Guwahati, Jan. 27: A momentous chapter in Assam?s history ? the six-year-long anti-foreigner agitation ? is being recreated on reel by national award-winning filmmaker Gautam Bora.

Documented in novels and short stories earlier, Bora?s 13-part television serial Henguli Aakash (The Crimson Sky) is the first attempt at reviving the tumultuous saga on screen.

Based on Rita Choudhury?s novel Nayana Torali Sujata, the tele-serial claims to look at the youth upsurge launched by the All Assam Students? Union in 1979 from a different perspective.

?The serial brings to light the youth of the generation who witnessed and took part in the epoch-making chapter of the state?s history,? said Bora, who is busy giving final touches to the project on the editing board.

The serial is set against the backdrop of Gauhati University where the seeds of the agitation were sown and from where the fire spread to every nook and cranny of the state.

?The university has been used as a metaphor for the agitation, which is an integral part of my latest venture,? Bora said.

Major portions of the serial have been shot in the university?s library, auditorium, hostels, classrooms and canteen. ?The campus has seen many architectural changes over the years. However, the details in the novel and additional research work done by my team have helped us to show the real picture of the university during that time,? he added.

The first university to be established in the Northeast, Gauhati University was shifted to its present campus at Jalukbari in 1955-56.

Anandram Borbora, a retired teacher of the university and an expert on the history of Assam, lauded Bora?s creative genius and his endeavour to immortalise the heritage site on celluloid.

?The university has witnessed the period of revolution intimately. The creativity of Bora will definitely help to recreate the almost forgotten chapter of the state,? the historian said.

Bora, however, rued that he could not turn the project into a film due to budgetary constraints. ?Initially, I was planning to make it a full length feature film, but due to the usual budget constraints, I decided to turn it into a serial.?

Bora earned national and international acclaim as a director with his debut film Wosobipo (Cuckoo?s Call). The feature film in Karbi won the Golden Lotus (Indira Gandhi award) at the National Film Festival of India in 1990. The film also got rave reviews at the 41st International Film Festival in Berlin in 1991 where it was the lone Indian entry that year.

His other works which brought him national and international laurels are the documentaries Sons of Abotani: The Misings and Weavers of Golden Thread.

Sons of Abotani: The Misings, won the Best Documentary of the Country Award at the 2003 National Film Awards.

Weavers of Golden Thread won the certificate of merit at the 20th Leipzig International Documentary and Short Film Festival, Germany, in 1986.