Anjan Dutt plays Pied Piper to city students

He’s 60, but on campuses, Anjan Dutt can still play Pied Piper. Inspired by his music, films — indeed, his worldview — a group of students have come together to form Goonjan, a cultural movement to explore the alternate space.
Says Sagnik Paul, student of CU and the brains behind the initiative, “We want to keep the alternate space alive in the face of populist culture.Our aim is to find that space through cultural activities, debates and discussions.” But why have Dutt as their mascot? “When it comes to the alternate, he is an icon — be it his movies, music or the way his mind works,” Sagnik says.
Dutt is very excited. “This is the kind of initiative I’d have rooted for when I was young. This city does not have a cultural opposition anymore. It’s the same old Tollywood and Bangla bands. Are we ideating anything new? Not really. Goonjan will offer young people the platform to explore that,” he says.
The group will have their first seminar at Presidency University tomorrow, where apart from discussions with Dutt himself, they will also screen his films and a young artist will represent the entire seminar on canvas, which will then go up for auction.