The students of FTII found negligible support from Bollywood in their protest against FTII’s newly appointed chairman
FTII students’s protest against actor and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan, the new chairman of FTII’s governing council, made headlines couple of days back. According to the students, Mr Chauhan is unfit for the post and are demanding an appointment of a worthy candidate.
While the student body claims that their fight is not against Gajendra Chauhan but also against the lack of transparency in the appointment of the chairman by Information and Broadcasting Ministry. Yesterday, there was a FTII alumini meet at Prithvi Cafe to decide the next course of action in the protest. But unfortunately, none of the prominent alumini who have made their mark in Bollywood turned up to support. Shabana Azmi, Resul Pookutty, Kundan Shah and Anand Patwardhan were expected to attend but were missing from the meeting.
Actress Sayani Gupta, Kalki Koechlin’s co-star from Margarita With A Straw was the only known face from Bollywood. Sayani said,” The Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry and governing council of the FTII are refusing to share the appointment process with us, we don’t even know who were the other candidates in consideration along with Gajendra Chauhan.”
When Shabana was contacted, she informed that she was at Breach Candy Hospital tending to her ailing mother. Meanwhile, underplaying his absence from the meet, Resul Pookutty said,” I don’t wish to politicise the issue. I’m looking at the larger cause. This protest is not about one person but is far more deep-rooted. I believe the entire procedure and attitude towards the institute has to change.”
With no support from Bollywood, looks like FTII students will have to fend for themselves.