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<div class='ite_mg_banner ads__container'><div class='it_mg_bnrBox'><div class='ite_bnr_cont'><div class='ite_cont_dtl'> <h4>Subscribe to India Today Print + Digital. Your First Month Is On Us. <span class='bold_text'> ₹299/month</span> thereafter. Cancel anytime.</h4><a href='https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsubscriptions.intoday.in%2Findiatoday%3Futm_source%3Dtop-web-banner ' class='ite_subscribe_btn origin_conscent_url' target='_blank'>SUBSCRIBE</a></div></div></div></div>

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<div class="itg-mosimage"><amp-img src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1998January%2Fbleak-1_090412090955.jpg" alt="" height="425" width="650" class="" layout="responsive"></amp-img>Mahesh Bhatt's bid to stem the rot was in vain<p>In September 1995, when director Mahesh Bhatt was appointed chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), he had visions of making a radical difference to the premiere film school. Three weeks ago, Bhatt resigned in disgust, saying, "Thus far and no further."<br><br>Since then, the students have gone on a strike, threatening to move their agitation to Delhi if their demands were not met. Over the years, strikes have become synonymous with the FTII. The rumblings of dissent were first heard in January 1996 when students protested against structural changes and a proposed fee hike.</p><p>So strident were the students' demands that at an academic council meeting on April 21 that year, five review committees were formed. Their proposal of a revised syllabus remained unimplemented. In April this year, when acclaimed actor Mohan Agashe was made FTII director, optimism ran high. </p><p>The euphoria vanished when he proposed "restructuring and reorienting" the FTII set-up. "It's like bulbs going off one after another, so you keep changing the bulbs but never realise that the wire is faulty," says Agashe. His proposals, which include short-term courses for professionals, were shot down by angry students. </p><p>A bewildered Agashe says his proposals are only conceptual. At the December 31 Academic Council meeting, the members advised deferring new admissions until a syllabus was agreed upon. While the faculty wants four months to study the revised syllabus, the students are against declaring a zero semester. </p><p>The decision rests with the governing council. Quick-fix solutions are no answer to the FTII's problems. While students crib about an intellectual vacuum, the faculty talks about 80 per cent absenteeism in some classes. </p><div class="itemcenter"><amp-iframe height="62" title="" width="320" sandbox="allow-forms allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-top-navigation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation" allowfullscreen src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014%5Cu0026native%3D1" class="mrBt15 preferred-source-banner"> </amp-iframe></div></p><p>Then, there is hardly any interaction between the institute and the film industry. Says Bhatt: "The FTII has become a breeding ground for hostile attitudes against mainstream cinema."<br><br>In 1976, cartoonist R.K. Laxman had told graduating students: "The problem is that good films make bad money and bad films make good money. So make good films that make good money." Only with radical changes will Laxman's advice become a reality.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">AtMigration </div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Jan 12, 1998</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div></div>

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<div class="itg-mosimage"><div class="itgimage"><img  title=""  class="" alt="" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Fmedia2%2Findiatoday%2Fimages%2Fstories%2F1998January%2Fbleak-1_090412090955.jpg" loading="lazy" /></div>Mahesh Bhatt's bid to stem the rot was in vain<p>In September 1995, when director Mahesh Bhatt was appointed chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), he had visions of making a radical difference to the premiere film school. Three weeks ago, Bhatt resigned in disgust, saying, "Thus far and no further."<br><br>Since then, the students have gone on a strike, threatening to move their agitation to Delhi if their demands were not met. Over the years, strikes have become synonymous with the FTII. The rumblings of dissent were first heard in January 1996 when students protested against structural changes and a proposed fee hike.</p><p>So strident were the students' demands that at an academic council meeting on April 21 that year, five review committees were formed. Their proposal of a revised syllabus remained unimplemented. In April this year, when acclaimed actor Mohan Agashe was made FTII director, optimism ran high. </p><p>The euphoria vanished when he proposed "restructuring and reorienting" the FTII set-up. "It's like bulbs going off one after another, so you keep changing the bulbs but never realise that the wire is faulty," says Agashe. His proposals, which include short-term courses for professionals, were shot down by angry students. </p><p>A bewildered Agashe says his proposals are only conceptual. At the December 31 Academic Council meeting, the members advised deferring new admissions until a syllabus was agreed upon. While the faculty wants four months to study the revised syllabus, the students are against declaring a zero semester. </p><p>The decision rests with the governing council. Quick-fix solutions are no answer to the FTII's problems. While students crib about an intellectual vacuum, the faculty talks about 80 per cent absenteeism in some classes. </p><div class="itemcenter"><iframe scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="62" awidth="320" aheight="62" amplayout="fixed" src="https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.dev?url=https%3A%2F%2Fakm-img-a-in.tosshub.com%2Fsites%2Findiatoday%2Fbanner%2Fpreferred-source-new.html%3Fv%3D1.014" class="preferred-source-banner" loading="lazy"></iframe></div><style>.preferred-source-banner{  margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}</style></p><p>Then, there is hardly any interaction between the institute and the film industry. Says Bhatt: "The FTII has become a breeding ground for hostile attitudes against mainstream cinema."<br><br>In 1976, cartoonist R.K. Laxman had told graduating students: "The problem is that good films make bad money and bad films make good money. So make good films that make good money." Only with radical changes will Laxman's advice become a reality.</p><div id="tab-link-wrapper-plugin"><div class="authors__container"><div class="authors__by"><div class="authlable">Published By: </div><div class="authdetaisl">AtMigration </div></div><div class="published__on"><div class="authlable">Published On: </div><div class="authdetaisl">Jan 12, 1998</div></div></div><div class="sendros">--- ENDS ---</div></div></div>

In September 1995, when director Mahesh Bhatt was appointed chairman of the FTII, he had visions of making a radical difference to the premiere film school. Three weeks ago, Bhatt resigned in disgust, saying, "Thus far and no further."

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Mahesh Bhatt resigns FTII in disgust, students protest against structural changes, fee hike

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s election rally in poll-bound Kerala on Thursday saw a warm and light-hearted moment when he paused his speech to acknowledge a young child in the crowd holding up his picture, drawing loud applause. Modi asked the boy to hand over the photograph, write his home address on the back, and promised to write to him personally, directing SPG personnel to handle the picture carefully as a token of the child’s affection. 

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Mahesh Bhatt resigns FTII in disgust, students protest against structural changes, fee hike

In September 1995, when director Mahesh Bhatt was appointed chairman of the FTII, he had visions of making a radical difference to the premiere film school. Three weeks ago, Bhatt resigned in disgust, saying, "Thus far and no further."

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