R. K. Bidur Singh (17 October 1941 – 9 June 2021) was a notable Indian film critic and film society activist from

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

. He won the Best Critic Award at the

56th National Film Awards The 56th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in India to celebrate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 2008. Three committees were ins ...

. He worked as a government employee and retired as an assistant account officer. His published books include ''Wakhal Machu Machu, Shaktam Makhal Makhal'' (2011), ''Mitkup Khara'' (2012) and ''Kaunakhigadra Haina (Atenba Punshi Shaktamsing)'' (2013). Manipur State Film Development Society (MSFDS) described him as an ''Encyclopedia of Manipuri cinema''. He succumbed to post COVID-19 complications on 9 June 2021.

Associations and activities

R.K. Bidur Singh was the founding president of the Manipur Film Journalist/Critics Association (MFJCA). He was also a jury member of the National Film Awards for Best Writing on Cinema at the

57th National Film Awards The 57th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 2009. Three different committee ...

. He took charge for some years as the General Secretary of the Imphal Cine Club. He had associated with

National Film Development Corporation of India The National Film Development Corporation of India (NFDC) based in Mumbai is the central agency established in 1975, to encourage high quality Indian cinema. It functions in areas of film financing, production and distribution and under the Min ...

(Kolkata) - Film Script Panel,

Film Critics Circle of India Film Critics Circle of India (FCCI) is a society comprising notable film critics from all the major film producing states of India. At the AGM, conducted at the International Film Festival of India—2013, Subhash Ghai said, "You are in a highly ...

and the Cultural Forum, Manipur as members. Singh was the former Chairman of the film screening committee, Manipur Film Development Corporation Limited. He had also worked as the Outside Assessor at the Commission Programme Centre of

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

PPC (NE), Guwahati and Imphal and was the former festival director of the North East Film Festival.

Awards and accolades

R.K. Bidur Singh was conferred with the Outstanding Film Activist award by Manipur Film Development Corporation in 1997. He also received the Best Writing on Cinema award for his book ''Wakhal Machu Machu, Shaktam Makhal Makhal'' at the Manipur State Film Awards 2013. In 2008, he won the

National Film Award for Best Film Critic The National Film Award for Best Film Critic is one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Bro ...

at the

. The citation for the National Award reads, "''For taking the readers to a state little known to our film makers. He understands cinema like few others, bringing with him an open mindset that accepts the plurality of thought. He upholds the cause of regional film makers and his ability to focus on cultural relativity does not leave him even when he talks of international cinema. He loves films and it shows in his works''".

References

External links

* RK Bidur Singh at th
Film Critics Circle of India
* RK Bidur Singh at th
Journal of India Cinema
* RK Bidur Singh at th
Directorate of Film Festivals of India (DFF)
{{DEFAULTSORT:SINGH, R.K. BIDUR Indian film critics Best Critic National Film Award winners 1941 births 2021 deaths People from Imphal Meitei people