An underrated title from one of South Asia’s greatest directors, The Coward might have a simpler plot than Satyajit Ray’s other dramas, but it's no less deep in exploring human behavior. As you would expect from the title, the film is about cowardice in relationships. The way it’s explored is interesting. It feels like a detective film without a crime, slowly dropping clues through shared glances, snippets of the past, and the recognition between the former lovers that they mostly leave unmentioned. And as each clue is revealed, the film matches its investigative direction to the judgmental way many of us examine the end of a relationship. It’s an interesting approach, one that has been replicated later on, but what makes The Coward still a standout today is how it’s willing to confront its own lead’s lack of courage. Kapurush might be one of Ray’s lesser known works, but it nonetheless still highlights the emotional honesty Ray is best known for.