Jyoti Prasad Agarwala

Jyoti Prasad Agarwala was a renowned Indian playwright, songwriter, poet, writer and filmmaker. He was born on 17th June 1903 to his parents, Paramananda Agarwala(1869-1934) and Kiranmoyee Devi (Died in 1933). His uncles, Chandra Kumar Agarwala Bio coming soon... >> Read More... and Ananda Chandra Agarwala, were renowned Assamese poets. His ancestor and forefather, Nabrangram Agarwala (1811-1865), came to Assam 1811 from the Marwar region of Rajasthan.

Jyoti Prasad Agarwala completed his education in the various Assam and Calcutta schools and completed his matriculation degree in 1921. He went to Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1926, where he studied economics, but had to return to Assam in 1930 before completing the course because of specific unknown reasons. On the way back to his home in Assam, Jyoti Prasad spent nearly seven months at the UFA studio in Germany learning film-making. He returned to his home in Assam and started joining the rallies and contributing to India's independence. It further disrupted his education. Because of this scenario, he had to go to jail for fifteen months in 1932.

By the end of 1933, he established the Chitraban Studio at the Bholaguri Tea Estate, where he was born and meanwhile began filming the movie Joymoti - the first film ever made in Assam. He has written stories, novels, books, plays, films, poems and short stories. He has also worked on certain incomplete plays made by him, like Kanaklata, Sundarknowar, and Sonpakhilee. In 1936, he got married to Devajani Bhuyan. Many people in Assam consider him a cultural icon, famously known for giving a creative vision and having the best outputs out of it. Eventually, he was called "the Rupkonwar of Assamese culture" or the known Guru of Assam.

He is the known personality behind the establishment of Assamese cinema and the film Joymoti (1935). He died because of cancer on 17th January 1951 at his residence in Tezpur, Assam, India. Jyoti Prasad's death anniversary is called Silpi Divas (or Artists' Day).In honour of Jyoti Prasad's contribution to Indian cinema, Indian culture, and the Assamese culture formation, the Government of Assam issued a commemorative stamp of "Agarwala" in 2004, which was later approved by the Prime Minister of India by the middle of 2004.