Remembering the state's cultural icon Rupkonwar Jyotiprasad Agarwala

Newsdesk:

Remembering the state's cultural icon and freedom fighter, Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, on the occasion of Shilpi Divas on wednesday marking his death anniversary.
Silpi Divas celebrated on 17 January every year is an important day in Assam.  This was the day when Jyoti Prasad Aggarwal died in 1951.  Jyoti Prasad Aggarwala, the first film producer and Marwari of Rajasthan, is the "Rupkonwar" of Assam.  He was a true Assamese at heart, despite the fact that his ancestors came to Assam from Rajasthan in 1811.
 Jyoti Prasad was born on June 17, 1903 in Dibrugarh . On the day of his death, he truly left a void that could never be filled.  It's sad that we lost him so soon.  He was only 49 years old when he was diagnosed with cancer.  But his legacy still remains in the heart of every Assamese.  His life was short, but he paved the way for future artists in various fields of culture including theatre, literature, film production, lyrics, music composition etc.  He fell in love with the culture, and his contribution to the performing arts is amazing.  Without him, the music and film industry of Assam would not have been the same.
 He was a pioneer of film production in the state and made the first Assamese film in the 1930s – at a time when there was hardly any infrastructure for film production in Assam.
 Agarwal's film 'Joymoti', released in Calcutta in 1935, was the saga of Ahom princess Soti Joymoti, who was tortured to death by the then Ahom king because she refused to betray her husband Gadapani for the sake of the Ahom kingdom. 'Joymoti' was temporarily shot at 'Chitraban Studios' built by Agarwala in Bholaguri Tea Estate.