

Don't cry.

Come on.

Let's go back.

I'll take you back.

Come on.

Now I have seen the real you, Mother

They call you "the Dark One"

You're as dark as your name

But within you there is no darkness

Some say you have a heart of stone

In my eyes they're all fools

I know in my heart

I know in my soul

The warmth in that stone-cold heart

Now I have seen the real you, Mother

Come behold the Goddess

In her new likeness

A touch of her mercy brings joy

O merciful Mother!

A touch of her mercy brings joy

And boundless bliss

Now I have seen the real you, Mother

They call you "the Dark One" You're as dark as your name

But within you there is no darkness...

Are you an image in clay?

Are you an image in clay?

Is that why you don't speak?

Let me look at you.

The image of a goddess...

- Doya! - What?

Come help me.

But is the question of belief or disbelief the real issue here?

As I see it...

a barrier has been erected between you and your wife.

The cause is irrelevant.

As a husband, you've been deprived of your natural rights.

Isn't that your real tragedy, Umaprasad?

I'm not thinking of myself.

Let me do the thinking here!

She's only 17.

Does she believe it?

No.

How could she believe it?

It's all been forced upon her.

She has no power to challenge the person responsible.

She's helpless.

And you? Are you helpless as well?

Do you not have the strength or moral courage to stand up

to what you so forcefully declare to be a lie?

You know...

at the age of 19...

I changed my religion.

You didn't know my father.

If you had, you'd know it was no simple matter.

Mind you, he wasn't a bad man.

But my ideas

and his prejudices and beliefs always clashed.

I had to fight!

And fighting old beliefs means you'll get hurt.

It's a rule. It's bound to happen.

But without that suffering, I'd have had no peace.

What your mind and intellect and conscience

refuse to accept as the truth --

You must make a decision, one only you can make.

You're being tested.

In here.

Ma'am.

There's something I must ask.

Does your father-in-law know you sent for me?

No.

Perhaps you should...?

My son is ill. You've treated him before.

What's wrong with doing so now?

Ma'am, it was different before.

Now the Mother Goddess herself lives here.

Word has it that drinking her holy water

has cured the worst of ailments.

Under such circumstances...

for me to prescribe medication --

Perhaps if you just asked her...

What's the matter?

What's wrong?

He hasn't swallowed a drop of water all day!

Dear me! Well, as long as I'm here...

I'll send some medicine over.

Our ancient Ayurvedic cures are powerful too.

We heal the sick as well.

But if I may just say one thing.

If possible...

take him to the Goddess too.

There's no harm in drinking her holy water.

That way you'll have tried both --

I'll be going.

When did this start?

Does Father know?

He must be told. - Why?

What are you saying?

Why?

I'll tell him.

Let me handle this my way!

Aren't you afraid? Do you still not believe?

Kill me, but don't kill my son!

Yes, son?

Auntie...

Auntie...

Mother.

Put Khoka in her lap.

Khoka is ill, Mother.

I've brought him to you because I trust in your mercy.

I know that nothing is beyond your power.

Make him well, Mother.

Taraprasad,

go arrange for Khoka to receive the holy water.

I'll leave him with you.

Can you cure him?

Tell me honestly.

Are you human or divine?

Tell me.

It's a matter of life and death. You must tell me.

Do you want...

to take him away?

I've never believed this whole thing.

I can't help it.

I doubted it from the start.

I wouldn't have let them bring him to you.

But he called out for you several times.

"Auntie, Auntie, Auntie."

I can't tell true from false anymore. Can you cure him?

If you won't give him back, I can't take him.

Can you cure him?

Will you leave him with me tonight?

You'll give him back tomorrow?

Don't cry, sister-in-law.

Aren't you a goddess? Don't cry.

Mother...

you who are one with the Divine...

What happened, Mother?

Father.

What happened?

She took him.

Mother took him away.

I've lost my little grandson.

Khoka?

So many were cured through her favor.

I gave him to her...

but she didn't give him back.

Mother, what sin did I commit...

to deserve such punishment?

What sin am I being punished for?

What sin?

I've dedicated myself to serving you...

absorbed in meditating on you and your wisdom.

You murdered Khoka, Father.

You murdered Khoka. - Uma!

Did he receive medical treatment?

Medical treatment?

I placed him in Mother Doyamoyee's arms

and trusted in her power and her holy water.

You murdered him.

Your blind faith caused his death.

What are you saying?

What are you saying?

You want to know your other sins?

You placed the crushing burden of divinity

on my wife.

Don't say that!

I don't know what you gained,

but you set her on a path to destruction.

Today I'm going to save her.

That witch!

That witch took my son away!

Doya!

You've...

come back.

Would you please help me with this?

Quickly!

We have to go. Hurry!

Go where, Doya?

We must run away.

Otherwise...

they'll kill me.

Khoka...

Let's go!

We must hurry.

Let me go.

THE END