The FTII furore

Students of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), the country’s premier institute for film studies, are once again up in arms. And will remain so till the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry agrees to reverse the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as chairman of the FTII governing council.

Students here have always had a yen for agitations. Over a decade ago, when Mohan Agashe, who was its director then, had tried to implement changes in the course curriculum, students had gone on strike, forcing him to resign. Five years ago, when another move to revamp the institution was made, students went on strike again.

The current strike, however, is against a personality of whom the students admit they know very little. Chauhan is famous for playing Yudhishthira in the TV serial Mahabharata almost three decades ago. He is close to the BJP and has been an active campaigner for the party. His posting is viewed as politically motivated and many students are worried that this might affect their creative freedom.

There is also another political element to it. The culture in FTII has long been known to be left-liberal, while Chauhan, a BJP appointee, is seen to represent the polar opposite in ideology. Many personalities like Anand Patwardhan and Yogendra Yadav who have landed up at FTII in support of the students are known for their antipathy to the BJP.

While the Government has refused to re- consider its decision, Chauhan says he is open to dialogue with the students and that they should judge him by his work. But the FTII protestors are unwilling to relent. They want his appointment revoked. In earlier agitations, students have shown that they have the tenacity to stay on strike for extended periods. This time too they have warned the authorities of an ‘indefinite strike’.

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