Prabhat Mukherjee is one of the old-blooded people who managed to cut a golden path for the Assamese film industry in the mid-50s. Prabhat Mukherjee, who opened the international door for Assamese cinema, was not only a popular film director, actor and a book writer in the Assamese film industry but also for the people of India.
Biography of Prabhat Mukherjee
| Name | Prabhat Mukherjee[1] |
| Date of Birth | 1917 |
| Date of Death | 1997 |
| Award | 1. Prabhat Mukherjee’s 1964 film Sadhana won the President’s Silver Medal. 2. Prabhat Mukherjee directorial Jeevan Saathi won the President’s Silver Medal in 1963. 3. Nua Bou directed by Prabhat Mukherjee won the Best Film award in 1962. 4. The Assamese film Puberun directed by Prabhat Mukherjee won the President’s Silver Medal in 1959. |
Early Life of Prabhat Mukherjee
Actor, writer, film director Prabhat Mukherjee was born in 1917. Mukherjee who started his career with Akashvani (All India Radio) introduced a new era in the Indian film industry in the 50s by excelling in Bengali, Assamese, Oriya and Hindi language films.
Also Read : Biography of Parineeta Borthakur
Career
The first film directed by him was ‘Maa’ (in Bengali language, 1956). Mukherjee directed three more films till 1960. Assamese film Puberun directed by Mukherjee was released in 1959. He also wrote the script for the film. From 1972 to 1984, Mukherjee made at least five Oriya films. One of these is Ratnakar (Oriya, 1982), which was the first film of Oriya, actor and director Prashant Nanda. In 1962, Mukherjee directed the first Hindi-language film Shayar-e-Kashmir Mahjoor, which was a biopic on Ghulam Ahmad, the famous national poet of Kashmir and produced by Government of Jammu and Kashmir. Balraj Sahni played the title role. In the mid-1950s, Mukherjee took Assamese cinema to the Jagat Sabha by revamping the new genre created by Jyotiprasad Agarwala in the Assamese film industry. Prabhat Mukherjee’s “Puberun” received international recognition. Puverun was screened at the 6th Berlin International Film Festival opening the international door for Assamese cinema. Puberun won the President’s Silver Medal in 1960, the first Assamese film to be screened abroad.
The film titled Puberun, which has also been produced by many foreign artists, was produced by K.C. Roy and Paji Doss. Importantly, Mukherjee also wrote the screenplay and dialogues of this film titled Puberun.
Some of the books written by Prabhat Mukherjee are – “Redemption at Shirdi”, “Lalitagiri, Udayagiri and Ratnagiri”, “History of the Chaitanya Faith in Orissa”, “Pilgrim Tax And Temple Scandals: A Critical Study Of The Important Jagannath Temple Records During British Rule” etc.
Personal Life
Mukherjee married to Arundhati Devi, who was an actress in Bengali film. She acted in Mukherjee’s directorial debut Maa. Mukherjee had also co-starred with Arundhati in Bengali film Shorashi (1954) directed by Pashupati Chetrjee. However his married life did not last. Arundhati met director Tapan Sinha at the Barlin Film Festival in 1957 and later Arundhati Devi and Sinha got married. His second marriage also failed. Though he was a successful person in his career but unfortunately his marriage life didn’t last long.
Conclusion
Prabhat Mukherjee, who died in 1997 at the age of 80, is one of the most important male figure who started the renaissance in the Assamese film industry. Despite failing twice in worldly life, he was a man of strong personality with versatility.
FAQ
1. When was Prabhat Mukherjee born?
Ans: Mukherjee was born on 1917.
2. Name some of the films directed by Mukherjee.
Ans: Some of the films directed by Mukherjee are – Maa, Puberun, Nua Bou, Shayar-e-Kashmir Mahjoor, Ratnakar etc.
3. Name some of the books written by Mukherjee.
Ans: some of the books written by Mukherjee are – “Redemption at Shirdi”, “Lalitagiri, Udayagiri and Ratnagiri”, “History of the Chaitanya Faith in Orissa”, “Pilgrim Tax And Temple Scandals: A Critical Study Of The Important Jagannath Temple Records During British Rule” etc.
4. When did Prabhat Mukherjee died?
Ans: Prabhat Mukherjee, died in 1997 at the age of 80.
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