Subrata Mitra as a cinematographer with Satyajit Ray, the legendary Indian film maker, for "Pather Panchali" (1955). He continued to work with him for many of Ray's later films. He is known for pioneering the technique of bounce lighting, while filming "The Apu Trilogy". Satyajit Ray thought that "Subrata Mitra’s camera work is better than Raoul Coutard’s". Coutard was at the time much more acclaimed than Mitra having collaborated with Godard on many of his film projects. One of his most important technical innovations was his introduction of bounce lighting, which he pioneered while filming "Aparajito" (1956), the second part of "The
Pather Panchali number of critics attended. Although some were initially unenthusiastic at the prospect of yet another Indian melodrama, the film critic Arturo Lanocita found "the magic horse of poetry ... invading the screen". "Pather Panchali" was subsequently named Best Human Document at the festival. Lindsay Anderson commented after the Cannes screening that "Pather Panchali" had "the quality of ultimate unforgettable experience". In subsequent years, critics have given positive reviews. A 1958 review in "Time" described "Pather Panchali" as "perhaps the finest piece of filmed folklore since Robert Flaherty's "Nanook of the North"". In her 1982 book "5001 Nights at the Movies",