The Chess Players

Oct 2, 1977

2h 9m

★ 7.0

Satyajit Ray's First Hindi feature Film

Overview

In the year 1856, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah is the King of Awadh, one of the last independent kingdoms of India. The British intend to control this rich land and send General Outram to clear way for an annexation. Pressure is mounting amidst intrigue and political maneuvers, but the Nawab whiles away his time in pursuit of pleasure and religious practice. The court is of no help either — noblemen Mir and Mirza ignore all duties and spend their days playing endless games of chess. Based on Munshi Premchand's short story of the same name. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation in 2010.

Genres

Drama

Production Companies

Devki Chitra

The Chess Players Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Mirza Sajjad Ali

Sanjeev Kumar

Mir Roshan Ali

Saeed Jaffrey

Wajid Ali Shah

Amjad Khan

Khurshid

Shabana Azmi

Nafisa

Farida Jalal

Queen Mother

Veena

Munshi

David Abraham Cheulkar

Prime Minister

Victor Banerjee

Aqueel

Farooq Shaikh

Capt. Weston

Tom Alter

Hirya

Leela Mishra

Barry John

The film takes us into the life of a nine- year old girl, who takes respite in drawing despite the fact that to fulfil her little aspirations like going to school, she has to navigate difficult geographical terrains and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl's life, this short film endeavors to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make in order to deal with the fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there are no dialogues in the film.

2.5

Sanam

Apr 19, 1997

Gaurav lives a wealthy lifestyle, gets everything he wants except the love of his parents and family. Even though he lives with his parents, they love his elder brother Narendra more. After an unfortunate incident, Gaurav joins the army to prove himself to his father, where he discovers a terrorist plot that could put his family and his country at risk.

6.2

Meri Pyaari Bindu

May 11, 2017

Abhimanyu Roy is stuck with writer's block until he decides to re-live the memories of his childhood sweetheart Bindu who aspires to be a successful singer and struggles to give Abhi the one thing he craves - stability.

6.0

Maatr

Apr 21, 2017

Shattered by the brutal murder of her daughter, A distraught mother takes justice into her own hands and seeks vengeance by fighting the system.

6.2

Param Sundari

Aug 29, 2025

In Kerala's picturesque backwaters, a North Indian and South Indian find unexpected love. Their cultural differences spark a hilarious and chaotic romance, full of twists and turns.

7.8

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans

Nov 4, 1927

A married farmer falls under the spell of a slatternly woman from the city, who tries to convince him to drown his wife.

4.3

Hanele

Nov 4, 1999

Based on an autobiographical novella by Ivan Olbracht, the film tells the story of Hanele Safarová, who grows up just after the First World War in a little Ruthenian schtetl which, in true Hassidic fashion, awaits the arrival of the Messiah. But Hanele decides to follow the Zionists instead. She moves to the city to prepare for her departure to the Promised Land, where she meets a successful businessman named Ivo Karadzic, who has renounced Judaism to become a free-thinker. Their love for each other doesn’t only drive Hanele’s parents to distraction, it also threatens to destroy the entire community in the schetl.

2.8

Andolan

Feb 21, 1995

Adarsh (Sanjay Dutt) and Aniket (Govinda) are brothers. Aniket is the elder, while Adarsh is the younger one. Both go to the same college, where beautiful Guddi (Mamta Kulkarni) has a crush on him, and vice-versa. Meanwhile, Adarsh is up to college pranks and practical jokes. One of these pranks and jokes land him into trouble in a girls only hostel. When the time comes to leave college and seek a career, both brothers chose a different path, one of which leads to the destruction and separation of their family. Will they reunite in the end?

0.0

Pavlínka

Oct 11, 1974

Albrechtice near Jablonec. Sixteen-year-old Pavlínka Linková lives with her grandmother Barbara, a local midwife who raised her after the death of the girl's parents. The charming girl experiences her first amorous outburst towards Pavel Žák, a young textile worker in nearby Svárovo. Her grandmother, however, prevents her from contacting Pavel in every possible way. Firstly, as a midwife, she knows well what can happen, and secondly, she remembers her old adventures well. Love, however, cannot be ordered around, especially not by a worried grandmother. But there are other obstacles. The textile workers of Svárovo are planning a strike and a demonstration against redundancies and wage cuts, and the factory director is preparing a vigorous response. The year is 1870 and the unsuspecting Pavlina finds herself in the middle of events that will go down in history...

7.5

The Music Room

Oct 10, 1958

An aging, decadent landlord’s passion for music becomes the undoing of his legacy as he sacrifices his wealth in order to compete with the opulent music room of his younger, richer neighbour.

7.5

Moulin Rouge!

May 18, 2001

A celebration of love and creative inspiration takes place in the infamous, gaudy and glamorous Parisian nightclub, at the cusp of the 20th century. A young poet, who is plunged into the heady world of Moulin Rouge, begins a passionate affair with the club's most notorious and beautiful star.

7.1

The Man with the Golden Arm

Dec 26, 1955

When illegal card dealer and recovering heroin addict Frankie Machine gets out of prison, he decides to straighten up. Armed with nothing but an old drum set, Frankie tries to get honest work as a drummer. But when his former employer and his old drug dealer re-enter his life, Frankie finds it hard to stay clean and eventually finds himself succumbing to his old habits.

8.0

Rashomon

Aug 26, 1950

Four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.

7.8

Dances with Wolves

Mar 30, 1990

Wounded Civil War soldier John Dunbar tries to commit suicide—and becomes a hero instead. As a reward, he's assigned to his dream post, a remote junction on the Western frontier, and soon makes unlikely friends with the local Sioux tribe.

7.6

The Last Samurai

Dec 5, 2003

Nathan Algren is an American hired to instruct the Japanese army in the ways of modern warfare, which finds him learning to respect the samurai and the honorable principles that rule them. Pressed to destroy the samurai's way of life in the name of modernization and open trade, Algren decides to become an ultimate warrior himself and to fight for their right to exist.

7.4

Interview with the Vampire

Nov 11, 1994

A vampire relates his epic life story of love, betrayal, loneliness, and dark hunger to an over-curious reporter.

7.7

Stalag 17

May 29, 1953

It's a dreary Christmas 1944 for the American POWs in Stalag 17 and the men in Barracks 4, all sergeants, have to deal with a grave problem—there seems to be a security leak.

7.6

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Sep 23, 1969

As the west rapidly becomes civilized, a pair of outlaws in 1890s Wyoming find themselves pursued by a posse and decide to flee to South America in hopes of evading the law.