FTII remembers its illustrious alumnus Mani Kaul

PUNE: A pioneer of Indian new wavecinema, Mani Kaul was also an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute ofIndia (FTII). The illustrious filmmaker, who passed away on Wednesday at the ageof 66, was remembered during a condolence meet at the FTII on Wednesday evening.Kaul's directorial debut, 'Uski Roti (1969), which won the FilmfareCritics' Award for best movie, was screened later. "His contributions as ateacher were immense. We are planning a retrospective on his films in the comingmonths," said Kislay, president of the FTII students'association.Anurag Goswami, a final-year direction student, who hadattended Kaul's 15-day workshop in April 2010, credits the filmmaker with havingchanged his perspective on cinema. "That workshop was extremely interactive. Ithink he was the greatest teacher of cinema. Despite creating such a prolificbody of work, Kaul Sir's outlook towards things and people around him wasuniquely different. He constantly encouraged the students at FTII to discovertheir own creative freedom, rather than follow someone else's thoughts onfilmmaking," Goswami said.Deepti Khurana, another final-year studentof direction, will miss Kaul deeply. "Last year's workshop was simplymindblowing. Sir never asked us to share in his sensibilities, nor did hecriticise us. He would just highlight the positive aspects in the footage we hadshot as a part of that workshop," she said.She will also cherish thememory of enjoying the 'roghan josh' and 'dum biryani' Kaul cooked for her classafter the workshop. "He was a great teacher and an equally adept cook. He hadinvited 12 of us for a Kashmiri feast that we thoroughly enjoyed," saidDeepti."He was a highly influential teacher and film-maker, verydown-to-earth and friendly. Despite his accomplishments, he was a keen learnerand undertook a three-year course in music while in his fifties," said IftekharAhmed, FTII interim director.Kaul was a regular at FTII's workshops,guest lectures and the famed month-long film appreciation course. "He wasextremely concerned about FTII and its needs. In fact, we were thinking ofinviting him next week to give his suggestions on the proposed upgradation ofthe institute," said Ahmed.Well-known filmmaker and anotherillustrious FTII alumni, Kundan Shah, wanted to work with Kaul. "Kaul was agreat admirer of writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky. He had asked me to adapt a story byDostoyesvky for the big screen. But our collaboration never took off. I regretthat," said Shah.Alumnus Chandita Mukherjee, also a member of theFTII's Group of Experts for the institute's proposed upgradation, says Kaul wasinstrumental in giving a new definition to documentary filmmaking. "Even whilelearning under him at FTII, he taught us to see Indian reality differently. Hissense of outdoor lighting, use of different angles and sense of aesthetics, wastruly exceptional. His documentaries on Indian terracotta, traditionalpuppeteers and Mumbai's food distribution system, are remarkable and deservemention," said Mukherjee.Gayatri Chatterjee who, till recently,taught at FTII, remembers Kaul as someone larger-than-life. "He was planning tomake a documentary and a feature film. In September 2008 he had written me amail in which he said he had never left FTII and would always be there for theinstitute. From Sanskrit aesthetics to food to classical music, Kaul coulddiscuss anything with equal passion," said Chatterjee.