A retrospective of Satyajit Ray's films opened in the Bangladesh capital Friday to mark the 18th death anniversary of the master filmmaker who is regarded as a towering figure of 20th century cinema.

The Indian high commission has organised the week-long event where six of Ray's movies will be showcased as part of the "Satyajit Retrospective" at the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre in downtown Gulshan.

"Satyajit Ray Introspections" by Indian documentary maker K. Bikram Singh and Ray's own "Kanchenjunga" are being showcased, while the documentary "Pa" and Ray's all time classics "Apur Sansar", "Aranyer Dinratri" and "Seemabaddha" will be screened over the week, reports New Age newspaper.

Born on May 2, 1921 in Kolkata in a renowned Bengali family, Ray started his career as a commercial artist. He was drawn into independent filmmaking after he met French filmmaker Jean Renoir and watched the Italian neo-realism film "The Bicycle Thief" during a London visit.

The master craftsman directed 37 films, including documentaries, features and short films. He was also a fiction writer, publisher, illustrator, graphic designer and a film critic. He died on April 23, 1992.