In his debut, Satyajit Ray adapted the book of the same name by Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhya, the cover of which he had previously designed. The film, through the eyes of little Apu, tells the story of a poor family in Bengal who fights for their livelihood. The father is a Brahmin and, athough artistically talented, is forced to make a living by collecting rents. Along with Apu, we meet the
women who will shape him, his sister, his mother and his aunt. In a way inspired by the image of the child in Italian neorealism, it is a naturalistic and poetic film that was a great success and introduced Ray to the pantheon of film auteurs.
