Parthajit Baruah (author)

Parthajit Baruah

Parthajit Baruah
Born	Kampur, Nagaon, Assam, India
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Film Historian, Director, Academic
Known for	The Nellie Story, Laxmi Orang – Rising from the Grave
Notable works	The Nellie Story, Laxmi Orang – Rising from the Grave
Awards	Best Script Award (9th Ajanta-Ellora International Film Festival, 2024), Best Director (Darbhanga International Film Festival, 2014), Assam State Film Critic Award (2018), Prag Channel Film Critic Award (2010)

Parthajit Baruah is a contemporary Indian film historian, film practitioner, and academic, known for his significant contributions to Assamese and North-East cinema. He has directed twelve documentaries and one feature film, and authored five books on film. Legendary Indian filmmaker, Adoor Gopalakrishnan, once remarked, "Parthajit Baruah belongs to that new generation of film critics and scholarly film historians who make Assamese people proud of their hoary heritage, be it Cinema or culture in general. He is the kind that would not hesitate to put in any amount of search and struggle to get at the truth of the matter he is dealing with."

Early Life and Education

Parthajit Baruah was born in Kampur, Nagaon, Assam, India. His father, Prasanna Kumar Baruah, was born in Sivsagar, Assam, and later worked in the Indian Army before establishing Sunlit Studio in 1965. Unfortunately, he passed away in an accident while Parthajit was still in school. His mother, Dinamai Gogoi, was a school teacher.

Baruah was the editor of the wall magazine at Fergusson College, Pune. He completed his Master's degree in English Literature from Pune University, followed by an M.Phil in Film Adaptation with a focus on Shakespeare on Celluloid, and a PhD in Film and Literature, exploring Shakespeare in select Indian cinema.

Career

Parthajit Baruah is currently a senior lecturer at Renaissance Junior College, Assam, India. He also serves as Editor-in-Chief at the North-East Film Journal. Baruah's work deeply engages with the socio-political landscape of Assam, highlighting the region's cultural heritage and complex social dynamics.

Awards for Film Criticism

• Assam State Film Critic Award* (Government of Assam, 2018)
• Prag Channel Film Critic Award* (Prag Channel, 2010)

Filmography

Feature Film

• The Nellie Story (2023): The film explores the events leading up to the Nellie massacre of February 18, 1983, one of the darkest chapters in Assam's history. The story follows Rajiv Pator, a PhD candidate at Gauhati University, as he seeks to uncover the truth behind the massacre.

Awards:

• Best Script Award (Indian) at the 9th Ajanta-Ellora International Film Festival-2024
• Competition Section (Indian) at the 29th Kolkata International Film Festival-2023
• Official Selection at The Agora Film Market of the Thessaloniki IFF, Greece
• Competition Section (National) at the 11th Dharbhanga International Film Festival-2024
• Competition Section (National) at the 10th International Film Festival of Shimla

Documentaries

• Laxmi Orang – Rising from the Grave (2014): A documentary about the Beltola Incident of November 24, 2007, and the subsequent transformation of Laxmi Orang into a symbol of resilience and advocacy for women and the Adivasi community.
  • Awards:
  • Best Director, Darbhanga International Film Festival-2014
  • Best Cinematography, Darbhanga International Film Festival-2014
  • Best Story, Darbhanga International Film Festival-2014

• The Dhemaji Tragedy (2016): A poignant exploration of the Dhemaji bomb blast of August 15, 2004, which claimed the lives of 13 students.
  • Awards:
  • Best Documentary/Indian Showcase, 4th Delhi International Film Festival-2015
  • Best Director, Film Northeast-2016
  • Best Documentary, 3rd Indian Cine Film Festival-15, India, Mumbai

• Reema Panging (2016): Chronicles the resilience of Reema Panging, a survivor of the Dhemaji bomb blast.
  • Awards:
  • Certificates of Excellence, 4th Delhi Short International Film Festival-2015
  • Certificates of Excellence, 3rd Indian Cine Film Festival-2015

• Nagaon – A Land of Diversity (2017): A documentary celebrating the cultural richness of Nagaon, Assam.

• Dinner with Vivek (2018): Follows the journey of Vivek, a visually impaired PhD scholar at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.

• NF Railways – Lifeline of Northeast (2018): Explores the critical role of railways in connecting and developing Northeast India.

• Chiaroscuro (2019): Focuses on M.C. Bhuyan, an alumnus of FTII, and reflects on the passage of time in the film industry.
  • Awards:
  • Best Documentary, 5th International Film Festival of Shimla-2019
  • Best Documentary, 8th Delhi Shorts International Film Festival-2019
  • Best Documentary, 7th Noida International Film Festival-2020

• Breaking the Silence (2020): A documentary on the first organized women's musical group in Assam.
  • Awards:
  • Official Selection, 13th IDSFFK
  • Special Mention, Asia South East – Short Film Festival AUTUMN 2019
  • Best Director, 12th Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival-2021

Publications

Parthajit Baruah has authored five books on film, further establishing his role as a film historian. His work includes contributions to the book Shakespeare and Indian Cinema, edited by Dr. Poonam Trivedi and Dr. Paromita Chakravorty, published by Routledge.

Publications

Parthajit Baruah has authored the following books on film, further establishing his role as a film historian:

• A History of India’s North-East Cinema: Deconstructing the Stereotypes (Bloomsbury Academics, 2024)
• Face to Face: The Cinema of Adoor Gopalakrishnan (HarperCollins, 2016)
• Chalachitrar Taranga (Publisher: Pranjal Kr Mahanta, 2010) (Assamese)
• Jyotiprasad, Joymoti, Indramalati and Beyond: The History of Assamese Cinema (Krantikal Prakashan, 2021)
• Cinema Tatta (Alibaat Prakashan, 2024)

Research and Academia

Baruah has conducted two research projects at the National Film Archive of India, Pune. He has presented his research at international conferences in locations such as London, Queens’ University, Belfast, and Dubai. He had been at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, as part of his research and was invited as a guest speaker and faculty member at MAHE University, Dubai, in 2019.

External Links

• North-East Film Journal
• National Film Archive of India
• Parthajit Baruah on IMDb