Mumbai: Actor Anupam Kher has been appointed as the new chairman of Film and Television Institute of India. He has replaced former television actor Gajendra Chauhan. 62-year-old Kher has acted in over 500 movies and is a well-known name in theatre too.
Kher was awarded Padma Shri in 2004 and Padma Bhushan in 2016. He has also held the post of chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification and the National School of Drama in India.
Chauhan’s term as FTII Chairman was marred by controversy as students claimed he was not well qualified for the post and that his appointment was politically-motivated. Protests against his chairmanship went on for nearly 140 days. Despite protests, he refused to resign and stepped down only after his term ended in March 2017. “I have not been sacked, my term ended in March,” Chauhan had then said.
Soon after the news of Anupam Kher’s appointment came out, several people including director Madhur Bhandarkar, producer Pritish Nandy congratulated him for the feat.
His wife and BJP MP Kirron Kher said that serving as the chairman of FTII is a challenging job but added that her husband loves working with students. “He’s a great teacher and an extremely talented person,” she said.
Born in Shimla on March 7, 1955, Kher grew up in a Pandit family. He made his Bollywood debut in 1971 in the film Tiger Sixteen. During his extremely successful career, he has has starred in a number of films including – Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, A Wednesday, Special 26, Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, Mohabbatein, Ram Lakhan, Darr, Bride and Prejudice, Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara, and the recent Toilet: Ek Prem Katha.
Bureau Report
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