From a housewife to an aspiring journalist to an ace filmmaker and writer, Manju Borah’s tryst with films though began a little late in life won her accolades very soon.

Winning awards has almost become a habit for her. At present she is basking in the success of her third film Aakashitoraar Kothare, which has won the national award for the best film in the regional category. The singer and the music director of the film, Tarali Sarma, has also bagged the awards for best female singer.

“No, no, no, I am not on a winning spree,” she laughs.

Born on June 18, 1957, at Meleng Gohain Gaon in Jorhat, story-telling is Borah’s forte. “Since my childhood, I used to write short stories that revolved around socio-cultural issues,” she discloses. From a mere hobby her passion for story-telling developed into a serious profession.

Borah has published a collection of 13 short stories called Bibokhana Moon. Lucid and vivid, all her stories are like miniature painting. “I do have many unpublished works in the cabinet and if I get time I would definitely like to publish them,” she says. “Presently, I am contemplating a novelette and the subject will be about life and living, which I always celebrate whether in my cinema or literature.”

As her father was an official of the tea garden, Borah deeply felt the values of the soil.

“I went to Shillong for higher studies. I did my graduation in philosophy from the prestigious Lady Keane College,” she narrates. She did her masters in philosophy from Gauhati University. “During my post-graduation years I got married to Dilip Borah, who is not only my husband but a friend and a soulmate,” she says.

“After the birth of my first daughter in the year 1982, my husband got selected in the Indian Police Services (IPS) for which he went to Hyderabad for training,” she recalls. “As my husband used to get a small stipend at that time I faced a lot of difficulties in raising my daughter. I also felt awkward to ask help from my parents though they always stood by me through thick and thin.”

So, Borah applied for the post of sub-editor in Dainik Janmabhumi, a dream, which she has nourished since childhood to become a scribe. “I cleared the test, but as my husband used to get transferred every three years, the selecting committee left my name in the final list,” she smiles.

By that time Borah has become a full-fledged housewife raising her children and immersing herself in household chores. “This was the phase, when along with my husband, I travelled almost to almost every nook and corner of India, absorbing the cultural ethos of the Indian social strata,” reflects Borah.

“My husband was one who always wanted me to carry on my creative voyage and encouraged me to build my world of art,” she says. She continued to write short stories.

In 1991 her husband was transferred to Guwahati. At that time she got introduced to Rajen Rajkhowa, who offered her to join his film project as an art director. The film was Pathrughatey Ringiai.

“My knowledge in beauty care gave me an edge as I could look after the make up of the artistes and experimented with their looks and costumes,” she smiles.

Those few days in the sets of Rajen Rajkhowa gave Borah an idea of the technical aspects of filmmaking. But that was a short stint and again she had to go back to Delhi along with her husband. “In Delhi again I got alienated from films. But Rajkhowada again asked me to work as a co-ordinator for Variety Lambert who was working for Channel Four and BBC on a serial based on the life of author Vikram Seth, after he shot into the limelight for his book A Suitable Boy,” she says.

After that she went back to Guwahati and Rajkhowa was planning to start his new venture Sapon where she was given the responsibility to deal with the costumes and also helped as the chief assistant director. On the sets of Sapon, Borah did every thing from writing dialogues to dressing up the artistes.

“The work in Sapon gave me the confidence to start my independent venture and I was completely swept off my feet by the realistic genre of art cinema and wanted to give it a try,” she smiles.

In 1998 came Boibhav, her first venture, where the protagonist, Sameeran, a sensitive poet, gives up material comfort in quest of his roots.

The film won the best film award at the Sixth Dhaka International Film Festival, the jury’s special mention in the 47th National Film Festival and Gollapudi Srinivas Award for best director.

Her second film Anya Ek Jatra asks questions about the growing menace of insurgency in the region and its social impact. Aakashitoraar Kothare speaks of the position that women hold in society. “I am ready with my fourth celluloid creation, Laaz (shame), which deals with the aspirations of the down-trodden people that are crushed under the pressure of greed of the materialist world,” she informs. “We are waiting for the censor board certificate to release the film,” she adds.

Borah is highly disturbed regarding the lack of interest among the audience to watch realistic films. “We are acquainted with cinema since ages but still we hardly get an audience to watch our movies. They have a sense that realistic films are not entertaining and talk about out-of-the world topics,” she laments. “A film can be only good and bad and realistic films also talk about general people, their dreams and aspirations. We need to attract people to the hall.”

“It is not only one factor but an amalgamation of many points from lack of patronisation of the governing agencies in the field of art to the masses who have some kind of a phobia to realistic films which generally talks about them only,” she says.