Lights, Camera, Action: Odisha Veteran Filmmaker Ghanashyam Mohapatra & His Lifelong Love For Films

Bhubaneswar: After a lifetime of contribution to the Odia film industry making films and documentaries that have won several awards bringing him national and international acclaim, no one could be more qualified to be conferred with the prestigious Jayadev Award than veteran Odia producer-director Ghanashyam Mohapatra.

Born on January 1, 1933, in Dhenkanal, Mohapatra was drawn to dramatics since his college days. After pursuing cinematography in Bengaluru at the age of 22, he joined Filmistan Studio as an assistant director in Mumbai, where he worked in more than 20 films.

But his heart was always in Odissa, its people, culture and traditions, which he was keen to capture on film. With this goal, in 1960 he launched Konark Films. In Odissa, he devoted himself to making meaningful films, first focusing on documentaries with a message on issues such as health, nutrition and family planning, among others.

Produced in 1962, his first documentary “Maa & Shisu” won the Best Documentary Award from the Odisha government in 1975.

In 1969, he made the Odia documentary “Radha O Shyam”, which won the Best Documentary Film Award in 1972.

In 1971, Mohapatra was tempted to capture on celluloid the classical dance styles of Odissa featuring celebrated Odissi dancer Sanjukta Panigrahi and Guru Kelu Charan Mohapatra. Titled “Odissi Dance”, it was the first Eastman colour documentary screened at the Fifth World Film Festival in New Delhi in 1972 organised by the Cultural Department of the then USSR.

In 1974, he ventured into the feature film domain with “Kanaklata”, an inspiring tale of realistic cinema. After he failed to find a producer, he mortgaged his land in Cuttack to take a bank loan to finance the film. Adapted from the classic novel of Late Nanda Kishore Bal, the film depicts rural life of Odissa in the early 20th century.

“Kanaklata” twice participated in the International Film Festivals of India in New Delhi in 1975 and 1979. It was also the first Odia feature film to be invited by the Museum of Modern Art, New York, to participate in the festival of India films.

“Krishi Jantrapati” and “For a Better Living” fetched him national and international awards in 1987. During 1963–82, he was the first from Odisha to be in the All India Panel of Film Division, Bombay.

RECOGNITION

International

* Diploma of Honour at Fourth International Agro-Film Festival, Czechoslovakia, in 1987 for “For a Better Living”

* Participation at XV Internationaler Agraro-Fim und TV, Berlin, in 1988 for “For a Better Living”

* Guest at first international non-feature film festival at Leningrad, in 1989 and at Fourth International Documentary Film Festival, Amsterdam, 1991

National

National Award for “Krishi Jantrapati”, 1985

National Award for “For a Better Living”, 1986

 Odisha

Best Documentary Award for “Radha O Shyam”, 1972

Best Documentary Award for “Maa O Shishu”, 1975

Award for best feature film “Kanaklata”, 1977

Award for “Krishi Jantrapati”, 1988

(Pictures Courtesy: Ghanshyam Mohapatra,Film Director and Producer/Facebook)