Venice Film Festival to screen 4K restored version of Bimal Roy’s ''Do Bigha Zamin''

Mumbai: The 2025 edition of the Venice Film Festival is set to showcase a 4K restored version of "Do Bigha Zamin", the 1953 classic directed by acclaimed filmmaker Bimal Roy.

The announcement coincides with the legendary filmmaker’s 116th birth anniversary.

Presented under the Venice Classics section, "Do Bigha Zamin", titled "Two Acres of Land" in English, has been selected among a distinguished lineup of restored cinematic masterpieces, which also includes "Matador" by Pedro Almodovar, "Roma Ore 11" by Giuseppe De Santis, "Przypadek" by Krzysztof Kieślowski and "Lolita" by Stanley Kubrick.

The screening will be presented by Roy’s children -- Rinki Roy Bhattacharya, Aparajita Roy Sinha, and Joy Bimal Roy -- along with Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, director of the Film Heritage Foundation.

The restoration is a collaborative effort between the Film Heritage Foundation, The Criterion Collection, and Janus Films.

Acclaimed lyricist and filmmaker Gulzar welcomed the announcement, calling the film “historic.” “It’s amazing that ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ is restored and will be shown in Venice. This film is historic as it changed the way films were made in India. After Chetan Anand’s ‘Neecha Nagar’ which won an award at the Cannes Film Festival, this was the second Indian film to win at the Cannes Film Festival and receive international recognition.

"The most important element is that all his films right from the Bengali ones which he made and the Hindi films which he made, all these films were based on literature. Not many people know that ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ is from a poem by Rabindranath Tagore, which was also called ‘Do Bigha Zamin’. The script was done by Salil Choudhury," Gulzar said, recalling the time when he started working with Roy's 1961 production "Kabuliwala".

The cinema icon said he has fond memories of the time.

" People would say that Bimal-da was like a married print. In those days, the picture and sound negatives were separate and when they were brought together optically to make the release print, it would be called a married print. Bimal-da would shoot two shifts in a day – 7 am to 2 pm and 2 pm to 10 pm and would then sit in the editing room working till late night at Mohan Studios. People would say that he is married to films. Bimal Roy was the coolest director I have ever seen. I learnt not only filmmaking from him, but the art of patience and stamina," he added.

Starring Balraj Sahni and Nirupa Roy, "Do Bigha Zamin" is considered an important film in the early parallel cinema of India.

The film, which captured the plight of a poor farmer struggling with industrialisation, was based on Rabindranath Tagore's Bengali poem "Dui Bigha Jomi" and "Rickshawalla", a short story written by composer Salil Chowdhury.

Dungarpur said he was introduced to the works of Bimal Roy when he was working under Gulzar.

"When I was working as an assistant to Gulzarsaheb, he would often speak about his guru Bimal Roy. This spurred me to watch all his films right from the time he was a cameraman on P C Barua’s ‘Devdas’ to his first Bengali film as a director ‘Udayer Pathey’ to ‘Do Bigha Zamin’.

"In his films I was struck by the poetic visuals, the silences, the deep humanism and compassion that he showed in the social themes of his films that highlighted the plight of the marginalized, the issues of migrant labour, and the urban-rural divide that are still so relevant today. For me ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ changed the face of Indian cinema that brought filmmakers out of the studio to begin shooting on the streets," he said.

Dungarpur said he is glad to collaborate with The Criterion Collection and Janus Films to restore other classics of Bimal Roy such as "Devdas", "Madhumati" and "Bandini".

The family of Bimal Roy said the premiere of "Do Bigha Zamin" at the Venice Film Festival is a "dream come true for us".

"This would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Shivendra Singh Dungarpur of Film Heritage Foundation and Fumiko Takagi of the Criterion Collection. Our heartfelt thanks to both of them for their unwavering dedication to restoring and celebrating cinema. ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ is especially fitting for this prestigious platform, as it holds a unique connection with Italian cinema," Rinki Roy Bhattacharya, Aparajita Roy Sinha, and Joy Bimal Roy said in a joint statement.

They said Roy was deeply inspired after watching Italian filmmaker Vittorio De Sica’s 1948 film "Bicycle Thieves".

"Our father hoped Indian cinema would follow its deeply moving humanist vision. ‘Do Bigha Zamin’, is an unspoken autobiography of Bimal Roy who was cast off from his home in East Bengal in a similar episode as the hero, peasant, Sambhu Mahato. He never recovered from this cruel separation from his beloved birthplace.

"In the brief lifetime accorded to our father, he transformed the profile of Indian cinema and was able to stir collective consciousness with his cinematic parables. Our father was a silent cinema poet and a visionary of profound humanism whose work shall continue to act as a beacon whenever dark forces threaten," they added.

The restoration process began in 2022 and took over three years. Initiated by The Criterion Collection and Janus Films, in collaboration with the Film Heritage Foundation, the process involved extensive repair of damaged negatives stored at the National Film Archive of India. Missing elements were sourced from a 1954–55 dupe negative preserved at the British Film Institute (BFI).

"Do Bigha Zamin" was the first Indian film to win the Prix International at the Cannes Film Festival in 1954. It also received honours at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and bagged best film and best director at the inaugural Filmfare Awards.

The 82nd Venice International Film Festival will run from August 27 to September 6.