Film institute braces for the final cut

mumbai: the official word isn't out yet, but moves appear to be afoot in the film and television institute of india (ftii), pune, to prepare for disinvestment. the alarm bells have been ringing for a long time--in the case of ftii, the bells seldom get time off--but they have sounded more serious ever since k.p. geethakrishnan's expenditure reforms committee report recommended that ftii be handed over to the film industry for running.the institute, originally a media unit under the ministry of information and broadcasting, was registered as a society in 1974. the three-year term of the current society expires on march 3, triggering speculation about whether it will be reconstituted in a dramatically different manner in order to cope with its long-running crises. the a-grade skulduggery and twists of plot at the ftii in the last few years make the fevered imagination of the scriptwriter of kyunki saas bhi kabhi bahu thi seem like that of a greenhorn. there have been a spate of student strikes, years without any student batches being admitted, senior officials resigning, squillions of committees putting in their tuppence__all this with the i&b ministry presiding over the long-running soap opera. ftii students say they are thoroughly disgusted with the way the institute is bring run and the utter contempt displayed with regard to their future careers. pankaj purandare, an ftii student, and rajesh shera, fellow student and former president of the ftii students' union, ask, ``ftii is being described as a sick unit. on what basis is this educational institution being labelled sick when its results are not tangible, and given its constantly interrupted terms?'' sushma swaraj, minister of information and broadcasting, has already made it clear that the institute will not be shut down, but the current buzz-word is `right-sizing'. the word disinvestment is heard only in conspiratorial whispers, although the portents of the d-word are all there. says dr mohan agashe, director, ftii, ``last year, the ftii was asked by the ministry of i&b to generate revenue internally over the next five years so as to make up for a proposed ten per cent cut in budget each year. secondly, it recommended a ten per cent cut in the number of posts as well as a ban on fresh recruitment from october 2001.'' the ftii receives rs 5.5 crore each year for recurring expenses, as well as rs 5 crore in plan funds annually. however, according to dr agashe, ``out of the rs 25 crore sanctioned in the ninth plan ending in 2002, we have so far been able to use only rs 14 crore. of a sanctioned staff strength of 348, we still have 80 vacancies. no recommendation has ever been implemented in the last 25 years, and not one course has finished on time in the last ten years.'' there have been calls for an evaluation of ftii's assets. says dr agashe, ``ftii's total assets, including 46 acres of land on two plots, equipment and movable property, are estimated at about rs 220 crore.'' he already has proposals to generate internal revenue. ``my suggestions include shorter courses, a multiplex with one theatre reserved for films for students, and the rest rented commercially, as well as systematic commercial exploitation of our studios and equipment, with the students assisting on external projects as interns,'' he explains. asked about the prospects of disinvestment, a senior official in the ministry of i&b said on condition of anonymity, ``we are looking at various proposals. it is for the governing council of ftii to make its proposals and to act on them in consultation with the ministry. but we have received nothing in writing from it recently as it has not even met for some months now.'' meanwhile, subhash ghai is investing rs 20 crore in whistling woods international (wwi), to be located at film city in goregaon, a joint venture between his mukta arts and the state government's maharashtra film, stage and cultural development corporation (colloquially called film city). the latter is providing about 20 acres of land and has a 15 per cent stake in the venture. mr ghai, a former ftii student, reflects on the two institutes, ``the ftii was established in the 1960s, based on the russian model, and continues to be run like that. we were taught to admire godard and fellini and hate hindi and american mainstream cinema, which is not right. ``as long as ftii is government-controlled, it will continue to be dogged by problems. even if it is revamped, i'm comfortable with competition. i think each state needs its own film and tv institute. for the last two years, i have been travelling to film institutes in the uk, the u.s. and australia to study how to design a world class institute. we aim to open in june 2003.'' mr ghai is confident that ftii will not be competition ``because it is in pune, not mumbai, the heart of the film industry, and they are government controlled.'' asked if, in the eventuality of privatisation of ftii, he would consider picking up a stake in it, he says, ``it all depends on the specific terms of reference at that stage.'' says govind swarup, principal secretary, culture, maharashtra government, ``it would be ideal if the government provides the basic infrastructure and leaves it to private enterprise to do what they are good at. film city has already successfully done this with manmohan shetty's adlabs, and we expect to replicate our success with wwi.'' mr agashe refuses to comment on the suggestion that the ftii be merged with the mass communications department of pune university or be brought under the university grants commission. nonetheless, his last-ditch proposals include ``franchising basic courses in mumbai, conducted at, say, the films division, which already has the infrastructure''. mr ghai dismisses the suggestion: ``only successful enterprises consider franchises. if you're a total failure, the question of franchising doesn't arise.''