Tea factory that was Assam’s first film studio to become a heritage property

A 100-year old tea garden factory at Bholaguri that Jyotiprasad Agarwala –father of modern Assamese culture – had converted into a film studio to make the first Assamese film way back 1933, was on Tuesday declared a heritage property with chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal saying the state government would henceforth look after it. “It was a record of sorts that the doyen of modern Assamese culture had converted this tea factory at Bholaguri into a film studio and made the first film more than eight decades ago. The government will preserve it as a heritage property and look after its conservation,” Sonowal said. He was speaking at a function on the occasion of the 65th death anniversary of Agarwala, observed as Shilpi Divas in Assam.

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Sonowal recalled the story of how Agarwala had taken pains to set up an improvised film studio called Chitraban Studio in his family-owned tea garden at Bholaguri, about 310 km east of Guwahati, and how he had produced a film with local artists who had not even seen one in their lives. “It is a very inspiring story or courage, dedication and patriotism. We have to preserve this heritage structure for posterity,” he said.

The tea garden, which had passed on to the state-owned Assam Tea Corporation (ATC) is not in good shape, and the original tea factory that Agarwala had converted into a make-shift film studio in 1933 is also in a dilapidated condition.

Recalling Agarwala’s contributions, chief minister Sonowal said he was not just a pioneer filmmaker and artist. “Jyotiprasad was also a great revolutionary and freedom fighter, and his patriotic songs continue to inspire generation after generation,” he said. The chief minister also gave away the annual Shilpi Divas awards to singer Mridula Das and musician Ramen Choudhury, and unveiled a bust of the artist at Bholaguri.