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Bala
| Year | 1976 |
|---|---|
| Producer | National Centre for Performing Arts, Bombay and Govt. of Tamil Nadu |
| Script and Commentary |
Satyajit Ray |
| Photography | Soumendu Roy |
| Editor | Dulal Dutta |
| Music | Satyajit Ray |
| Sound | S. P. Ramanathan, Sujit Sarkar |
| Length | 33 min. |
| Color |
This documentary presents a portrait of a dancer of "Bharata Natyam," Balasaraswati, whom Ray had seen in performance in Calcutta in 1935, when he was fourteen years old and she was seventeen. Ray conceived this film in 1966 but, for various reasons, couldn't properly undertake it until much later. Ray ascertained that Bala, 58 years old in 1976, had never been filmed, in spite of having danced extensively throughout her life. He made the film to document her art for future generations.