Bollywood folk react to the FTII controversy

Ever since Gajendra Chauhan best remembered for his role as Yudhisthir in the mythological television series Mahabharat 1988ndash90 was appointed chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India FTII the countrys premier film school has been embroiled in a controversy that is thickening by the dayPolicemen escort the arrested FTII students to court which eventually granted them bail picPTIIn a crackdown late on Tuesday night police entered the FTII campus and took five students into custody on charges of rioting and unlawful assembly An FIR was filed against 15 other students Police action followed a complaint from the institutes director Prashant Pathrabe who was gheraoed by the students on Monday evening for resolving to go ahead with the assessment of diploma projects made by the striking students of 2008 batchThe arrest came hours after news trickled in about Information and Broadcasting ministry officials visiting the institute soon to resolve the ongoing imbroglio By yesterday evening the students were granted bail hitlist speaks to a few Bollywood folk about the latest crisis engulfing the FTIISubhash Ghai Filmmaker and FTII alumnusIt is sad that the whole thing is turning ugly The government must take immediate steps for the wellbeing of FTII After all the institute has produced the best talent in Indian cinema FTII is and will always remain my mother school in cinemaNikhil Advani FilmmakerIt is extremely tragic that students are not being able to protest peacefully for what is pretty obvious to everyone mdash a justified demand On my part I completely support the students as I feel arts and culture should be devoid of any kind of politicsOnir FilmmakerThat the police had to come to the campus is a shame If as a teacher you honestly care for students then you will never call the police to resolve an issue It is not that the students turned violent They are getting cornered in every way It is ridiculous that the government is considering it as an ego issue It has been more than two months that the institute has not been functioning The students are suffering and the government doesnt care If I were in Gajendra Chauhans place I would have resigned out of shame How can you be the head of an institute where nobody wants you We are a democratic country and have elected representatives so how can he be so insensitive The problems need to solved but the major issue is Who is going to head the institute Who is going to treat the students with love and protect them Who is to care for their future instead of sending them to jail The students are observing democratic way of protest which we adopted during the independence struggle It is nonviolent They did not deserve to be arrested they are getting frustrated Students have always been important to shape the nations future All political parties have students wing and now they are saying they should not get influenced by political parties I am not saying they may have not made a mistake but sabotage is not the solutionIrrfan ActorThe FTII is a creative place where minds are nurtured and where there is food for thought There should be discipline but along with that freedom of expression must exist too A creative mind needs freedom to grow and nurture The system should protect a beautiful institute like the FTII and not restrict anyoneZeishan Quadri WriterfilmmakerArresting students is not an answer to the questions of these FTIIans It is the right of these students to raise their voice if the faculty of their institution is not up to the mark They need an answer to this and justice has been denied to themUmesh Kulkarni Marathi film director and FTII alumnusI condemn the arrest The government is ignoring the entire issue and they have definitely taken a wrong step The strike was the right way to mark their protest All of a sudden when the officials decided to do the assessment of the 2008 batch students had the right to ask questions to the persons concerned They were pushed to the brink but the allegations they have made while arresting the students is wrong For the past two months they have not abused or hit anyone They have called artistes to register their protest It is democratic All they were doing is ask logical questions They have victimised a few students to end the protest forciblyHansal Mehta FilmmakerThey are trying to assert authority through force The matter could have been solved between the students and the institute but it has escalated I know the students have committed some mistakes and there is no denying it but at the end of the day treat them like students and not political prisoners Without understanding the situation they are just following diktats to silence the students I stand by them although I dont necessarily agree with the way they are protesting I am against the idea of involving politicians like Rahul Gandhi thinking that it will take them anywhere They should not politicise the matter At the same time you need to give them some benefit of doubt since they are studentsVivek Agnihotri FilmmakerI have always been against the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan but that doesnt mean the students should get involved in politics I am also against politicians like Arvind Kejriwal Rahul Gandhi and Yogendra Yadav hijacking the issue The students damaged government property How can you form a human chain around the institutes director It is wrong The students are being instigated by politicians with an agenda All political parties are thinking about scoring brownie points they dont feel for the students Arvind Kejriwal had no business to invite students to Delhi and say that he will give them space to hold classes It is unfair to say that the government is not doing anything when a student delegation will be meeting the officials today We always like to believe that the bigger party is at fault They should sit down and have a dialogue If you want Gajendra to be ousted convince the government that the appointment is wrong Ultimately things will turn violent like the way it has now happened Politics should end first It is wrong to say that they were pushed to the edge mdash every criminal will use that excuse to justify his acts People are only talking to students and asking for their point of view They have become a victim of politics and the government is also doing politics mdash both parties have a lot to answer