| Roopkar | |
| Category: | Film Magazine |
| Frequency: | Monthly |
| Language: | Assamese |
| Editor: | Pabitra Kumar Deka |
| Editor Title: | Editor |
| Founded: | 1975 |
| Country: | India |
Roopkar was the first Assamese language, tabloid-sized magazine about Assamese cinema, theater and culture. Established in 1975, the magazine was founded and edited by journalist and humor writer Pabitra Kumar Deka.[1] Advisers of the magazine were famous singer & composer Bhupen Hazarika and writer Nirode Choudhury.
Roopkar was published on a monthly basis.[2] It was the most popular entertainment magazine in the Northeast; it also instituted the first popular film awards Roopkar Awards in Assam in 1975. [3] Many new and young journalists contributed to the magazine, some of whom have made a mark in the field of cinema journalism like Ratna Ozha, Kamal Lochan Das, Shekharjyoti Bhuyan, Arun Lochan Das, Rejek Aji Ahmed, Azim Hazarika, Hemanta Kumar Das, Jibaraj Barman, Utpal Datta, Bidyut Kumar Bhuyan, Sanjib Hazarika, etc. The Kolkata correspondent for the magazine was Nitai Ghosh. The magazine existed till the early nineties. Besides cultural reporting, various renowned writers like Padma Borkotoki, Lakshmi Nandan Bora, Nirode Choudhury, Ratna Oza, Arun Goswami, Udayaditya Bharali, Nitya Bora, Debabrat Das, Dilip Chandan, Satya Ranjan Kalita, Prafulla Kumar Dutta etc. wrote social novels for the magazine. Bhupen Hazarika and Lakshmi Nandan Bora also wrote their famous column Anyamat and Brittor Bahirot respectively for the magazine.
A film critic and a former reporter of the magazine, Utpal Datta, made a short film on Pabitra Kumar Deka titled Bye Lane 2 which got selected in various film festivals including the Indian Panorama Section in the Goa International Film festival in 2014.[4] [5]
Roopkar Award was instituted in 2011 in the memory of its founder Pabitra Kumar Deka. It is given yearly to one distinguished personality in the field of stage, cinema and media.[6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15]
Roopkar Prakashan, which was the publisher of the magazine, also published few books such Samipeshu (Dr Nirmalprava Bordoloi), Hoimontika (Pulok Gogoi), Asomor Satuta Dosokar Chalachitra (Pabitra Kumar Deka) etc.
Roopkar Prakashan was revived again in the 2020s with publication of new books like Roopkaror Shrestha Golpo, Kapurusor Taruwal etc.[16]
From 1975 to 1995
From 2020 to Present