Nov 12, 2022: Pulak Gogoi, one of Assam’s most prominent figures in the arts and culture, died on Saturday morning after a long illness. He was 84 years old.
For a time, Gogoi was being treated at Gauhati Medical College Hospital (GMCH). He breathed his last breath at 8.30 a.m. today.
Born in 1938, Gogoi had a deep understanding of both in canvas and celluloid, which led to a series of activities in the 1960s, including exhibitions in Guwahati, Shillong, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Washington, as well as the introduction of the parallel film movement to the Assamese community with “Khoj” and other films.
Pulak Gogoi was a pioneering cartoonist in Assam.
Between 1963 and 1964, he worked as a cartoonist for Asom Bani, a popular weekly news magazine. He later joined Dainaik Asam.
In 1967, he launched his own business as the editor of Cartoon, the first of its kind in Assam, which ran for five years until 1972.
From 1967 to 1972, he worked as the chief assistant to Dr. Bhupen Hazarika for the popular Assamese magazine Amar Pratinidhi.
He continued his career as a freelance political cartoonist in newspapers and magazines such as Sadin and Abikal.
He has held numerous solo exhibitions in and outside of Assam, including the United States, with the support of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Art Society.
Pulak Gogoi made his cinematic debut with ‘Khoj’ in 1974. So far, he has directed nine films, five of which he has produced, one of which won the National Award for Best Regional Film in 1993 and the Film Fare Award for Best Assamese Film in 2014.
Srimati Mahimamoyee (1978), Sadari (1983), Sendur (1984), Relar Alir Dubari Bon (1993), Morom Nodir Gabharu Ghat (1999), and Patnee (2001) are some of his notable films (2003).
Pulak Gogoi has a long list of awards and honours to his name. At the Prag Cine Awards in 2013, he received the award for Best Direction in the Assamese Film Category for Momtaz. In 2016, he received the Guruji Adya Sharma award, and the Assam government honoured him in 2017.
