Anupam Kher: “I Think The FTII Students  Now Know  I’m Not A Monster”

The ice, as they say, has thawed. Anupam Kher’s  unplanned visit to the  Film & Television Institute  Of  India(FTII) has established what  Anupam describes as a “healthy interactive equation” with the students.

Says Anupam, “I think they now know I am not a monster.That we are on the same page. The problem with bringing someone from the top to run an  organization is  , the whole organization always look at that person with suspicion.And I really don’t blame them for thinking so. I wanted  them to know that I was not bringing any bureaucratic baggage on the campus.”

Anupam describes  his two days  on the FTII campus  as enlightening. “I  interacted with the students, told them that I’ve been  there, taken my play to their campus long ago,have visited them and felt like a part of them .It didn’t take  much convincing because I wasn’t faking it.The visit was actually spontaneous and therefore based on  a feeling of  complete honesty.”

Anupam had interactive sessions  with the students. “I did a  masterclass with the students. We also  did a  homage to  Tom Alter with his son Jimmy at  the venue. But what I enjoyed most was  talking to the students, trying to understand their problems.”

The actor knows there is no dearth of problems to be faced and solved at the FTII. “But for these problems  to be addressed we will treat them as  a part of life, not as peculiar circumstances requiring special treatment. In life there are problems every day.We get up each morning and look at the  day’s work  as  part of life. That’s how I will look at the workings  of the FTII. Not as an institution  requiring special attention but a normal work-place with normal situations to be looked into. Breathe easy, relax. It’s just students eager to learn about cinema. We’ve all gone through that.”