Garnering 115 signatures from professors, intellectuals, students, engineers, the letter, written to Modi and I&B Minister Arun Jaitley on the 100th day of the strike spoke out against the controversial political appointments of Gajendra Chauhan, Anagha Ghaisas, Narendra Pathak, Pranjal Saikia and Rahul Solapurkar, all BJP/RSS affiliates to the FTII society.
The 110-day old strike by the Film and Television Institute of India got a major boost from leading left wing intellectuals, with the students claiming that linguist and philosopher Noam Chomsky, Sanskrit scholar and professor at Columbia University, Sheldon Pollock, Partha Chatterjee and Vijay Prashad, among many others had come forward with their support. A day before talks between the students and the information and broadcasting ministry, capitalising on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to the United States, 'friends' of the Film and Television Institute of India circulated a letter supporting hundred-plus day old strike, among the top universities of the US, and in Silicon Valley.
Garnering 115 signatures from professors, intellectuals, students, engineers, the letter, written to Modi and I&B Minister Arun Jaitley on the 100th day of the strike spoke out against the controversial political appointments of Gajendra Chauhan, Anagha Ghaisas, Narendra Pathak, Pranjal Saikia and Rahul Solapurkar, all BJP/RSS affiliates to the FTII society. It also raised concerns over similar political appointments in other cultural bodies such as the ICHR, ICCR, NBT, CBFC, Prasar Bharati, etc. At a time when he is selling India's soft power all over the world, it exhorted the PM to remember FTII's legacy and contribution to this cultural capital.
Meanwhile, for the organisers of the strikes, Tuesday's talks will chart a clear way forward for the protest. They say that though the ministry refuses to touch Chauhan's position, they have verbally offered to remove the other four. Earlier offers had included removing three political appointees from the society on the condition that FTII draw back its strike. If the talks go through, the students say they will have to consider accepting the ministry's offer, end the strike but keep protesting against Chauhan in public spaces, such as upcoming film festivals. Though they are not too keen on ending the strike without Chauhan's removal, a consensus will be taken post the talks.
If, however, the talks fall through then, they have considered legal options. Either, they withdraw the strike but a body of FTII alumni file a PIL and take up the matter in courts or the current students file a writ petition. Sources say that they have spoken to lawyers such as Prashant Bhushan for help and have been told it's a good case. However, a legal battle is tough and will probably be a last measure.
Reaching out
FTII students have also continued efforts to reach out to other students bodies on other campuses facing problems of political appointees with no merit, lack of funds and a crumbling infrastructure, such as the Delhi College of Art, Pondicherry University and Biju Patnaik Film and Television Institute. One of the organisers said that they have continued so far because of the support they have received in big and small cities, with Jadavpur University and Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute firmly behind them, human chains being made in support in Lucknow, and marches taken out in Gorakhpur and Allahabad.
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 "FTII students claim support of US scholars a day before talks")
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