Mumbai: The 2025 edition of the Venice International Film Festival will screen a newly restored 4K version of 'Do Bigha Zamin', the 1953 cinematic classic directed by legendary Indian filmmaker Bimal Roy. The announcement comes on what would have been Roy’s 116th birth anniversary, further honouring his profound legacy in Indian and world cinema.
The film will be featured under the 'Venice Classics' section, which celebrates restored masterpieces from around the globe. The English-titled 'Two Acres of Land' will be showcased alongside globally acclaimed works including Pedro Almodóvar’s 'Matador', Giuseppe De Santis’s 'Roma Ore 11', Krzysztof Kieslowski’s 'Przypadek', and Stanley Kubrick’s 'Lolita'.
The screening will be presented by Bimal Roy’s children—Rinki Roy Bhattacharya, Aparajita Roy Sinha, and Joy Bimal Roy—alongside Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, director of the Film Heritage Foundation. The restoration of 'Do Bigha Zamin' is a collaborative initiative between the Film Heritage Foundation, The Criterion Collection, and Janus Films.
Acclaimed lyricist and filmmaker Gulzar welcomed the announcement and described the film as “historic,” noting that it dramatically changed the course of Indian cinema. He recalled that after Chetan Anand’s 'Neecha Nagar', which received honours at the Cannes Film Festival, *Do Bigha Zamin* became the second Indian film to gain international acclaim at Cannes. He further emphasised Bimal Roy’s deep literary grounding, highlighting that the film was based on Rabindranath Tagore’s Bengali poem 'Dui Bigha Jomi' and that the script was written by Salil Chowdhury.
Reflecting on his early days in cinema, Gulzar remembered working with Roy on the 1961 film 'Kabuliwala', describing Bimal Roy as a filmmaker wholly dedicated to his craft. He recalled Roy’s tireless routine—filming two shifts daily and spending late nights in the editing studio. “He was like a married print,” Gulzar said, referring to the old filmmaking term where audio and visual elements were brought together in a release print. “He was married to films. He was the coolest director I have ever seen. I learnt not only filmmaking from him but the art of patience and stamina.”
Starring Balraj Sahni and Nirupa Roy, 'Do Bigha Zamin' is considered a foundational film in India’s early parallel cinema movement. The film poignantly portrays the struggles of a poor farmer amid rising industrialisation and is based on Tagore’s poem as well as the short story 'Rickshawalla' by Salil Chowdhury.
Shivendra Singh Dungarpur shared that his fascination with Bimal Roy’s work began while assisting Gulzar, who frequently referred to Roy as his guru. This admiration led Dungarpur to explore Roy’s body of work, starting from his early role as a cameraman on P.C. Barua’s 'Devdas' to his directorial debut 'Udayer Pathey', and ultimately to 'Do Bigha Zamin'. Dungarpur said he was struck by the poetic visuals, compassion, and deep humanism in Roy’s films, particularly in addressing themes like marginalisation, migrant labour, and the rural-urban divide—issues that remain relevant today. He credited 'Do Bigha Zamin' with taking Indian cinema out of studio settings and onto real locations, effectively transforming the filmmaking landscape.
Dungarpur also confirmed ongoing collaborations with The Criterion Collection and Janus Films to restore other Bimal Roy classics, including 'Devdas', 'Madhumati', and 'Bandini'.
Bimal Roy’s family expressed joy and gratitude for the Venice premiere, calling it a “dream come true.” They specifically acknowledged the dedication of Shivendra Singh Dungarpur and Fumiko Takagi of the Criterion Collection for making it possible. The family also noted the film’s deep connection with Italian cinema, highlighting Roy’s inspiration after watching Vittorio De Sica’s 1948 neorealist masterpiece 'Bicycle Thieves'.
They described 'Do Bigha Zamin' as an “unspoken autobiography” of Bimal Roy, who, like the film’s protagonist Sambhu Mahato, faced displacement from his homeland in East Bengal. “In the brief lifetime accorded to our father, he transformed the profile of Indian cinema and stirred collective consciousness with his cinematic parables,” they said, adding that he was a silent poet of cinema and a visionary of humanism.
The restoration of 'Do Bigha Zamin' began in 2022 and took over three years to complete. It involved extensive repair of damaged negatives stored at the National Film Archive of India, and missing elements were sourced from a 1954–55 dupe negative preserved at the British Film Institute (BFI).
The film was the first Indian production to win the Prix International at the 1954 Cannes Film Festival. It also received accolades at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and won Best Film and Best Director at the inaugural Filmfare Awards.
The 82nd Venice International Film Festival will take place from August 27 to September 6, 2025.
With PTI inputs