On an estate in 1860s rural India, newlywed 17-year-old Doyamoyee (Sharmila Tagore) lives with husband Umaprasad (Soumitra Chatterjee) and his wealthy, orthodox Hindu family. But when Umaprasad heads to Calcutta to complete his studies, Doyamoyee becomes the object of Umaprasad’s father’s obsession as he suddenly considers her the reincarnation of the Mother Goddess Kali. Ray creates an expressionistic world of shadows where faith and delusion collide. Controversial upon its original release in India, Devi remains a powerful portrait of religious fanaticism.

Director: Satyajit Ray. Cast: Sharmila Tagore, Chhabi Biswas, Soumitra Chatterjee, Karuna Banerjee. 1960. 93 minutes. India. B&W. Bengali. DCP. Restored by the Criterion Collection, with the help of elements from the collections of the Academy Film Archive and the Harvard Film Archive.

All film screenings of Satyajit Ray: 1955-1968 are available here.