Q 01/05

In which city was Satyajit Ray born in 1921?

A) Calcutta (Kolkata)

B) Bombay (Mumbai)

C) Dhaka (Dacca)

D) Madras (Chennai)

Answer · why

A) Calcutta (Kolkata)

He grew up in the house of his grandfather Upendrakishore Ray Chowdhury, which also housed the family printing press.

Q 02/05

Ray's father Sukumar Ray was famous in Bengal as a pioneering writer of what?

A) Detective novels

B) Nonsense rhyme for children

C) Political satire

D) Devotional hymns

Answer · why

B) Nonsense rhyme for children

His collection Abol Tabol is a classic; he died when Satyajit was two years old.

Q 03/05

What was the name of the children's magazine founded by Ray's grandfather, which Ray revived in 1961?

A) Anandamela

B) Desh

C) Sandesh

D) Probashi

Answer · why

C) Sandesh

The word means both 'news' and a popular Bengali sweet, and Ray drew, wrote and designed for it for the rest of his life.

Q 04/05

In which town did Satyajit Ray study fine art from 1940, at the university founded by the poet of Gitanjali?

A) Darjeeling

B) Santiniketan

C) Kishoreganj

D) Murshidabad

Answer · why

B) Santiniketan

His mother insisted he go; Ray was reluctant but later credited painters Nandalal Bose and Benode Behari Mukherjee as major influences.

Q 05/05

What subject did Ray complete his bachelor's degree in at Presidency College, Calcutta?

A) Economics

B) English literature

C) Physics

D) Fine art

Answer · why

A) Economics

It was during his school days that Hollywood films by Chaplin, Keaton, Harold Lloyd and Lubitsch made a lasting impression on him.