Indian director-producer and head of India’s newly opened Manipur State Film and Television Institute Nilotpal Majumdar, who founded DocedgeKolkata – the Asian Forum for Documentary – has received this year’s European Documentary Network (EDN) Award, “in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the development of the international documentary culture”. 

“Majumdar’s work has been instrumental in bringing Asian and international documentary professionals together, and has contributed considerably to the development of the documentary genre across borders,” said producer and EDN director Paul Pauwels. “His pioneering efforts also helped to open up a brand-new market for both young and established documentary filmmakers in India who would otherwise not have entered the international arena.”

The prize was presented at Kolkata’s Goethe-Institut (a partner of the event) during the 2017 DocedgeKolkata programme, which ended yesterday (5 March) – it is a platform for co-production and training in the Asia-Pacific region including a pitching forum that attracts documentary talents, financiers and sales agents from all over the world.

Majumdar has directed and produced 18 films, mainly documentaries and shorts, including Dhatu Jhar '96, which he directed, shot and produced, winning a Special Jury Prize with it at India’s National Film Awards in 1997. He has more than 20 years of film teaching experience, is a frequent jury member at international documentary film festivals, and is a tutor-expert for gatherings such as the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, as well as San Francisco’s ITVS International Fund.