Skip to content Skip to navigation

Animation Film ‘Mahapurush Sri Sri Mashabdeva’ garnering high praise

By Prantik Deka |

In very heartening news, the Assamese animation film titled ‘Mahapurush Sri Sri Madhabdeva" has been receiving high praise and critical acclamation in various film festivals held around the world. The film, produced by Ramani Chitramm Memorial Trust, is conceptualised, scripted and directed by the noted promoter, preserver of Sattriya culture and philanthropist, the late Dalim Pathak.

It has always been Dalim Pathak’s endeavour to disseminate and promote the philosophy of saints Sankardeva, and his faithful disciple Madhabdeva, the creator of the epoch-making – Naam Ghosa. The film has bagged Best Animation Film at the prestigious Athens International Monthly Art Film Festival, 2022, for the month of January and the Special Mention award for Music at the Tokyo International Monthly Film Festival 2022. Besides being a final nominee at the prestigious Budapest Film Festival, it has been officially selected for Kwetu International Animation Film Festival (KIAFF), Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Festival del Cinema di Cefalu held in Sicily, Italy, Lift-Off Filmmaker Sessions @PinewoodStudios, among others. The film has greatly impressed audiences on the international festival circuit, which is quite a commendable achievement and a great sign for the future of animation movies in Assam. Apart from being a visual treat, the film offered something unique and transcendental to the keen cinephiles, who were deeply engrossed by the incredible life and times of the revered 15th-century scholar and Vaishnavite saint Madhabdeva, widely known as an important preceptor of the Ekasarana Naam Dharma and for his contributions to the legacy of Sankardeva. The saint has left an indelible mark in the social and cultural life of Assam through his extraordinary literary creations. The much revered Vaishnavite saint has composed numerous works on holy themes in different literary forms that reveal his great erudition, intense devotion and ingenuity. His profound efforts not only played a significant role in the growth of the Satras and Sattriya culture but also helped create an atmosphere that fostered and enhanced harmony, understanding and tolerance among people hailing from various castes, creeds and communities. The creator of the epoch-making Naam Ghosa has also penned several devotional songs called Borgeet. 

The film has been made in an attempt to spread the intellectual and spiritual legacy of Mahapurush Madhabdeva, and the need for the new generation to follow the saint's footsteps and uphold traditional values, which have eroded to a great extent. The music of ‘Mahapurush Sri Sri Madhabdeva’ has been composed by noted Sattriya artiste Gunindra Nath Ojha, classical vocalist Jiten Basumatary and noted singer Hemen Das, while the songs are rendered by the Burha Sattriya of Barpeta Satra Basistha Dev Sarma, Deka Sattriya of Barpeta Satra late Nabajit Das Pathak, Gunindra Nath Ojha, Hemen Das, Jiten Basumatary, Madhusmita Bhattacharya, Krantika Sandilya, Jonali Ojha Basumatary, Rabindra Nath Das and Dinesh Das. The film’s background music has been done by Samir Sarkar and Manab Jyoti Das. The film’s script, dialogue and research works have been done by Prabhat Chandra Das. It’s incredibly expensive to produce an animated movie. The animation in the movie has been done by Animation Master. A team of animators have put their heart and soul into the project, while going through the complex process of creating and finishing each and every other animated scene, bringing about an accurate reflection of the revered saint. 

The film’s associate director is Abani Ranjan Pathak. The film’s assistant director is Dipmoni Chutia. ‘Mahapurush Sri Sri Madhabdeva’ features a number of profoundly moving traditional Borgeets and Ghosas, including ‘Aalo bhai chalo Aais’, ‘Aalo moi ki kohbo dukh’, ‘Muke ebar karuna’, ‘Narayan kahe bhokoti koru’, ‘Pawe pori hari’, ‘Pamru mon Ram charane’, ‘Moi durasar’, among others. The film features an impressive list of actors, providing voices to various roles in the film, including Ranjan Bezbaruah (Madhavadeva), Nipon Goswami, the late Sadhan Hazarika, Dinesh Das, Ashim Krishna Boruah, Syed Sadullah, Surnjit Malakar, Arati Kalita, Anamika Bordoloi, Jayanta Bhagawati, Abani Bora, Nayan Prasad, Nikumani Barua, etc. The film also owes a great deal to the contributions of the late Narayan Chandra Goswami, satradhikar of Natun Kamalabari Satra and the late Harekrishna Mahanta, the satradhikar of Barangajuli Satra, who generously provided their invaluable input and guidance.      

 

  • 22333 reads

Add new comment

Other Contents by Author

Raas Leela enthralls Kalakshetra

Undeterred by the Covid pandemic, audiences turned up in huge numbers to watch this year’s edition of Sampurna Raas Leela, where the combination of tradition and innovation came into full flow during the year’s two-day festival. As with the previous years, this year too, the husband-wife duo of Basanta Kumar Baruah and Bobby Sarma Baruah successfully organised Raas Leela on December 19 and 20, under the banner of BB Creation in collaboration with the Directorate of Cultural Affairs Department, Government of Assam, on a grand scale at the Srimanta Sankaradeva International Auditorium, of the Sankaradeva Kalakshetra, Guwahati. Entering into its 12th year, BB Creations - the state’s premiere...

‘Siyahir Rong’ in the post-production stage

It has only recently completed its dubbing, but ‘Siyahir Rong’ is already creating a lot of buzz on social media. The upcoming film is based on noted senior political journalist and writer Jitumoni Bora’s acclaimed novel of the same title, which was published in 2016. Based on his own professional experiences of over 25 years, Bora’s powerful and eye-opening work stirred the conscience of the readers with its compelling revelations of the dark truths and sleazy practices in print journalism, which has somewhat dented the reputation of this profession. It was important that this very relevant and thought-provoking story be told through the cinematic medium, because of its...

