Guwahati: Northeast's first anthology film screened in Assamese language

Guwahati: Three filmmakers have come together to create an anthology in Assamese language, the first of its kind in the northeast, centered around themes of existentialism and loneliness.

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'Ji Golpor Ses Nai' (never-ending stories), which premiered in Guwahati earlier this week, is a collection of short stories, tied to a single premise.

With Assam as the backdrop, one of the shorts is about the inexplicable influence of a person on another.

'Ardha Satya', directed by Prodyut Kumar Deka, is based on a tale written by Guy de Maupassant and has Pankaj Mahanta and Kalpana Kalita in the lead.

'Epitaph', the second short directed by Prasant Saikia, has Himangshu Prasad Das playing the protagonist.

Adapted from one of the works of Sahitya Akademi award-winning Assamese author and journalist Homen Borgohain, the story delves deep into the life of struggling writer and his love life.

The third short, 'Prasnabudhok', is based on a story by French novelist Honore de Balzac. Directed by Utpal Datta, the film talks about the constant struggle for desired space between husband and wife.

Datta, an independent filmmaker, said loneliness is a fundamental part of a human life.

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"Loneliness may seem an unusual topic for a film. It doesn't sound very dramatic, but it's a fundamental part of being human," he said.

Pointing out that Assamese cinema took 80 years to make an anthology, Datta said 'Ji Golpor Ses Nai' has three different stories, tied together by one theme.

The three shorts, produced by Pallabi Borah, Krishna Kalita and Namrata Datta, have used similar strategies to portray human emotions -- diminishing long shots, recurring motifs and empty spaces.

'Sirikkathe', a Tamil production released in 1939, is considered to be the first anthology film in India.

(PTI)