FTII doesn't deserve the government's stepmotherly treatment

When we were in college and trying to figure out what to do next, most of us were secretly aspiring to join FTII. But we couldn’t. We ended up doing more secure courses that assured us jobs. Like our parents wanted.  

For a small town, middle class kid, Bollywood is a secret dream. Most kids don’t have the liberty to express their ambitions, to their parents and peer groups, who want them to have a more secure career as a doctor or an engineer. Bollywood is perceived as a closed-door castle where the same set of family and friends keep making movies. Which door does an outsider knock at for an entry?

For most, FTII is that door. We know that a lot of successful filmmakers have passed through FTII's gates. We know that a lot of small town, middle class, unemployed graduates made it big in films because FTII trained them. There are several IITs, IIMs, AIIMS. But there is only one FTII.   

If you listen to the stories of FTII graduates you will find that most of them had no previous understanding of cinema. No preparation. This is unlike JEE or SAT for which one has to start preparing years in advance with a strategy to conquer the entrance exams. When an aspiring graduate fills the FTII form, he does not have much money in his pockets, not much support from family, not enough of an understanding of the world of cinema, no idea about the functioning of an industry he is to be trained for and, often, not much fluency in English. All this person has is a dream. To be a part of this magic called Cinema. To tell stories in their unique style. 

Most students don’t even know what specialisation they would want to go for. I don’t think anyone specifically wants to join Sound Design or Production Design. How many have even held a camera before joining Cinematography. A lot of aspiring actors get into direction, directors into cinematography or editing. They happily join whatever specialisation is offered to them. For their dream is to join Bollywood and become a filmmaker. 

Then these minds are cultivated. They get a perspective, a context and a deep understanding of the art and science of filmmaking. FTII has a tradition of being headed by some exceptional filmmakers. What comes out of that FTII gate are exceptionally trained, passionate and determined filmmakers. That’s been my experience. I am always working with a lot of them.

When a students graduate from IIT, they become an engineer. When students graduate from AIIMS, they are doctors. When students graduate from any IIM, they could be future CEO. But when students graduates from FTII, they become strugglers. A struggling actor, a struggling director, a struggling cinematographer and so on. Which other government funded, premier institute produces strugglers? Have you ever heard of a struggling IITian?  At FTII, struggle begins from day one. The struggle to be in sync with modern filmmaking. The struggle to finish the course (some students have to spend 4-5 years to finish a 3 year course). The struggle to join the film industry, the struggle to make movies, the struggle to financially sustain themselves in ‘Mahanagari Mumbai’.

And that’s a sad commentary. Especially in the times of a Prime Minister who dreams of a 'Skilled India'. 

Is it because FTII is a government funded institute that no one cares? Is it because films are the least priority for the government? If that’s true then why is the government still running it? The general argument is that the government already spends around Rs.10 lakh a year, per student. What more can it do? This is the biggest problem. Not with the government-funded institutes, but with the mindset of the people who run it from South Block. 

Times have changed. The world of films is changing. Technology is changing every six months. Trends, narrative styling, logistics and marketing strategies are changing constantly. Audience tastes have changed. Stories are changing. Aspirations are changing. Ethos and social realities are changing. Hollywood films have become mainstream. Unlike a privately-run film institute, FTII is not being able to cope with changing times.  

FTII isn’t aligned with the industry. If you are doing an MBA, your institute is aligned with the industry, which does campus interviews and picks up students according to their requirement. A catering college is aligned with the Food & Beverages industry. A travel course or a fashion course is aligned to their respective industries. I mastered in Advertising from IIMC and got my first job at Ogilvy&Mather through my institute, because IIMC is aligned to advertising and journalism industry. But FTII?  You somehow finish your course and then get lost. Become a struggler. 

Why can’t the government give this subsidy as a soft, long-term loan? Why can’t FTII become the avenue for film business? Why can’t FTII be in a position to negotiate the best careers options for its alumni and be a lighthouse in this never ending ocean of film business?   

I haven’t met an FTII alumnus who has ever got a job on campus. They are passionate, young filmmakers but financially saturated. Parents aren’t too supportive. Constant rejections damage self-esteem, a primary requirement to be a good filmmaker. Some are on the verge of changing profession. They end up starting at a very low salary, not in proportion to their education. They don’t get what they deserve. Negotiate, they can’t. Unlike IITs, NIIFT, IIMC and IIMs, has any FTII graduate started at Rs 30 lakh per year? They start their careers with compromise. They are undervalued, right at the beginning.  

Government controlled institutes don’t have a vision. Once created, the government forgets about them. They are remembered only during their silver/golden/platinum jubilees. Or when it comes to the Governing council appointments, and these appointments are always political. Political appointments are the by-product of our democracy. The previous Congress regime started it. It was Nehru’s way of distributing alms to the intelligentsia, academics and artists, later practiced by his daughter, grandson and great daughter-in-law. This created a collective mindset of mediocrity. No wonder Bollywood is often blamed for mediocrity. Almost every FTII alumni has the determination to break this circle of mediocrity with their merit. 

Narendra Modi showed an intention of freeing India from this mediocre mindset and taking it ahead on the path of meritocracy. The Modi ​government should have set precedence by making these appointments on merit rather than political affiliations and sycophancy.  But they chose not to.  Instead the government chose to appoint Gajendra Chauhan as the Chairman of FTIII Governing council. I have nothing against him. I don’t even care whether he has done one TV serial or 600. I don’t care whether he has featured in soft-porn films. It doesn’t matter that he was ousted from CINTAA Presidentship in favour of Om Puri. Only thing which matters is whether he is competent enough to chair a superior committee with luminaries such as Raju Hirani, Santosh Sivan, Jahnu Barua, Vidya Balan, Pallavi Joshi and many others.  How will he lead or demand or command over a superior committee?  In his own support he chose a very mediocre self-defense— ‘Please give me a chance’.  If he had come up with a vision statement to enable FTII to face modern world challenges, I would have backed his appointment. 

The biggest contribution one can make to FTII’s future is to a) create a sync with the latest technology b) make a syllabus that has universal resonance c) persuade the GoI to invest more for facilities or open it to PPP, and d) align it with the film industry.

The person who is going to chair the committee should evoke confidence in other members and the students. Gajendra Chauhan has failed to do that. The chairman should have experience, resources and credibility enough to be able to create and resource jobs. Chauhan has shown none of them.  Above all, the Chairman should be able to lead the students by winning their hearts.

Learning cinema is complex. You need a leader who makes it simple. A person who pleads, ‘Please give me a chance’, can’t be that person. He is after the job. Not the future of FTII.  

Cinema is all about aspiration. It’s about dreaming. It’s about vision. When a young boy, with hope in his eyes, fills the admission form of FTII, he is aspiring to be a Naseeruddin Shah, Raju Hirani, Renu Saluja, Anil Mehta or Resul Pookutty. He comes with very high standards of ambition. He wants to surpass these masters. If he fails to see that vision in Gajendra Chauhan, how will he aspire to surpass him? He is now beginning his course with a compromise. 

In life, we don’t get what we deserve. We get what we negotiate. Gajendra Chauhan is not what FTII students negotiated for while filling their admission form. This is cheating, Mr. Modi and I think the government should not cheat.

Vivek Agnihotri is a film-maker, writer and travel junkie. He tweets at @vivekagnihotri.