TEZPUR, July 30 - The citizens here, particularly those who are closely associated with the cultural fields have expressed their total annoyance over the total negligence towards the inadequate preservation of the cemetery of Natasurya Phani Sarma.
Late Phani Sarma, better known as �Natasurya� for his had an unmatched contribution not only towards the world of drama, but also to the entire cultural arena of the State. However, such an icon who left no any stone unturned to transform culture into as a way of establishing the Assamese nation�s identity is yet to achieve adequate honour. If anybody visits his cemetery (samadhisthal) area, he will be aghast to see how the noted playwright has been neglected. One can witness that the cemetery is in a terrible condition surrounded with weeds and wine bottles left by unscrupulous people.
It is important to note here that the three cultural icons of the State Kalaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha, Natasurya Phani Sarma and Rupkowar Jyotiprasad Agarwala carved a niche in the cultural world reflecting the glory of historic Tezpur city. But sadly the people here even do not know where the Phani Sarma�s samadhisthal is located.
Displeased with the total apathetic attitude of all concerned connected with the matter, the son of Natasurya Phani Sarma, Ajit Sarma, said that among these three cultural icons, Phani Sarma was given the title of �Natasurya� for taking the initiative to uplift drama with his relentless efforts. But apart from giving him the title, the government has not done anything for him, although it has sanctioned lakhs of rupees for keeping alive the memory of the three icons. �It is seen that at a time when the cemeteries of Rupkowar Jyotiprasad Agarwala and Kalaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha have become major attractions for both foreign and the domestic tourists, Phani Sarma�s samadhisthal has been lying in a pitiable condition. There is no proper road communication to the cemetery. Due to the encroachment by people living around it, the cemetery that covers an area of about 2 bighas of land, has been decreasing day by day,� he alleged and dejectedly urged the government to remove the name of his father from the list of the three cultural icons whom everybody across the State knows as �Trimurti�. �I feel that simply giving a title to a socially and culturally concerned person doesn�t mean giving honour to him. There are so many responsibilities by the agencies concerned towards such an individual. Same is applicable to Phani Sarma also which has not materialised. It has been witnessed over the years that we end our duty only by observing his birth or the death anniversaries or simply staging his plays.� He added that the Ban Theatre which has been dealing with all sorts of things should also give importance to this matter at least to preserve the area of the Natasurya�s samadhisthal so that his contribution to the cultural field could be reflected.
