At Chhayanaut's Ramesh Chandra Dutta Memorial Hall on Sunday, nostalgia met reverence as artists, activists, and admirers gathered to celebrate the birth centenary of filmmaker Ritwik Kumar Ghatak and his twin sister, singer Protiti Devi. The event, organised by the "Ritwik Kumar Ghatak and Protiti Devi Birth Centenary Celebration Committee", honoured the two visionaries whose creative spirits defined and defied Bengal's cultural landscape.

The occasion also marked the 139th birth anniversary of language movement veteran and martyr Dhirendranath Datta, tying together three legacies of artistic and political resistance.

The ceremony began with Chhayanaut's young artistes performing "Dhonodhanne Pushpe Bhora, Amader Ei Basundhara," their voices rising like a hymn to memory. The mood was tender, the applause steady — the audience seemed to know they were there for more than remembrance.

Producer Habibur Rahman Khan, who collaborated with Ghatak on "Titash Ekti Nadir Naam," spoke with a mix of affection and awe. "My creative friendship with Ritwik Ghatak cannot be told in a single evening," he said. "We fought a lot, but he was like a child — laughing, unpredictable, yet impossible to leave."

Khan recalled the chaos of working with the filmmaker. "He was so difficult to work with. There was no problem Ritwik couldn't create or solve. He worked on his instincts. Once, he stopped shooting just so 80 technicians could get paid without working. When I protested, he told me, 'Don't you know I've left many films unfinished? I don't work unless I want to.'"

Before filming "Titash…" Khan remembered, Ghatak arrived by the riverbank and drank its water — "to feel the essence of the country he so dearly loved."

Actor Abul Hayat, who made his debut in "Titash Ekti Nadir Naam," called Ghatak "absolutely a madman — and madly brilliant." "We were students when we fell in love with his films," he said. "His spontaneity and indifference were unmatched. From script to scene, everything bent to his will. "Titash…" has become a textbook in cinema history, and I feel lucky to have been a part of it."

Veteran actor Ramendu Majumdar, fashion designer Bibi Russell, and Liberation War Museum trustee Mofidul Hoque reflected on Ghatak's unflinching portrayal of displacement, partition, and identity — themes that continue to shape South Asian cinema.

Protiti Devi: the forgotten twin

While Ghatak's brilliance often eclipsed his sister's, the programme devoted space to Protiti Devi's artistry. Kishwar Kamal, a renowned singer and a close family member, described her as "a free spirit who lived life on her own terms. Like her twin brother, Protiti was an artist of immense depth. She sang, taught, and inspired — leading a quiet cultural renaissance in our family."

The second half of the evening belonged to music. Laisa Ahmed Lisa performed "Je Rate Mor," one of Ghatak's favourite songs, followed by Protiti's favourite, Atul Prasad Sen's "Ke Go Tumi Ele Asile Othithi". The performances moved many to tears. 

Kishwar Kamal closed her heartfelt remarks with "Amar Ei Ghor Bohu Joton Kore Dhute Hobe," her voice trembling as she echoed the twins' shared spirit — defiant, emotional, tender.

Veteran actor Ramendu Majumdar reflected on Ghatak's short yet thunderous life. "In only 50 years, he created and achieved so much. If he had lived longer and healthier, who knows what heights he could have reached? The partition broke him, but it also birthed his greatest art. Ritwik was the raw, unfiltered mirror of society — nothing hidden, everything painfully honest."

As the evening drew to an end, the hall fell into a hush — as if the walls themselves were listening. Ritwik Ghatak, the "madman" who made cinema bleed, and Protiti Devi, the singer who carried that same madness in melody, were remembered not as relics but as living spirits of Bengal's creative conscience.

Their centenary was more than a commemoration. It was a reminder that true art — like madness — never dies. It transforms, waits, and returns.