Bhabananda Deka-Nalini Prava Deka Endowment Lecture held

The 13th Principal Bhabananda Deka-Nalini Prava Deka Endowment Lecture was successfully organised by the Assam Foundation-India in a solemn function held at the Guwahati Press Club, on December 4, 2019. The function also coincided with the release of three books – Principal Bhabananda Deka Rachanawali, Nalini Prava Deka Rachanawali, and Arnab Jan Deka Natyawali – a compendium of the stage and radio plays written by popular storywriter-novelist Arnab Jan Deka. The programme was presided over by Dr Narendra Nath Sarma, eminent historian and former Professor and Head, Department of Library and Information Science, Gauhati University, and attended by noted personalities like actors Pranjal...

Adventure reality show : ‘mountain warriors’

The shooting of a mega TV series on an adventure reality game show is now in progress at the city’s landmark location of Ranibagan in Beltola Tinali, Guwahati. Produced by Hawksbill Productions, the project ‘Mountain Warriors’ has been sanctioned by Doordarshan, New Delhi, under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and will be telecast by the newly-launched satellite channel Arunprabha. The reality-based show, which saw the participation of contestants hailing from different parts of the North-East, has been produced and directed by Vikeyeno Zao, who has earned a name for herself as an acclaimed documentary filmmaker. Born and raised in the hilly town of Kohima, belonging to the...

Priceless volume ‘Xuaroni Bhaibhav’ released

A true and sincere devotee of the great saints – Srimanta Sankardeva and Sri Sri Madhabdev, the renowned Vaishnavite preserver of Sattriya culture and a philanthropist, the late Dalim Pathak’s charitable nature is manifest in the establishment of a number of social-cultural organisations in the State. On the occasion of his first death anniversary, a co-memorial book – Xuaroni Baibhav – was released by noted cultural activist, writer, dramatist and actor Ratna Ojha in a function held at the Bhabendra Alay in Beltola, Guwahati, recently. The book’s remarkable collections of essays, in addition to memoirs and speeches, in both Assamese and English, complemented by photographs, is a...

Audio Album ‘Jiya Anubhuti’ Released

In a tribute function, coinciding with a day-long programme, held to mark the 8th death anniversary of Bharat Ratna Dr Bhupen Hazarika as well as the birth anniversary of noted litterateur, lyricist, dramatist and musician Sushil Kumar Rai, an audio album containing nine lilting modern tunes entitled ‘Jiya Anubhuti’ was released by noted musician Anupam Choudhury in Dudhnoi recently. Produced under the banner of PKD Production, the compassionate album, conceptualised by Kripamoy Das, contains the wonderful lyrics of Sushil Kumar Rai, including Swagatam Samagata he Shudhigon, Jiri Jiri Nijarai, Lajuki Lata mur kotha kuwa, Mur Mondirot tumar arati, among others, which were rendered to...

‘An Inspector Calls’ to be staged on Nov 27

After a long gap, the Assam chapter of Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) will present a new Assamese play in the form of ‘An Inspector Calls’ on November 27, 2019, at the Kumar Bhaskar Natya Mandir, Uzanbazar, Guwahati, for the theatre lovers of the State. IPTA, which has worked for the development of humanity through culture since 1947, has produced a number of famous plays like ‘Xunali Dhanani’, ‘Seujia Kuhipaat’, ‘Tofaan’, ‘Navaprabhat’, ‘Sapasalor Seka’, etc, and many shadow plays like ‘Poharaloi’, ‘Amar Jatra’, ‘15 Augustor Ahbaan’ and ‘Tirut Singh’, which were unanimously praised by the masses. Hemango Biswas, the founder secretary of the Assam chapter, worked with some of...

Nature’s Melody

With its roots firmly planted in tradition, the unique Bongeets created by Bonkonwar Anandiram Das have been seeing a cultural revival of sorts in the State. These heartfelt songs, which spring from a beautiful blend of Bihu tunes with other native songs, resonated with the people, irrespective of age or musical preference. Among those handful of artistes who have been playing an important role in preserving and promoting these gems, is the State’s eminent singer Munindra Kumar Saikia, who is also an important member of Jubatirtha – a cultural organisation which has been organising workshops and seminars on Bongeets for a number of years now. His deep eagerness to learn and imbibe the...

Art, Beyond Borders

A prolific novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, screenplay writer, documentary filmmaker, columnist, TV actor, river engineer, eco-technocrat all rolled into one, Arnab Jan Deka’s wide-ranging literary interests led him to start writing fiction just at the end of the twentieth century, and two leading Assamese literary journals – Prantik and Goriyoshi, firmly established his reputation as a serious story-writer in Assam. “My first Assamese short story collection in addition to my first novel got published in 1999, and both saw unprecedented success and were runaway hits among readers,” the celebrated author recalls.   And within the next two decades, his short stories and...

Jatin Bora's 'ratnakar' to release in October

Making his comeback after 13 years as a filmmaker, actor Jatin Bora is gearing up to present his new film ‘Ratnakar’. The much anticipated big-budgeted film, produced under the banner of JB Films, will hit the screens on October 11, soon after the conclusion of Durga Puja. The need of the hour is to provide meaningful entertainment so that the audiences in Assam go back to the theatres. Jatin Bora has assured that his venture is not a run-of-the-mill Assamese film but promises something more. Depicting three different stages of a man’s life, the film is built around a father-daughter relationship, which has not been adequately explored in Assamese cinema. The film boasts of a number of...