Robin Banerjee was a noted wildlife expert, environmentalist

Environmentalist

An environmentalist broadly supports the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that seeks to improve and protect the quality of the natural environment through changes to environmentally harmful human activities"...

, painter

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...

, photographer and documentary film

Documentary film

Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...

maker who lived at Golaghat

Golaghat

Golaghat , which was one of the largest subdivisions of Assam later, elevated to the position of a full-fledged district of Assam on 15 August 1987, is the headquarters of Golaghat district and is a sister town to Jorhat which is about 55 km away....

 in the India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

n state of Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

.

Biography

Robin Banerjee was born on 1908-08-12 at Baharampur

Baharampur

Baharampur is a city in the West Bengal state of India. Baharampur is the sixth largest city in West Bengal and situated in central part of West Bengal. Baharampur is nominated for becoming the municipal corporation...

 in West Bengal

West Bengal

West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

 and received primary schooling at Santiniketan

Santiniketan

Santiniketan is a small town near Bolpur in the Birbhum district of West Bengal, India, approximately 180 kilometres north of Kolkata . It was made famous by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, whose vision became what is now a university town that attracts thousands of visitors each year...

. He went on to pursue medical education at the prestigious Calcutta Medical College in Kolkata

Kolkata

Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

, and later at Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

 (1934) and Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 (1936).

Banerjee had joined the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 in 1937 at Liverpool, and saw action in World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. He became romantically involved with a nurse from New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, who died a few months before the cessation of hostilities.

After the war, Banerjee decided to move back to India. In 1952, he visited Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

 as a Locum-tenens to a Scottish

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

 doctor. in 1952 he joined Chabua Tea Estate, Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

, as Chief Medical Officer, and later shifted to the Dhansiri Medical Association, Bokakhat

Bokakhat

Bokakhat is a town and a town area committee in Golaghat district in the state of Assam, India. It is about 23 km away from the world heritage site Kaziranga National Park. The town is base to many nearby tourist places and is well connected to other cities and towns by road...

 as the Chief Medical Officer.

During a visit to Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. A World Heritage Site, the park hosts two-thirds of the world's Great One-horned Rhinoceroses. Kaziranga boasts the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was...

 some time in the 1950s, Banerjee fell in love with the wilds of Assam and decided to settle down at Golaghat, near Kaziranga. Banerjee’s first film on the Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. A World Heritage Site, the park hosts two-thirds of the world's Great One-horned Rhinoceroses. Kaziranga boasts the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was...

 (one of the most important refuges of the Indian Rhinoceros

Indian Rhinoceros

The Indian Rhinoceros is also called Greater One-horned Rhinoceros and Asian One-horned Rhinoceros and belongs to the Rhinocerotidae family...

) on Berlin TV in 1961 was one of the first widely distributed media on the park to Western audiences. It also garnered him international recognition as a wildlife film-maker. He made 32 documentaries in his career as a film-maker, and was the recipient of 14 international awards.

Banerjee remained a bachelor, and worked actively as an environmentalist besides his film-making career. Well known and loved among the local community as "Uncle Robin", he donated lands for setting up the local school, and health camps. He was particularly active regarding issues concerning Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. A World Heritage Site, the park hosts two-thirds of the world's Great One-horned Rhinoceroses. Kaziranga boasts the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was...

 and was the founder of the non-governmental organization Kaziranga Wildlife Society, which actively protects the interests of the park. His house in Golaghat is a tourist spot for wildlife lovers, and based on his will and testament, has been converted into a natural history museum and contains a large number of his photographs and paintings. It is named Uncle Robin’s Museum, containing natural history items from all over India (especially Kaziranga), and other personal collections of Robin Banerjee, including a set of toys from across the world that he collected.

Recognition and remembrance

He was awarded the Padmashree in 1971, an honorary Doctorate of Science from Assam Agricultural University

Assam Agricultural University

Assam Agricultural University was established in 1969 under the Assam Agricultural University Act 1968 January 2, 1969. The jurisdiction of the University extends to the entire State of Assam with regard to teaching, research and extension education in the field of agriculture and allied sciences...

 (AAU) in 1991, and also an honorary Ph.D. from Dibrugarh University

Dibrugarh University

Dibrugarh University is a university in the Indian state of Assam. It was set up in 1965 under the provisions of the Dibrugarh University Act, 1965, enacted by the Assam Legislative Assembly. It is a teaching-cum-affiliating university with limited residential facilities.-Accreditation:It is...

.

Robin Banerjee died at his residence suffering from old age ailments on 2003-08-06. The pyre of Dr Banerjee was lit by his caretaker Jitoo Tamuli. The cremation was attended by Assam Minister of State for Tourism Ajanta Neog. The Golaghat district

Golaghat District

Golaghat district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. It attained district status in 1987. The district headquarters are located at Golaghat. The district occupies an area of 3502 km² and lies 100 m above sea level. As of 2001, Golaghat district has a population of...

 administration declared a half-holiday in memory of Banerjee.

Robin Banerjee told everyone ',"Think twice before kill an animal,think twice before you catch a butterfly,think you before you cut a tree, because it may be the last species of the world."

Filmography

Robin Banerjee altogether made 32 documentaries, as listed below :

• Kaziranga (50 min)
• Wild Life of India (35 min)
• Rhino Capture (30 min)
• A Day at Zoo (45 min)
• Elephant Capture (20 min)
• Monsoon (20 min)
• Nagaland (30 min)
• Echidna, & On wild fowls (Australia)
• Lake Wildness (35 min)
• 26 January (India) (40 min)
• Flying Reptiles of Indonesia (50 min)
• Through These Doors (35 min)
• Animals of Africa (50 min)
• Underwater (50 min)
• Peace Game (30 min)
• Flowers of Africa (40 min)
• Adventures of Newfoundland (45 min)
• Dragons of Komodo Island (35 min)
• Underwater World of Snakes (50 min)
• White Wings in Slow Motion (winner of the Madame Pompidou Award) (60 min)
• The World of Flamingo (50 min)
• Wild but Friendly (55 min)
• Birds of Africa (45 min)
• Dresden - (60 min)
• My Nature (60 min)
• Birds of India (50 min)
• Wild Flowers of the world (45 min)
• The Monarch Butterfly of Mexico (60 min)
• Alaskan Polar Bear - (180 min)
• In the Pacific (55 min)
• Call of the Blue Pacific part I & II (45 min)
• So They May Survive (40 min)

Awards

• 1971 : Padmashree
• 1991 : Honorary Doctorate of Science from Assam Agril University, Jorhat
• 1994 : Honorary Ph.D. from Dibrugarh University
• 2001 : ‘Prakiti Konwar’ from Prakiti (an NGO), Jorhat, Assam
• 2001 : Service to Society through individual excellence NECCL, Guwahati, Assam