In 1856 Lucknow, two chess-obsessed aristocrats meet everyday to indulge in their passion, ignoring the upheaval around them. Ray’s historical drama offers a vision of a troubled India steeped in apathy. The director’s use of chess as a metaphor for British political manoeuvres is but one example of the film’s often witty and implicitly Political touch.
The Chess Players
Directed by Satyajit Ray