PM Modi should not visit agitating film institute students

Students should have continued their agitation till demands are met but they chose to involve politicians and the PM should keep away

GN Bureau | August 20, 2015


#ftti   #film   #pune   #prime minister  

What is the latest drama at Film and Television Institute of India? The agitating students demand presence of the prime minister of India.

"Prime Minister should visit FTII to resolve the issues. All students in the country are feeling threatened by the government’s insensitivity towards the problems being faced by them. The students should strike hard and strong if this continues", representative of the FTII Students' Association (FSA) Vikas Urs told reporters.

This demand is preposterous. The students have allowed their agitation to be politicized and not ready to listen to any reason on removal of TV actor and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan as its chairman.

The students seem to have lost nerve to continue with their agitation and trying to drag in the prime minister of the country, to salvage their pride. In the bargain, they would like to involve the PM in such trivial matter, pertaining to one institution.

The film institute has at best been known for its students, who have made it big in commercial cinema. Other than these isolated students shining it has never has had huge impact on the country’s psyche.

The government has up a three-member team of officials from the information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry and will visit the institute to find a solution to the crisis.

"We are very curious to see with what agenda they (the officials) are coming with. We are clueless. The students' body has not been told that the delegation is coming...We are hearing everything from the media. We are still expecting a good dialogue," Urs said.

Meanwhile, veteran actor Satish Kaushik believes the ongoing agitation by students of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) against its chairperson and BJP member Gajendra Chauhan is moving in a wrong direction due to political interference.

The 59-year-old FTII alumni said he supports the protests but feels students should keep politicians at bay. "Students protest is right. A person should have enough credentials to be in the position of a chairman of such a big institute. It does not matter which party the chairman is from. There have been chairpersons from BJP earlier too. He should have that stature. In the past few days, we have seen many politicians with FTII students. They should not allow that," Kaushik told reporters.

Comments

 

Other News

BJP set to capture West Bengal

The political map of the country is set to be redrawn with the BJP set to win the West Bengal assembly elections, apart from Assam and the union territory of Puducherry. In Kerala, meanwhile, the Congress-led UDF is set to regain power. The filmstar Vijay-led TVK has emerged as the front-runner in Tamil Na

Beyond LPG: Is PNG ready for India’s next cooking fuel transition?

India, the second-largest importer and consumer of LPG after China, faces growing pressure due to supply constraints. Most of India`s LPG imports transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a focal point of global turmoil. Given that LPG forms the backbone of household kitchens and the restaurant industry, any s

Maharashtra adopts hybrid model for Census 2026 data collection

The government has initiated preparations for Census 2026 in Maharashtra, introducing a hybrid approach that combines optional self-enumeration with comprehensive door-to-door data collection to ensure complete coverage across the state.   According to senior officials, the Self-

What the nine Indian Nobel winners have in common

A Touch Of Genius: The Wisdom of India’s Nobel Laureates Edited by Rudrangshu Mukherjee Aleph Books, Rs 1499, 848 pages  

Income Tax dept holds Ghatkopar Outreach on new IT Act

The Income Tax Department organised an outreach programme in Ghatkopar, Mumbai, to raise awareness about the key features of the Income Tax Act, 2025, effective April 1, 2026. The initiative is part of a nationwide effort to promote taxpayer awareness, simplify compliance, and strengthen a transparent, eff

Making AI work where governance is closest to people

India’s next governance leap may not solely come from digitisation. It will come from making public systems more intelligent, more adaptive, and more responsive to the dynamics at the grassroots. That opportunity is especially significant at the panchayat level, where governance is not an abstract po


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter