Kavita Awaasthi (HINDUSTAN TIMES; July 23, 2020)

Ali Fazal has learned several lessons from the Coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown. Most importantly, Fazal says he knows there is life beyond work and he “won’t stop living because something hasn’t worked out”.

“My first film (Ek Tho Chance), which was with director Saeed Akhtar Mirza, never released. Next was a Shah Rukh Khan production (Always Kabhi Kabhi), which didn’t work. I have done three to four films, jinke naam liye toh bacha hua career bhi nikal jayega (laughs). Very few people were batting for me as in our industry, image ke hisaab se roles milte hain. There is no risk taking. If an action or comedy works, we see an influx of such films due to herd mentality. Then, the web happened. Guddu’s role in Mirzapur worked, and how! In fact, I was dissuaded from doing a web show, but I stuck to my gut feeling,” he says.

Fazal, 33, believes the insider-outsider debate and conversations on favouritism are “necessary”, adding, “We are all artistes and we can’t hate. Sure, we have major issues, but that is the case with every industry. What we need is a change in the system and structure, especially how technicians are treated at a contractual level. We should talk about equality of pay, inclusion riders, royalty, and make it all legally binding.”

The actor admits he doesn’t strategise his moves, but plans his career, be it OTT, Hindi or English films. Fazal, who got recognition in the West for his role in Victoria & Abdul (2017), adds, “As long as I have a good body of work, it’s all good.”

With a number of movies now releasing directly on the web, Fazal feels it will “level the playing field”. “Without box office collections, no one is a flop on OTT. One could say it’s the slow death of celluloid or the communist era in cinema (laughs). Of course, once theatres open up, things will go back to normal, as nothing beats the magic of a theatre,” he signs off.

Clockwise from left: Ketan Mehta, Saeed Mirza, Pankaj Parashar, Sudhir Mishra, Amit Khanna, Govind Nihalani, Manmohan Shetty and Vinay Shukla; Kundan Shah (inset)

Sudhir Mishra who met his filmmaker pals for lunch, reveals that middle of the road cinema, FTII and their late friend who made Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro dominated the conversation
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; August 23, 2019)

Filmmakers Saeed Akhtar Mirza, Sudhir Mishra, Ketan Mehta, Pankaj Parashar, Amit Khanna, Manmohan Shetty, Govind Nihalani and Vinay Shukla met for lunch at a suburban restaurant recently, and Sudhir quipped afterwards, “Hum zinda hain, hum aur filmein banaenge! Anybody have a problem with that?” Soon, Nikkhil Advani, Goldie Behl and Tigmanshu Dhulia were enquiring if they could assist Sudhir and friends. The lunch was Amit’s idea and lasted for three hours. “All of us have worked together. We spoke about films and old times,” Sudhir tells Mirror.

The topics of discussion included their days at Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). “Ketan, Pankaj, Vinay and Saeed studied at the institute and I consider myself an unofficial student as I stayed on the premises with my brother (Sudhanshu) for three years and have worked with many FTII graduates. Even today, I narrate all my scripts to Saeed, Ketan and Amit,” the filmmaker confides.

At another point, Saeed reminded Sudhir that he had fallen off the roof while working on Saeed’s Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho. “Today, you have 20 people for one job, back then, we did everything alone. On Kundan’s (Shah) Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, I was the writer, assistant, peon and even assistant editor. I am not saying that today’s filmmakers aren’t passionate, but we were mad and still are,” Sudhir exclaimes.

He points out that Govind’s Ardh Satya ran for 25 weeks in Mumbai and Om Puri was a star. And Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro ran for 56 weeks in Delhi. “So, when people say that the audience has changed and become more accepting, it is an insult to the audience of the time of Ardh Satya. Today, many middle-of-the-road films are influenced by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee and Basu Bhattacharya; that genre worked then and still does. Independent cinema didn’t begin today, it began with Guru Dutt,” Sudhir asserts.

Kundan Shah, who passed away in 2017, was a big part of the conversation. “All of us remembered him a lot that day. Saeed is writing a book which is a kind of a conversation with Kundan. We worked for three days at a stretch during Jaane... actors slept wherever they could and I’d wake them when they were needed for a shot. Those were the times,” Sudhir concludes.

