Agradoot (lit.'pioneer, harbinger')[1] was a group of Indian film technicians signing collectively as director, a phenomenon unique to Bengali cinema.[2][3][4] The Agradoot core unit, formed in 1946, consisted initially of Bibhuti Laha (cameraman, 1915–1997), Jatin Datta (sound), Sailen Ghosal (lab work), Nitai Bhattacharya (scenarist) and Bimal Ghosh (production).[5][6] The group was active up to the end of 1980s.[7]

Agradoot
NationalityIndian
OccupationFilm director

Selected filmography edit

Year Film
1947 Swapna-o-Sadhana
1948 Sabyasachi[8]
Samapika
1949 Sankalpa[9]
1951 Babla[10]
Sahajatri[11]
1952 Aandi
1954 Anupama[12]
Agni Pariksha[13]
1955 Shobar Opore
1956 Trijama
1957 Pathey Holo Deri
1959 Lalu Bhulu[14]
Surya Toran
1960 Khokababur Pratyabartan
Kuhak
1961 Agni Sanskar
1962 Bipasha
Nav Diganta
1963 Uttarayan
1965 Antaral
Suryatapa
Tapasi
1967 Nayika Sangbad
1968 Kokhono Megh[15]
1969 Chiradiner
1970 Manjari Opera
1971 Chhadmabeshi
1973 Sonar Khancha
1977 Din Amader
1981 Surya Sakhi
1989 Aparenher Alo

References edit

  1. ^ Biswas, Sailendra (2000). "Samsad Bengali-English Dictionary, 3rd ed". Calcutta: Sahitya Samsad. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
  2. ^ Ashish Rajadhyaksha; Paul Willemen (10 July 2014). Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. Routledge. pp. 40–. ISBN 978-1-135-94318-9. AGRADOOT Best-known instance of phenomenon unique to Bengali cinema: group of film technicians signing ... The Agradoot core unit, formed in 1946, consisted initially of Bibhuti Laha (cameraman born in 1915), Jatin Datta (sound), Sailen ...
  3. ^ India Perspectives. Produced by PTI for the Ministry of External Affairs. 2000. p. 16. Another significant happening in 1946 was the starting of a phenomenon unique to Bengali cinema: a group of film ... The Agradoot
  4. ^ The Word. Vol. 9. Rajendra Prasad College of Mass Communications & Media. 1971. p. 15. ... of talented makers of films in Bengal — Ritwick Ghatak, the Agragami and Agradoot teams of Directors, to mention but a ...
  5. ^ Georges Sadoul; Peter Morris (1 January 1972). Dictionary of Film Makers. University of California Press. pp. 2–. ISBN 978-0-520-02151-8. AGRADOOT pseud collective dir/scen/ prod Nishith Bannerjee Agragami (1924- ) photog Bibhuti Lata (1915- ) Among the best Bengali directors, ...
  6. ^ Sanjit Narwekar (1994). Directory of Indian film-makers and films. Flicks Books. p. 4. ISBN 9780948911408. Agradoot is the collective name for a group of film personalities formed and led by Bibhuti Laha (born 6 November 1915 North Calcutta, West Bengal state, eastern India) and comprising various film-makers at different times. Laha graduated from the ... In 1946 he created the Agradoot unit together with ...
  7. ^ Yves Thoraval (1 February 2000). The cinemas of India. Macmillan India. p. 237. ISBN 978-0-333-93410-4. Finally, we must mention one of India's best known 'cooperative' experiments, characteristic of the politicisation of Bengali cinema, the group Agradoot formed in 1946, and active up to the end of the '80s. All the constituent units in the production of films by this group — technicians, producer, scriptwriter, etc. — signed the work collectively, once it was over, without any other name of filmmaker than Agradoot. Among the productions of this type of ...
  8. ^ Madan Gaur (1973). Other Side of the Coin: An Intimate Study of Indian Film Industry. Trimurti Prakashan. p. 341.
  9. ^ Georges Sadoul (1987). Historia del cine mundial: desde los orígenes (in Spanish). Siglo XXI. pp. 424–. ISBN 968-23-0533-0. Un grupo de realizadores y operadores tomó el nombre colectivo de Agradoot y dirigió Sankalpa (El voto) y Sahajatri, antes de lograr una obra de gran nobleza y muy emocionante con Babia, historia de un niño que trabaja para mantener a ...
  10. ^ V. P. Sathe (1984). Filmotsav '84, Bombay. Directorate of Film Festivals.
  11. ^ Ansu Sur; Abhijit Goswami (1999). Bengali Film Directory. Nandan, West Bengal Film Centre. p. 61.
  12. ^ "4". The Illustrated Weekly of India. Vol. 85. Published for the proprietors, Bennett, Coleman & Company, Limited, at the Times of India Press. October 1964. p. 4.
  13. ^ Mahanayak. Westland. 2013. pp. 34–. ISBN 978-93-82618-33-1. When Bibhuti Laha, making films under the name of Agradoot, decided to cast them in Agni ...
  14. ^ B Vittal; A Bhattacharjee (15 June 2015). Gaata Rahe Mera Dil: 50 Classic Hindi Film Songs. HarperCollins Publishers India. pp. 100–. ISBN 978-93-5136-457-3. ... Directed by a group which called itself Agradoot, it is based on a story by Dr Nihar Ranjan Gupta about two young and ...
  15. ^ Peter Cowie (1968). World Filmography. Tantivy Press. p. 275. ISBN 9780498015694.

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