Brajanath Sarma (15 September 1894 – 1960) was a playwright, actor and a pioneer of mobile

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Early life

Brajanath Sarma, also called Natyacharjya (''a guru of dramatics'') was born in the village Sila in the Bajali area of modern

Barpeta district Barpeta district is an administrative districts of Assam, district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located at Barpeta. The district occupies an area of and has a population of 1,642,420 (as of 2001). History Bar ...

. His father was Padmanath Sarma and mother was Nareswari Devi. After clearing his entrance examination he enrolled for higher studies in the Tarinipriya Chatuspathy of Gouripur,

. But he left the studies and came back home. He joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

and fought battles in

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and in other places in overseas in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Career

During the period he met an Englishman named George and became interested in

acting Acting is an activity in which a story is told by means of its enactment by an actor who adopts a character—in theatre, television, film, radio, or any other medium that makes use of the mimetic mode. Acting involves a broad range of sk ...

. While being posted in Basorah, he was an active member of the West Bengali Democratic Club and played roles in various Bengali Dramas from 1917 to 1921. In 1921, he returned home and forms a 'jatra party' (drama group) in his village bearing the name - 'Sila Kalika Opera Party' with association of his brothers Krishnakanta and Uday Sarma. The drama group was dismantled in 1924 and he formed a new group called 'Sarbhog Dakhin Ganakgari Party' where he directed various plays Dhatri panna, Basapati, Shanti, Kalaphad, Ranjit Singh etc. He trained many young actors like Chandra Choudhury of Barpeta and Phani Sarma of Tezpur. Five years later, in 1930, he formed his historic Kohinoor Opera party. He was the pioneer of co-acting in the Assamese theater. His was also the first party to tour and perform dramas in various places like 'Bengali Jatra' in Assam. The same movement later translated into the now famous 'Mobile Theaters of Assam'. In 1936, he discontinued Kohinoor Opera Party and joined the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

. He was the Vice-President of Barnagar Congress Committee. During the period of Quit India Movement, he and his associates alienated themselves from the non-violence movement and was the architect of destruction of the Barnagar Aerodrome and

Sarbhog Sarbhog (also spelt as Sorbhog) is a town and a town area committee in Barpeta district in the Indian state of Assam. It is located on the banks of river Beki and is known for the century-old temple of lord Krishna known as "Gorokhiya Gohainr T ...

police station. For the same, he was jailed for three years in 1943. After that jailed period he went into business. Brajanath Sarma

Following the independence of India, he joined Socialist Party and severed his ties with Congress. He contested election from the Socialist party in 1952 and lost. In the later years of his life, he came back to dramas.

Death

He died of

respiratory disease Respiratory diseases, or lung diseases, are pathological conditions affecting the organs and tissues that make gas exchange difficult in air-breathing animals. They include conditions of the respiratory tract including the trachea, bronchi, ...

Guwahati Guwahati () the largest city of the Indian state of Assam, and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the seat of the Government of Assam. Th ...

in 1960.

Works

Plays

*Dhatri Panna *Basaspati *Shanti *Kalapahad *Ranjit Singh *Barjita *Manomati *Patita *Karuna *Urbashi

Autobiographical

*Biplobi

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sarma, Brajanath Indian male dramatists and playwrights Dramatists and playwrights from Assam 1960 deaths 1894 births Assamese-language dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Indian male writers