Cinema is India’s most enduring passion. And the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, is the place where tinsel dreams come true. The institute is the place for all those who hope to make a career in films — as directors, actors, sound recordists, editors and so on.

FTII is an autonomous body set up under the Union ministry of information and broadcasting in 1960. It offers several short and long-term courses, including diplomas in direction, acting, cinematography, art direction and production design. Students can study audiography, animation and computer graphics, editing and feature film screenplay writing. The duration ranges from one year to three years. “Now we have all that it takes to make a film in one place,” says a third-year student of direction.

The FTII campus, covering an area of about 30 acres amidst the mountains of the Western Ghats, is quiet and serene. The ambience seems just right for nurturing creativity. Its old students include such luminaries as Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi, Jaya Bhaduri, Subhash Ghai, Mani Kaul, Shatrughan Sinha, Mithun Chakraborty, Tom Alter, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Raj Kumar Hirani and Vidhu Vinod Chopra.

The institute plans to add another 27 acres of land on Paud Road, behind the present campus, for an international campus. It is also set to expand its courses. There are plans to introduce courses in film management, ad films, television journalism and 3D animation. Each course will have a batch of 30 students. Two-thirds of the students would be Indians and the rest foreigners.

“The international campus will take at least two and a half years to be completed,” says Pankaj Rag, director, FTII. About Rs 2.5 crore has already been sanctioned by the ministry for the landscaping of the proposed campus.

Admissions to FTII courses are announced in March. To be eligible you need a bachelors degree. For the animation and computer graphics course, you would have to clear the Class XII examination. Physics at the Plus Two level is essential for those seeking to study audiography. Students have to undergo a written examination, which tests their general knowledge and mental ability and quizzes them on their specific area of interest. Those who clear the test are called for an interview.

The faculty comprises experts and experienced teachers, many of whom are known personalities from the film industry. People from India and abroad deliver lectures as guest faculty. Oscar-winning editor and sound designer of The English Patient, Walter Murch, recently conducted a workshop at FTII.

FTII has a residential campus. The hostel houses both men and women — a system that echoes the institute’s ideology of freedom. “I always look forward to going back to FTII to relax and recharge myself,” says Swati Sen, an old student of FTII who recently acted with Koel Puri in Breaking News.

The campus is beautiful, and students are proud of all that the institute has to offer. They stress that the focus is not on teaching but on learning through classes and experiences. The institute, staffers say, doesn’t believe in moulding but in grounding, and providing in-depth learning.

“We believe in giving students the freedom to interpret and learn things their way. So we don’t follow any textbook rigidly. Apart from some basic principles and theories, everything is fluid,” says Kedarnath Awati, professor of music.

A student gets to try his or her hand at almost all aspects of film making from acting to lights to set design and camera work. The media library is huge and has a wide variety of films. Students also have access to the national film archives where films are screened almost every day.

The latest and most sophisticated equipment is available to the students, who also learn about obsolete machines that have played a role in film making. The studios are fitted with motorised lighting systems and have special effect facilities.

Students have a heavy workload, but few complain about it. “We stay up nights at a stretch and forget about the outside world when working on a project,” says Anish, an audiography student.

Vital Statistics

WHAT IS IT? A premier institute for film making and acting

WHO'S THE BOSS? Pankaj Rag is the director

WHAT IS THE COURSE FEE? The fee for all the courses is between Rs 30,000 and Rs 1,50,000

WHERE IS IT? Law College Road, Pune-411004 Phone: (020) 25431817 / 25433016 Website: www.ftiindia.com

Kajri Akhtar