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{{Short description|Cinematographer from Assam}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2026}}
{{Use Indian English|date=March 2026}}
{{Infobox person
| name =
| birth_date = 31 October 1965
| birth_place =
| death_date = 3 September 2004 (aged 39)
|death place =
| image =
| parents =
| occupation =
| alma_mater = [[Film and Television Institute of India|FTII]]
| website =
}}

'''Mrinal Kanti Das''' was an Indian cinematographer who predominantly worked in Assamese-language films. For his work on the Assamese films ''[[Adajya]]'' and ''Rag Birag'', he was awarded the [[National Film Award for Best Cinematography]] in 1996.<ref name="mw-2010">{{Cite news|title =Mrinal Kanti Das remembered|url =https://assamtribune.com/mrinal-kanti-das-remembered|publisher=The Assam Tribune |date = 15 September 2010}}
</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title =Kamal Hasan, Tabu, Gulzar bag national film awards|url =https://m.rediff.com/news/may/06film.htm|publisher=Rediff}}</ref><ref name="Film course in memory of lensman-2006">{{Cite news|title =Film course in memory of lensman|url =https://www.telegraphindia.com/north-east/film-course-in-memory-of-lensman/cid/1627496|publisher=The Telegraph|date = 13 April 2006}}</ref><ref name="Scroll-2016">{{Cite news|title =The untold story of maverick cinematographer Mrinal Kanti Das| author=
Dipankar Sarkar|url = https://scroll.in/reel/807404/the-untold-story-of-maverick-cinematographer-mrinal-kanti-das|publisher=Scroll|date = 30 April 2016}}</ref> He was the first cinematographer from Assam to receive the national award for cinematography.<ref name="mw-2010"/><ref name="Scroll-2016"/>

Notably, ''[[Adajya]]'' and ''Rag Birag'' were among the first Assamese-language films to win the National Film Award for Best Cinematography. Mrinal served as cinematographer on at least 13 movies, apart from television productions. Six of the movies photographed by him (''[[Adajya]]'', [[National Film Award for Best Editing|''Rag Birag'']], [[National Film Award for Best Biographical Film|''Hastir Kanya'']], [[National Film Award for Best Anthropological/Ethnographic Film|''Koihatir Dhuliya'']], ''Baibhob'', and ''Panoi Jonky'') have received eight national awards and two international awards.<ref name="Film course in memory of lensman-2006"/> ''Hiya Diya Niya'', another movie, is considered a highly popular and financially successful film in Assamese history.<ref name="Parthajit Barua-2022">
{{Cite news|title =Resurrecting the dying Assamese film industry was one of Munin Barua's many contributions | author= Parthajit Barua|url =https://northeastfilmjournal.com/resurrecting-the-dying-assamese-film-industry-was-one-of-munin-baruas-many-contributions|publisher=North East Film Journal |date = 5 November 2022}}</ref>

Mrinal was on the [[50th National Film Awards|film jury]] that evaluated feature films for awards at the 50th National Film Awards in 2002.

==Early life==
After completing his schooling in Guwahati in the early 1980s, Mrinal was selected for civil engineering at the government-run [[Jorhat Engineering College]], Assam. However, he quit midway to join the State Forest Service at a young age. He had a passion for photography, shuttlecock, rock climbing, trekking, and mountaineering. In 1986, Mrinal became the first Indian to reach the summit of [[List of mountain peaks of Himachal Pradesh|Menthosa]], a peak in the Western Himalayas standing at an elevation of about 6,443 meters.<ref name="Scroll-2016"/><ref name="mw-2010"/>

The death of promising filmmaker and film activist Manjyoti Baruah, his friend since school, in a tram accident in 1986 was a turning point in Mrinal's life.<ref name="Fadeout at prime time-2004">{{Cite news|title =Fadeout at prime time|url =https://www.telegraphindia.com/north-east/fadeout-at-prime-time-tribute/cid/1560122|publisher=The Telegraph|date = 11 September 2004}}</ref> To fulfill his friend's filmmaking dream, he enrolled at the [[Film and Television Institute of India]] (FTII), Pune, in 1988, initially on leave from the Forest Service.<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>

