Prodyut Kumar Deka

Prodyut Kumar Deka (born 18 April 1978) is an Indian film & stage director, screenwriter and author residing in Assam, India. His films include Dhunia Tirutabur, Samiran Barua Ahi Ase, Surjasta, Borosi, Chiyahir Rong, Ji Golpor Ses Nai and The Government Servant. He turned to writing english fiction gradually from 2016-17 with the anthropological Ambari Series based on the Ambari Archeological site in Guwahati.

In films and television
He made his debut as scriptwriter and director with the critically acclaimed Assamese film Dhunia Tirutabur (Beautiful Woman),on the backdrop of a missing artiste in 2010. His next film based on a political subject Samiran Barua Ahi Ase (Return of Samiran Barua) was released in 2012. He tentatively planned to direct a sequel of the movie, titled Samiran Baruah Aru Nahe but the plans were dropped for unstated reasons.

His other films include Surjasta (A Sunset), on the subject of child negligence and a suspense drama Borosi (The Trap) and a television film based on Rabindranath Tagore's story Dristi (The Vision). The film Surjasta received two nomination in Best Actor Male and Female category in Filmfare Awards 2013 (East). An anthology film consisting of three stories titled Ji Golpor Sesh Nai directed by three different directors including Prodyut Kumar Deka was completed in 2019. A special screening of the film was held on 18 April 2019 and received favorable praise from the media.

His latest projects include Chiyahir Rong, a film about newspaper houses in Assam, based on a story by journalist Jitumoni Bora and released online in Reel Drama portal in 2021, and The Government Servant, a film based on a story in the backdrop of Mayong by Sahitya Akademi Award winner Jayant Madhab Bora. The film was also released online in Reel Drama portal in 2023.

He was Co-Scriptwriter of the films Orong (Strangers in the Mist) (2015) on child psychology and Rum Vodka Whiskey (2017), based on three unsuccessful love stories in different seasons. Orong won the National Award for Best Rabha film in 2015. He has written the screenplay of the forthcoming film Smriti directed by Pankaj Kalita which is under production. He also made two short films based on essays written by eminent Assamese writer and journalist Homen Borgohain titled Why I write (2008) and A short film about Walking (2011) which were shown in various film festivals. He also made a 50-minute documentary named An Anti-insurgent Journey depicting how former Asam Sahitya Sabha Chief Kanaksen Deka was vocal against subversive activities of the outfit in the nineties, despite knowing that his tough stand might invite death.

Theatre
He revived the theatre group Aikyatan in late 2010s, originally founded by his father Pabitra Kumar Deka in the early 1970s and directed intimate plays like Moni Kanchan written by Badal Sircar, Jonakor Pohar (The Rising of the Moon), The Game of Chess, 27 Gaari Kopah (27 Wagons full of Cotton) etc. Assamese translation of the play Eserenga Rod (A Sunny Morning) was done by Deka and directed by Pranjal Saikia which was performed in Natasurjya Drama Festival 2016, Guwahati; Kartik Hazarika National Drama Festival 2019, Tezpur and in Poorvottar Rashtriya Rang Utsav, 2017 in many cities like New Delhi, Amritsar, Jaipur and Vadodara.

Also associated with Indian People's Theatre Association, Assam, he has directed Coffee Housot Apeksha (On the occasion of platinum jubilee) and An Inspector Calls in 2019 at Guwahati.

As author
He writes on Cinema in the local Assamese newspapers like Sadin, Asomiya Pratidin and Asomiya Khabar. Published books on Cinema are Amar Kotha Teolokor Kotha (2014) and Cinema Suwar Ananda (2017), both anthologies of essays on diverse facets of Indian and foreign films. Two notable works include, a biography of the famous actor Biju Phukan: A Life in Cinema (2021) which won the Best Book on Cinema award in the Prag Cine Awards, 2022 and Doordarshanor Dinbur (2023), a history of television or Doordarshan in Assam.

Ambari is a trilogy of anthropological novels written by Prodyut Kumar Deka based on the Ambari Archeological site which was discovered in Guwahati in 1969. He wrote the first novel Ambari in 2017. The second part Prophecy of Ambari was published in 2018, while the concluding part A Monk in Ambari was published in 2020. All the three books have been published by Delhi-based Educreation Publishing.

Personal life
Prodyut Kumar Deka was born in Guwahati, Assam, younger son of Pabitra Kumar Deka, founder of Roopkar magazine, film critic, screenwriter and humor writer, and grandson of Mahendra Nath Deka, a govt officer and film distributor of early seventies. He has one elder brother Prantik Deka, a still photographer, film critic and producer of documentaries. Prodyut passed his graduation in Commerce in 2000 and completed Law in 2006 from Gauhati University. He works as a Section Officer in the Assam Secretariat since 2010 and lives in Pub-Sarania, Guwahati, Assam (India). He is married to Pallabi Borah, who hails originally from Nagaon, and they have one son, Nihaar Ranjan Deka.

Prodyut along with his family members also runs a non-government organization Pabitra Kumar Deka Archive, an archive of old Assamese film materials, in memory of his father at their residence. The archive presents Roopkar Award to one outstanding personality every year from stage, film and media since 2011.