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A short note on Assamese Film
By Utpal Datta

It was 1935. History of Indian Talking Cinema has just started. AT that time one Assamese visionary had returned from Germany with adequate film making training and started first Assamese Motion Picture JOYMATI based on the life of An Ahom Princess JOYMATI. Unsurprisingly, at that time here was no infrastructure for Film Making in Assam, yet he started and wrote the first page of history of Assamese Film. He was Jyotiprasad. He was a poet, playwright, composer and freedom fighter. For his film he had to bear the added responsibilities as the script writer, producer, director, choreographer, editor, set and costume designer, lyricist, voice actor and music director. The film, completed with a budget of Rupees Sixty thousand and was released on March 10th, 1935. The picture failed despondently in business. But he rose like as a phoenix bird and made his second film INDRAMALATI (1939). This was a commercial success and it recovered all the losses incurred in JOYMATI. But due to ill health, Jyotiprasad failed to continue his film making venture. INDARAMALATI was set in the backdrop of freedom movement of India.

The third Assamese film was MANOMATI based on a famous Assamese Novel set in the backdrop of Assam History. It was the time of pre independence and naturally the filmmakers honestly tried reveal their nationalistic approach in films like Rupahi (46) and Badan Barphukan (1947).

After Independence Assamese film makers also eperiened a new country with new hopes and aspirations and they tried to express their feelings through the films they made. They tried to visualize social problems and human values in a middle class backdrop. Nip Baruah's SMRITIR PARSASH and Prabhat Mukherjee's PUBERUN may be considered as two examples. The film Puberun participating in Berlin Film festival begged the honour to be the first Assamese Film shown in a foreign film festival. Bhupen Hajorika came up with his remarkable partly autobiographical musical ERA BATOR SUR ((1956) depicting story of a musician searching the milieu of sand and soil of his native land.

By the middle of the sixties, films were produced in Assam almost on a regular basis. Most of the films were thematically based on middle class values and sentiments and theatrical presentation with dominating music controlled the structural pattern. It should also be mentioned here that between 1935 and to 1970 a total of 62 films were produced and most of the films catered the audience.

During the period of 1970-82 a total of 57 Assamese films were made. New directors started emerging on the horizon with innovative subjects and filmic treatment. Chaturanga's Aparajeya (1970). Samarendra Narayan Deb's Aranya (1970), Manoranjan Sur's Uttaran (1973), Deuti Barua's Bristi (1974) Pulok Gogoi Khoj (1974) Padam Barua's Ganga Chilanir Pakhi (1976) Dr. Bhabendranath Saikia's Sandhyarag (1977) and Atul Bordoloi's Kollol (1978) are films worth - mentioning.

Sandhyarag was made with a huge budget though the story resolved with problems of hunger and crisis of survival. Yet the film received outstanding commercial success in the home front and critical appreciation in the national front. The film was shown in Indian Panorama and has participated in several foreign festivals too. The success of Sandhyarag encouraged a group of young directors to think in the same way of Sandhyarag which was the beginning of path breaking process for the Assamese Film world. Few directors like Jahnu Baruah, Pradip Brahma, Bidyut Chakravarty, Gautam Bora, Hemanta Das, Sanjeev Hazorika, Swantana Bardaloi, Manju Bora had joined the path Dr Saikia has introduced. All of them has created meaningful cinema, earned prizes as prestige from home and abroad, helped Assamese film to be recognized in a broad arena with own identity. But, most of the films failed in box office of the state.
Towards the end of 90's, Assamese film has faced lots of problem in film distribution. As a result Assamese Film industry had to stand in such a position which was virtually a full stop. But suddenly few films came up with new promises and audience appreciated those venture though they were poor imitation of run of mill Hindi Film. In the last decade of 20th century a large group of young directors came up with their projects to revive the film industry. But history repeated again. Emergence of compact disc, unhealthy condition of theatres and poor distribution system attacked Assamese film industry and the situation is going on. Yet some directors are trying to continue film making with a different approach. Jahnu Baruah is making Hindi film and Pradip Brahma in English.

The author may be reached at utpal91@yahoo.com







 

 


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