==Career==
After graduating from FTII, Mrinal assisted cinematographer [[Binod Pradhan]]. Mrinal became widely known as an independent cinematographer after his work on ''Mimangsha'' in 1994, one or two years after graduating from the institute.<ref name="Film course in memory of lensman-2006"/><ref name="Scroll-2016"/> In 1996–1997, he got his major break. During these years, he worked on three films – ''[[Adajya]]'', ''Rag Birag'', and ''Hastir Kanya'' – which together received [[National Film Award for Best Debut Film of a Director|five national awards]].<ref name="Fadeout at prime time-2004"/> He directed and videographed ''Rudaali'' (1994), a 13-episode teleserial, in addition to documentaries for Doordarshan. His debut as a feature film director, ''Aranyanat Borukhun'', was about 10% complete as of September 2004.<ref name="Scroll-2016"/><ref name="mw-2010"/>

==Death==
Mrinal Kanti Das died from injuries sustained in a road accident on a highway in Jorhat, Assam, in September 2004. He is survived by his wife, Rubee Das. The Mrinal Das Foundation, an organization established by her in collaboration with friends and well-wishers, organizes film appreciation courses and other activities to promote meaningful cinema.<ref name="Film course in memory of lensman-2006"/>

==Filmography==
'''As cinematographer'''
*FTII experimental film directed by Harmuz – won a national award in the short film section
*''Unmekhon'' (1992) – unreleased
*''Deuta'' (TV show)<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>
*''Xoisor Pothar Manuh'' (6-episode TV series)
*''Mimangsha'' (1994)<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>
*''[[Adajya]]'' (1996)
*''Rag Birag'' (1996)
*''Hastir Kanya'' (1997)
*''Hothat Brishti'' (1998)<ref>{{Cite news|title =Hothat Brishti on YouTube| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJMdS1Q0Ogk |date = 23 September 2025}}</ref>
*''Baibhob'' (1999)
*''Koihatir Dhuliya'' (1999)<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>
*''Hiya Diya Niya'' (2000)<ref>{{Cite news|title =Hiya Diya Niya Full Assamese Movie on YouTube| url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt1fUCoJXnw|date = 23 September 2025}}</ref><ref name="Parthajit Barua-2022"/>
*''Asene Konoba Hiyat'' (2000)
*''Anyo Ek Jatra'' (2001)
*[[:as:দাগ (চলচ্চিত্ৰ)|''Daag'']] (2001)
*[[Nayak (2001 Assamese film)|''Nayak'']] (2001)
*''Mon'' (2002)
*''Panoi Jonky (Panei Jonki)'' - in Mising language (2002)<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>
*''Gun Gun Gane Gane''<ref>{{Cite news|title =Goon Goon Gaane Gaane on YouTube|url =https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snIkldWqZi4}}</ref>
*''Anurag'' (2004)
*''Sneha Bandhan'' (2006)<ref>{{Cite news|title =Snehabandhan on Vimeo| url=https://vimeo.com/842902607 |date = 23 September 2025}}
</ref>
*''Sapon''
*''Nishiddha Nodi''
*''Noi Poriya Collage''

'''As director'''
*''Rudaali'' (1994) - 13-episode TV series
*''Spandan'' (documentary on Assam's Jaipore Rain Forest)<ref name="mw-2010"/>
*''Aranyanat Borukhun'' (2004) - 10% complete<ref name="Scroll-2016"/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb title|tt14683212|Snehabandhan (2006)}}
*{{IMDb title|tt7886850|Mon (2002)}}

[[Category:Best Cinematography National Film Award winners]]
[[Category:Hindi film cinematographers]]
[[Category:Cinematographers from Assam]]
[[Category:Film and Television Institute of India alumni]]
[[Category:Bengali film cinematographers]]
[[Category:Film directors from Assam]]
[[Category:Assamese-language film directors]]
[[Category:Indian mountain climbers]]
[[Category:Indian conservationists]]
[[Category:People from Assam]]
[[Category:Assam University alumni]]
[[Category:National Film Awards (India) ceremonies]]
[[Category:1965 births]]
[[Category:2004 deaths]]

Mrinal Kanti Das (cinematographer) - Revision history

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