Utpal Borpujari
- Director
- Writer
A National Award-winning filmmaker from India, Utpal Borpujari is a former film critic 'n' journalist and an alumni of Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee. His fiction debut, an Assamese children's feature film titled "Ishu" (produced by the erstwhile Children's Film Society, India (CFSI), which has been merged with the National Film Development Corporation), had its World Premiere at the 23rd Kolkata International Film Festival (where it received best director and best film nominations in the Indian Languages Competition), 2017, and followed it up with a Special Jury Award in the Indian Competition section of 10th Bengaluru International Film Festival, 2018, and the National Award for Best Assamese film at the 65th National Film Awards, 2018. The film also won several major awards at the Assam State Film Awards 2018, apart from awards at other state-level competitions, and has travelled to many international film festivals. Earlier, he had won the Swarna Kamal for the Best Film Critic at India's 50th National Film Awards, 2003.
As a filmmaker, Borpujari made his first documentary film "Mayong: Myth/Reality" in 2012, which was screened in several film festivals and released nationally on DVD by Junglee Home Video, a unit of Times Music. His next documentary "Songs of the Blue Hills" (2013) was invited to nearly 20 international film festivals, including the Indian Panorama section of the 45th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Goa in 2014, and also screened as part of world music course at the famous Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China. His feature-length documentary "Memories of a Forgotten War", which focuses on World War II's famous battles in Northeastern India, got its world premiere at the Indian Panorama section of the 47th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa, 2016, while his latest documentary "Baruar Xongxar (The House of Baruas)" had its world premiere at the Indian Panorama section of the 54th IFFI, Goa, 2023. His other documentaries, "For a Durbar of the People" (2013, made for India's Ministry of Panchayati Raj), "Soccer Queens of Rani" (2014, made for Rajya Sabha Television) and "Mask Art of Majuli" (2022) have also been well appreciated, the last mentioned having been selected to a number of film festivals too. Borpujari has further directed a short fiction film in Assamese, "Xogun" (Vulture, 2020), which got selected to a number of prestigious film festivals. His script for a Hindi feature film, "An Unreal Story", was part of the prestigious NFDC Screenwriters' Lab, 2021, and documentary project "The Dong Story", to be jointly directed with Bhaskar Jyoti Das, was part of the "In-Development" section at the Dhaka DocLab 2023.
As an erstwhile member of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI), he served on several film juries. He has been member of juries at the India's National Film Awards, IFFI Goa and MIFF-Mumbai too. He is a member of the Network for Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema (NETPAC), an organisation that promotes Asian cinema globally.
As a filmmaker, Borpujari made his first documentary film "Mayong: Myth/Reality" in 2012, which was screened in several film festivals and released nationally on DVD by Junglee Home Video, a unit of Times Music. His next documentary "Songs of the Blue Hills" (2013) was invited to nearly 20 international film festivals, including the Indian Panorama section of the 45th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Goa in 2014, and also screened as part of world music course at the famous Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China. His feature-length documentary "Memories of a Forgotten War", which focuses on World War II's famous battles in Northeastern India, got its world premiere at the Indian Panorama section of the 47th International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa, 2016, while his latest documentary "Baruar Xongxar (The House of Baruas)" had its world premiere at the Indian Panorama section of the 54th IFFI, Goa, 2023. His other documentaries, "For a Durbar of the People" (2013, made for India's Ministry of Panchayati Raj), "Soccer Queens of Rani" (2014, made for Rajya Sabha Television) and "Mask Art of Majuli" (2022) have also been well appreciated, the last mentioned having been selected to a number of film festivals too. Borpujari has further directed a short fiction film in Assamese, "Xogun" (Vulture, 2020), which got selected to a number of prestigious film festivals. His script for a Hindi feature film, "An Unreal Story", was part of the prestigious NFDC Screenwriters' Lab, 2021, and documentary project "The Dong Story", to be jointly directed with Bhaskar Jyoti Das, was part of the "In-Development" section at the Dhaka DocLab 2023.
As an erstwhile member of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI), he served on several film juries. He has been member of juries at the India's National Film Awards, IFFI Goa and MIFF-Mumbai too. He is a member of the Network for Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema (NETPAC), an organisation that promotes Asian cinema globally.
