Reflecting on a year with different movies: Sight & Sound

Prantik Deka

reflecting on a year with different movies

Although the number of Assamese releases decreased from a massive twenty-four in 2017 and a weighty twenty-two in 2018 to a significantly lesser fourteen in 2019, it can't be said that 2019 was a dull year that falls in comparison. Still and all, it was a condensed, different and also a difficult year for Assamese cinema. Different, so to say, while the previous mentioned years had one show stopper dominating each year, namely Mission China in 2017 and Village Rockstars in 2018, 2019 had in fact four! The somewhat balanced year not only saw huge financial successes with Kanchanjangha and Ratnakar but also movies like Bulbul Can Sing and Aamis made their presence felt around the world.

The year kicked off with Biswajeet Kalita's Bhaworiya, which was the only fresh release in both January and February. Otherwise, Bidyut Kotoky's Xoixobote Dhemalite from 2018 was re-released in February. With honest intentions, Bhaworiya tried to shine some light upon the forgotten Dhulia culture of South Kamrup but due to its out-dated presentation, this stage to screen adaption failed to work.

While Bollywood witnessed the advent of a new form of imparting nationalist propaganda, regional cinema took its steps with care.

Dhruva J. Bordoloi returned with his second movie Kokaideu Bindaas in March. A movie depicting the chaos and confusions in the mind and lifestyle of Assamese millennials, Kokaideu Bindass presented some light hearted fun time, and the movie didn't disappoint many. Soon after, Shankar Borua released his long delayed film Rongeen. The film was marketed as the first Assamese movie to have used the rap and hip-hop culture with popular Assamese rapper Kussum Koilash playing a key role along with Borua. A drama about a rap artist who helps a school teacher-turned-politician take on a powerful local leader in the bye-elections didn't make the expected noise despite its time appropriate theme. Many of the film's shows were cancelled due to lack of audience.

As the general election campaign dominated all, Monjul Baurah's Kaaneen became the first movie of the year to be adored by the audiences. About a mother who goes on a search for her first born, Kaaneen was about the secrets and lies that bring families together, as well as pull them apart. Kaaneen ran for 3 weeks in Tezpur and 4 weeks in Guwahati. It did received some challenges from the prevailing atmosphere of elections. The last release of the packed month, Hiren Bora's Seema - The Untold Story, which depicts the Chinese invasion of 1962 from the point of view of Tezpur, is the perfect culmination of what a filmmaker achieves when there is little budget to support high ambitions.

May brought the release of Anupam Kaushik Borah's much anticipated Bornodi Bhotiai which had its premiere in MAMI Mumbai Film Festival of 2018. Bornodi Bhotiai combined magic realism with a quirky slice of life narrative accompanied by shades of dark comedy. A far from stereotypical portrayal of Majuli, Bornodi Bhotiai gave new breath to the world's largest river island's portrayal on screen and in return, audience gave all the love to this layered and passionately made film about life, love and death. It stayed in the theatres for four long weeks. The month of June, July and August had no Assamese releases as the only movie scheduled for a July release, Mirza Arif Hazarika's Astittwa was postponed in view of the annual monsoon misery of Assam. Like always, the summer remained as an opportunity missed for Assamese filmmakers and distributors as Kabir Singh and Disney ruled.

September and October saw great successes in the form of Kanchanjangha and Ratnakar. The lead actors who are also credited as directors for their respective films, Zubeen Garg re-affirmed and Jatin Bora proved that they are crowd pullers second to none. While the quality of both the mass entertainers were subjected to hot debates as to what course it has charted for Assamese cinema, it couldn't stop Kanchanjangha from minting over 7 crores in its run of five weeks nor did it have any impact on Ratnakar's score of 10 crores in a seven week run! While Kanchanjangha benefited from Saaho underperforming, Ratnakar did comparatively well as it was released in ten theatres less than Kanchanjangha along with competition from the YRF giant War and Warner Bros' Joker. Ratnakar now stands as the highest grossing film in the region, a sweet spot previously held by Baahubali 2: The Conclusion.

Amidst the discussions on the unserious film making of Zubeen Garg and the resemblances Ratnakar shared with Theri, the hope of a second Oscar run led to the hasty release of Rima Das' Bulbul Can Sing. After collecting many laurels at the national and international platform, audiences too showered praises upon release. But a dissatisfied few had also criticised the movie for its technical shortcomings. A hard hitting tale of a group of friends finding love, life and themselves in the midst of societal dogmas and stigmas, Bulbul Can Sing is raw, insightful and empowering and in all its skepticism, an extension of the world created by Village Rockstars.

With long postponed movies releasing one after another, the month of November was a clearance sale for Assamese cinema. Topon Bordoloi's Rowd Hoi Aha Tumi went unseen and unnoticed. It wouldn't be completely right to say that the makers didn't focus on the promotion of their film but the movie simply failed to garner buzz due to obvious reasons. Even the scenery of Singapore, Malaysia and Kerala in the film failed in its search for audience. The immediate second release, Astittwa too struggled to find viewers as many shows were cancelled due to the unavailability of patrons. A film too conscious of its objective and intentions, Astittwa shares direct ties to our current geopolitical moment but offers nothing new in terms of storytelling. The thirst was only for making a cultural commentary. Pranabjyoti Bhorali's Epar Xipar starring Amrita Gogoi and Udyan Duarah too faced a similar fate.

Bhaskar Hazarika's Aamis was the biggest surprise of the year. Having its premiere at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, there wasn't a better cinematic metaphor this year. Aamis like many is a love story spun around food only it doesn't stay there. A mouthwatering concept that quickly descends into terrifying wickedness, Aamis is a delicious horror in disguise of a love story. Bold, brilliant and beautiful, where both beauty and brutality is uncompromised, Aamis provoked an intense debate of morality and its impact on viewers upon release. Aamis suffered on its third week as the state awoke to a strong and violent opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Bill 2019, but will garner a cult following in the coming years.

The last release of 2019 Achinta Shankar's Pratighaat too suffered unable to complete its first week run as the region plunged into a weeklong darkness of curfew and internet shutdown. The losses incurred by this action thriller starring Amrita Gogoi in all rage will be unimaginable. Soon enough National Award winning filmmaker Jahnu Barua withdrew his film Bhoga Khirikee from the Assam State Film Awards and Film Festival in protest against the Citizenship Bill, now an Act. Also, the Film Policy for Assam still lies in the making as it has always been. This is how the different year turned into a difficult year for Assamese cinema! With upcoming release Himanshu Prasad Das's Goru now postponed from January to May, it is to be seen how 2020 plays out for Assamese cinema.

(With inputs from noted cine-journalist Kalpa Jyoti Bhuyan)