The World of Apu (1958) is the third film in Satyajit Ray’s “Apu trilogy,” about a boy who grows up in Calcutta, and who matures to become a young man. The other two films in the trilogy are: Pather Panchali (1955) and Aparajito (1956).

The cast includes: Soumitra Chatterjee (as Apu), Sarmila Tagore (as Aparna), Swapan Mukherjee (Pulu), Alok Chakravarti (Kajal), and Dhiren Ghosh (the Landlord).

The music for the film was composed by Ravi Shankar. The screenplay was written by Satyajit Ray. The photography was by Subrata Mitra. Editing was by Dulal Dutta. The film was produced and directed by Satyajit Ray.

As the film begins, Apurba Kumar Roy (Apu) receives a letter of recommendation from one of his teachers at the City College of Calcutta. The letter describes him as sensitive, conscientious, and diligent. Apu has had to abandon his studies, because he does not have enough money for tuition to earn his bachelor’s degree at City College.

He lives in a slum apartment near a railway station. He owes three month’s rent to his landlord. Apu does not worry about money. He is a young, aspiring writer, and is working on an autobiographical novel. He has just received a letter, saying that a short story which he has written has been accepted for publication in a literary journal.

He takes some books from the shelf in his room, in order to sell them to pay the rent. He tries unsucessfully to find a job as a teacher. Then he applies for a job in a factory, but is turned down because he is too educated for a menial job.

His friend Pulu visits him, and they go to a café nearby. Pulu invites him to a cousin’s wedding in Khulna, a small village near a river, one hundred miles away from the city.

They travel to Khulna, and Apu meets Pulu’s aunt, whose daughter is getting married. The prospective bridegroom is a young man, named Binu.

When Binu arrives at the wedding, he suddenly becomes insane. Pulu’s aunt demands that the wedding be canceled.

According to local tradition, the bride will be cursed if she does not marry at the appointed hour. Therefore, Pulu asks Apu if he will act as the bridegroom, in order to preserve the family’s honor. Apu cannot believe what is happening, but after he initially refuses to participate in the ceremony, he reluctantly agrees to become the bridegroom.

The bride’s name is Aparna. She is a beautiful and reserved young woman. She submits to the arranged marriage, because of respect for, and obligation toward, her family.

After the wedding ceremony, Apu tells her that he has no job, and that he has no means to support her. He has enjoyed his freedom from responsibility. He feels that the marriage has been forced on him, and now does not know why he consented. He had felt somehow that he would be doing something noble by marrying her. He asks her if she can submit to a life of poverty and hardship, and she says that she can.

They return to Calcutta, and begin their life together. Aparna is at first quiet and submissive, but then begins to assert herself. She and Apu begin to develop affection for each other. He starts to feel a sense of responsibility toward her. They fall deeply in love, and they realize that they need each other.

Aparna becomes pregnant, and she travels home by train to visit her family for two months. Her baby is born prematurely, and she dies in childbirth. Apu is devastated by her death, and falls into a deep depression. Her baby survives, but Apu has no desire to see his newborn son.

Apu decides to leave Calcutta. He travels to the mountains, and as he stands on a mountain top, facing the sunrise, he takes the pages of his novel, and lets them scatter in the wind. He has undertaken a spiritual journey to rediscover his real self.

Five years later, Apu’s young son, Kajal, kills a bird with a slingshot. The boy is mischievous and rebellious. Kajal has never seen his father.

Apu has been working in a coal mine in central India. He has never seen his son, and has sent only three money-orders to the family in the last five years. Pulu goes to visit Apu, and tells him that Kajal needs him. Apu blames Kajal for Aparna’s death, and tells Pulu that he feels no love for his young son.

But Apu feels guilty, and returns to Khulna to see Kajal. The boy at first rejects him. When he first sees Apu, the boy runs away, and when Apu tells him that he is his father, the boy throws a rock at him. Kajal is angry and resentful, despite Apu’s attempt to be kind to him.

Apu decides to leave the village without Kajal, but as he starts to leave, Kajal runs after him, and as the film ends, they embrace, and Apu lifts up his young son. Kajal sits on Apu’s shoulders, as Apu walks forward.

The World of Apu is particularly memorable for the beauty of its music and photography. The film is also notable for the sensitivity and honesty of its story.

Soumitra Chatterjee gives a moving performance as Apu. Other fine performances are given by Sarmila Tagore as Aparna, and Swapan Mukherjee as Pulu.

The story of Apu’s spiritual journey toward inner peace and self-discovery is of universal and timeless significance.

A theme of the film is Apu’s struggle against accepting the roles which have been thrust upon him. He is at first a reluctant bridegroom, and later a reluctant father. He initially resists the idea of getting married to save the honor of his friend’s family, and later resists the idea of accepting responsibility for his son.

When Apu confronts his sense of duty and obligation, he is able to accept his destiny. He finally overcomes his despair after Aparna’s death, and is able to renounce his self-pity. At the end of the film, he accepts responsibility for his son, and achieves personal growth and fulfillment.