Assamese movies: Issues, challenges, and opportunities

Ashim Bhuyan

(bhuyanashim@yahoo.com)

The Assamese film industry had a fair head-start compared to filmmaking in other languages on the Indian subcontinent. It was the tenacity and brilliance of the man, Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwal, that made the first Assamese film “Joymoti” possible way back in the 1930s. Since then, the film industry in Assam has traversed a rainbow of colourful paths, with many highs and lows.

Of late, we have observed that many talented independent filmmakers in Assam have been able to stand on their own two feet and come out with many thoughtful and diverse films for the audience. The regularity at which Assamese films were released, especially in the last few months of the calendar year 2023 as well as the first few months of 2024, for public viewing is commendable and worth taking notice of. Except for a couple of films here and there, the subject matter of the films is well researched, planned, and executed. A few of the Assamese, Karbi, Sadri, and other language films include, among others, Tora’s Husband, Rongata Apu (1982), Nelier Kotha, Satya: The Truth, Sri Sri Madhabdev (an animation film by Manju Borah), Raghav, Mini (Sadri/Assamese), Eta Nirjon Duporiya, Koohi, Anunaad, Wide Angle, Eti Tumar, and Finding Maini. In the festival circuit, Akomaan, Ojah—the rhythm of life—Kooki, Jiya, and Mirbeen (Karbi) were a few films that were screened. The subjects are as diverse as the simple life of a well-meaning man in Tora’s husband, the struggles of tea-garden workers in Mini, the desperation and story of a young couple in Eta Nirjon Duporiya, thoughtful insights on the massacre in Nelie in 1983 in Nelir Kotha, human trafficking in Anunaad, and the story of a gay relationship in Satya. What comes out is the sheer beauty of original filmmaking by people of diverse yet independent backgrounds. By and large, there is also no big banner backing the films. Neither are these purely commercial ventures, nor can they be classified into a particular genre. This is laudable and signifies the maturity of the local film industry. New names in Assamese filmmaking like Khanjan Kishore Nath, Parthajit Baruah, Pranab Jyoti Sarmah, and Pranjal Kumar Saikia bode well for the future of the Assamese movie industry. This is beside the established names like Jahnu Barua, Manju Bora, Rima Das, Kenny Basumatary, Jatin Bora, et al. These only augur well for a better future for the Assamese film industry.

Issues: In spite of having a fairly good head-start, the Assamese film industry has mostly struggled to be perpetually in the limelight for good reasons, like well-crafted films and backed by the audience response. There have always been sparks of excellence from individual filmmakers, but the industry suffered due to a lack of quality products. An odd award at film festivals with critical acclaim has, at best, been the fortune of the Assamese film industry. There was a time, though for a brief period, that films like Joubone Amoni Kore ran to full houses in the 1990s, and a superhit Bollywood film like Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenga had to recede to the background because of the deluge of moviegoers for the above-mentioned superhit Assamese film in theatres in Assam. This only indicates that there exists a good market for the Assamese films to be lapped up by audiences in huge numbers. This opportunity for the Assamese film industry to thrive, however, was short-lived.

Perhaps, the vernacular film industry has got to learn a few lessons from the Assamese mobile theatre industry, which seems to be thriving in perpetuity, accommodating new players, artists, crew, and makers every new year, and thus creating an ecosystem where an ever-increasing number of people are making a living without much governmental support. Many new talents crop up in this industry quite frequently. Three distinct templates need understanding from the Assamese mobile theatres: (i) reaching out to the nooks and corners of the state and thus creating the attention of the audience; (ii) promotion, marketing, and awareness whereby the well-off as well as the not-so-well-off enjoy “bhramyaman (mobile)” theatre together; and (iii) audience connection. The last point is the hallmark of the Assamese mobile theatre industry, and perhaps that is the reason why, even on the harshest of winter nights, people seldom hesitate to be part of a late-night show of a mobile theatre, even in remote areas.

Challenges: The challenges of the Assamese film industry are myriad. Film financing, quality production houses, audience connections, promotion and marketing, and talent are some of the challenges that the Assamese film industry has ever faced and continues to face. With just around 65 odd theatre screens across the state, including those in multiplexes and shopping malls, this challenge is daunting, to say the least. Many vernacular film shows, in multiplexes and non-multiplexes alike, get cancelled because of a lack of viewers. It is also agonising and painful to watch Assamese films in empty cinema halls. Whether it is the indifference of the audience towards Assamese films, the product mix, or the marketing deficit, the fact remains that there is a lack of audience in cinema theatres for vernacular language films. It appears that there is a gap between the audience  and the filmmakers, and this is cutting across all segments of society: rural, urban, semi-urban, young and the elderly, rich and the poor, etc. This issue needs to be dissected and addressed well to understand the audience mind and the requisite steps and corrective measures that can be taken to have a better connection so that the viewers throng the cinema halls.

Opportunities: The challenges faced by the vernacular language film industry in Assam are immense, to say the least. However, there are opportunities in the form of silver linings around the dark clouds. One perspective has to be on the quality of the movies. One can safely expect a lesser dearth of moviegoers if the quality of the movies is great. Secondly, the experience of watching an Assamese film also needs to improve in various places, like Guwahati, urban, semi-urban, and rural areas. The industry has to explore whether filmmakers, actors, actresses, etc. become part of the movie-watching experience. Thirdly, the promotion and marketing of Assamese movies need to improve tremendously to increase the participation of filmgoers. Presence on select social media and a few posters across certain places may not be sufficient to create sufficient catalyst and awareness to draw the crowds to the cinema halls.

As per a Business Standard report, 15.7 crore Indians bought 94.3 crore movie tickets in 2023, showing that the theatre-going population in India increased by 29% over 2022. The audience size in Kerala is comparable to that in Assam. According to the same report, 1.19 core people watched Malayalam films (primarily in Kerala) in 2023 and bought 6.70 crore Malayalam movie tickets during the year; the average Malayalam films watched was 5.6 films in 2023.

Audience participation is key to the success of many Bollywood and Tollywood movies. Many movies in Bollywood and Tollywood achieve remarkable success at the box office because of the promotion and marketing efforts behind these movies. This also involves audience- connection. However, this would require a lot of financial muscle, and, as one understands, financial power is lacking in the vernacular film industry in Assam. The industry may do well to learn a lot of lessons from the Assamese mobile theatre industry, which has shown the veracity of stellar box-office runs year after year, for decades now, despite its own internal challenges. Further, the number of available movie screens is restricted to around 65, which is extremely miniscule for a state of the size and population of Assam. This needs expansion. But the expansion is a collaborative effort that would require an increase in moviegoers in various places. Rather, there are contractions in the number of screens, as can be observed in the city of Guwahati itself. Till the time, expansion of screens becomes feasible, the industry could tinker about the idea of screening the Assamese movies in every nook and cranny of the state, maybe in makeshift halls, schools, educational institutions, etc. This has to be a collaborative effort by the industry as a whole. The state government could also step in to facilitate the expansion of the vernacular movie industry in the state. One welcome move by the state government is the opening of the “Aideo” cinema hall at Guwahati through the Assam Film (Finance and Development) Corporation Limited. The corporation is also financing films. There is also unused capacity in Jyoti Chitraban that may be used to screen vernacular movies.

All in all, the vernacular film industry is in a precarious position today. However, many talented independent filmmakers have come forward to make independent films, which is a good sign for a brighter future for the industry. Lessons can be learned from the Assamese mobile theatre industry as well as from other movie industries in other places, especially the movie industries of Southern India.