Satyajit Ray had no film training when he began shooting Pather Panchali. He pawned his wife’s jewelry to fund it, shot on weekends over three years, and produced a film that Akira Kurosawa said made him feel as though he had discovered a new continent of cinema.

This episode follows Ray from his career in advertising through the Apu Trilogy, his mastery of every filmmaking craft from scoring to poster design, and his influence on directors from Scorsese to Wes Anderson.

• He pawned his wife’s jewelry and shot Pather Panchali over three years with no formal training
• Akira Kurosawa said not having seen Ray’s films was like never having seen the sun or moon
• He composed music, designed posters, and wrote screenplays for nearly all his films
• He received an honorary Academy Award in 1992, weeks before his death