Karnataka filmmakers, students sound alarm as film institute GFTI lies in tatters

Shashank K, a fourth semester student of cinematography at the Government Film and Television Institute (GFTI), Bengaluru, is battling depression. His dream of working with his favourite filmmaker, the national award-winning Kannada film director Girish Kasaravalli, has been dashed.

When The Federal met Shashank, it appeared that the student had lost all hope and decided to desert his course at the fag-end. The reason being the complete failure of the institute to impart quality film education and instil confidence in the students to make a mark in India’s dynamic entertainment industry.

The plight of over 54 students studying in the two-year cinematography and sound-recording courses is no different. The primary reason is that the institute has miserably failed in imparting quality film education in the absence of infrastructure and faculty to teach the students.

Also read: Karnataka Budget 2023: Nothing to cheer for Kannada cinema

The Karnataka government’s apathy has pushed the 27-year-old institute to the brink. According to the students, GFTI, one of the premiere film institutes in India, which contributed cinematographers, film directors and sound recordists of the likes of Govind Nihalani and R Prasad, is on the “verge of closure”. They believe that successive governments in Karnataka are responsible for its fate.

No faculty

One of the major challenges facing the institute is the lack of faculty. The government has failed to take the initiative to fill the vacant posts in the institute. As a result, there are only two regular employees, which includes Principal TG Ravikiran and another subordinate staff.

“Of the four guest lecturers, only two are visiting the institute occasionally,” Bhoomi V, a distraught student, told The Federal. “There are no computers to edit recordings, the audio interface is not working. The institute doesn’t even have a mixing studio. When most film institutes have switched to digital, GFTI has an old Studer 24 channel analog mixer, and a multi-track audio recorder which has no batteries,” she added bitterly.

Oldest in South-East Asia

Formerly a part of the Sri Jayachamarajendra Polytechnic (SJP), GFTI was developed with funds made available by the Dewan of Mysore, Sir M Visvesvaraya. It has been ailing for long because of the indifferent attitude of successive governments in Karnataka towards promoting film education.

The SJP is a pioneer in film education in India, since its inception in 1943. The institution, which was imparting education in cinematography and sound engineering, was claimed to be the oldest film institute in South-East Asia.

In September 1996, SJP’s cinematography and sound engineering courses were separated, and GFTI of Karnataka was established under a project aided by the World Bank. It is located at Hesaraghatta, in an area of 25 acres amidst sylvan surroundings in the suburbs of Bengaluru.

Also read: Kannada cinema flounders in first half of 2023; just 5 of 118 new films break even

SJP and GFTI together have produced brilliant minds, both in cinematography and sound engineering, like Phalke Award recipient cinematographer, VK Murthy, director Govind Nihalani, Lakshiminaryan, RNK Prasad, NV Srinivas, BS Basavaraj, S Krishna, Satya Hegde and Santosh Kumar Pataje. R Prasad, who studied sound engineering at GFTI, has served with the United Nations.

It is significant to note that SJP and GFTI are the only hope for students who cannot afford to study at private film institutions.

Picture changed

BS Basavaraj, renowned cinematographer, told The Federal, “GFTI, which was once the pride of Karnataka, has lost its charm because of bureaucratic interference. It has lost its film character and identity what with the directorate of technical education (DTE), under which the GFTI comes under, downgraded eligibility criteria for admission to diploma courses in sound engineering and cinematography courses, besides changing the syllabus.”

The curriculum drafting committee has changed the syllabus, omitting all the core subjects, such as film review, introduction to sound recording, visual design and composition and replacing them with engineering subjects.

Protest by students

Upset with the lack of equipment as well as the ‘injustice’ meted out to them by the Institute administration, students of GFTI had launched a major protest back in April 2016. They  demanded an immediate revision of syllabus on the lines of one at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune and have sought additional courses in direction, scripting, editing, action and production design.

Students even approached the High Court of Karnataka seeking justice. The court also directed the DTE to meet the demands of the students. “Despite this, the DTE has not done anything, instead it degraded the premier film institute into a government run polytechnic,” said a final year student of sound engineering.

At that point in time, Girish Kasaravalli criticised the affairs in GFTI and said “the curriculum doesn’t provide the students any exposure”. Understanding the plight of students, Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat and film personalities extended their support to the students’ strike.

Also read: Karnataka Film City: Why Siddaramaiah wants to move fast on elusive project

Filmmakers SV Rajendra Singh Babu, Girish Kasaravalli and cinematographer GS Bhaskar also pointed out during the strike that while Karnataka’s neighbouring states have world-class film institutes, GFTI is lagging behind because of government apathy and lack of industry connections.

Nationwide support 

The students who were protesting even approached film personalities in Indian cinema to intervene. The Karnataka and Kerala film industry and alumni of the institute had extended support to the students’ protest. The Malayalam film industry, in fact, had extended support to the protest since many students from Kerala were coming to Bengaluru to study cinema.

Many film personalities like Ajith Kumar, K V Subramaniyan, Rajiv Ravi, an alumni of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Girish Kasaravalli, noted cinematographer G S Bhaskar, even held workshops for the students.

Karnataka Chalanachitra Academy then headed by S V Rajendra Singh Babu even offered to take GFTI under its wing, promising to develop the institute as a “world-class education center”. FTII had also shown interest in extending academic support, if government and GFTI wanted their help.

DTE created road hump

But, the DTE, under which GFTI comes, blocked the proposal since it did not want to lose control over a major institution under its wing. DTE took shelter under the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) norms for the change of syllabus and defended its decision of downgrading the qualification of students for joining the technical courses.

It has also decided to allocate seats left after accommodating Karnataka students to students from other parts of the country. This attitude of both DTE and the government has led to the dramatic fall in the Institute’s standards. The students then called off their strike after five months since they had to sit for their exams.

The question, film personalities including Girish Kasaravalli are asking is simple: “How can governments, which expect filmmakers to produce quality films talk of improving the quality of Kannada cinema in the absence of a full-fledged film institute?” For which there is no answer from all concerned.

Even now students are demanding upgrading of equipment, experience and qualified lecturers, technical and support staff and funds for students’ projects.

“I am forced to buy or rent professional audio and video equipment for my son’s project, which costs lakhs of rupees. There is a provision for the students to do three-month internship in film production companies instead of working on a project. But, the principal is against it. Students, who cannot meet the high cost of the project, are deserting their courses in the middle,” Kumar S, the parent of a student from the film institute, told The Federal.

“We have to trek 5 km from Hesaraghatta main road to reach the institute campus. Government has provided two mini buses for the students but they are just parked in the Institute and getting rusty,” said another student.

Meanwhile, sources said that DTE is taking shelter under the upgrading committee report when questioned about the status of the institute. “A committee was appointed for the upgrading of GFTI. The committee had submitted its report and the same had been forwarded to the government. On receiving funding from the government, necessary equipment needed for imparting film education will be procured,” said a DTE source.

The film fraternity is concerned about GFTI’s fate and plans to meet Chief Minister Siddaramaiah shortly. They want to convey to him the urgent and dire need to protect and promote this premier film institute, which once made Karnataka proud.

(The names of the students have been changed to protect their identity.)