The director of several well-acclaimed socio-political dramas is now the subject of a documentary himself
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 15, 2016)

After his 2010 3D animation film, the Kajol and Ajay Devgn-starrer Toonpur Ka Superrhero, Kireet Khurana is ready with a one-hour documentary on three-time National Award-winning filmmaker Saeed Mirza. "Saeed and I live in the same building in Bandra, I've known him since my childhood and have been hugely inspired by his work. He is such a charismatic man that I'm surprised it never occurred to anyone to make a documentary on him," reveals Kireet who began shooting towards the end of 2014 and wrapped up the shoot in 40-45 days.

The filmmaker reveals that he spent a year-and-a-half just shadowing Saeed before going on the floors. "In the course of our conversations, I realised that he tends to raise many questions but doesn't have any answers and this reflects in his storytelling, be it Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyoon Aata Hai, Naseem or Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro. All of them had open-ended climaxes," Kireet notes.

The documentary also highlights Mirza's love for his wife, Jennifer, even though she only features in it and doesn't speak. "But we did speak to his friends and colleagues, including Mahesh Bhatt, Kundan Shah and Sudhir Mishra. Sudhir had assisted him on Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho!," Kireet points out, adding that they shot in Mumbai, Ladakh and Goa which is his second home. "Locations where Saeed had shot his own films also appear in the docu, including the chawl in Nagpada from Mohan Joshi... I was surprised it still looked the same."

Mirza told Mirror, "I followed Kireet's advice since I didn't want to interfere in his perspective. I simply answered his questions. I've only seen it in parts but I hear people who have seen the whole film have liked it."

Anirban Das (MID-DAY; November 8, 2015)

Veteran film director, Kundan Shah, along with 22 other film folk returned their National Awards on Thursday to protest the government’s decision to appoint Gajendra Chauhan as the chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII). The gesture was aimed at raising a voice against the growing intolerance in the country. At the same time, there are many in the industry, who believe that there is nothing wrong with India and the people who are returning their awards have a political agenda.


(From left to right) Priyadarshan, Malini Awasthi, Anupam Kher, Madhur Bhandarkar, Ashoke Pandit, Manoj Joshi and others after meeting President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday. PTI

Biased opinions
On Saturday, Anupam Kher initiated a march in New Delhi which included film folk, artists, writers and painters to emphasise that India is tolerant. The march received support from filmmakers Madhur Bhandarkar and Vivek Agnihotri apart from actress Raveena Tandon to name a few. They all believe that India is tolerant and people who call the nation intolerant have biased opinions.

Interestingly, when Dibakar Banerjee returned his National Award for Khosla Ka Ghosla, Kher (he played a pivotal role in the film) had expressed his displeasure saying that he and others involved had worked equally hard for the film and it is not just Dibakar’s award.

On October 28, Kher had tweeted, “Some more usual suspects who never wanted @narendramodi to become PM in d first place have joined the #AwardWapsi gang.”

In another tweet the veteran actor mentions that returning award is disrespecting the audience. “This #AwardWapsiGang has not insulted the Govt. but The Jury, The Chairman of the Jury and the audience who watched their films. #Agenda.”

Matter of opinion
However, Dibakar sticks to his stand and says “one cannot stop voicing his concerns” just because there is a disagreement over an issue. The filmmaker says, “I think Anupamji is absolutely within his rights to not like what has happened. But, I am also not liking what I am being forced to do. It isn’t a pleasant situation. But, sometimes you need to do something to grab the attention of people. My conscience is clear and it is not motivated by anything else than the need to draw people’s attention to what’s happening to a premiere educational institute of India.”

People who have returned National Awards believe that it is the need of the hour, and that they are not just representing the cause of the FTII students, but the stand represents a wider cause.

“By returning the award, I am not only trying to have a dialogue with the government over the issue of FTII, but am addressing a wide range of concerns. Today, filmmakers are not sure which film or a scene from a film will be banned. Returning my National Award is just a way of expressing my displeasure over the growing intolerance,” says Kundan Shah, who returned his National Award for his 1983 cult classic Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro.

The debate on whether the nation is tolerant or not took a different twist when the BJP leader Kailash Vijayvargiya and MP Yogi Adityanath made some comments about Shah Rukh Khan. While Kailash had mentioned that the star’s ‘soul’ is in Pakistan, Adityanath compared him to terrorist Hafiz Saeed. The actor reacted sharply to this by saying, “There is extreme intolerance in India,” and found much support from the film fraternity.

It is not just the FTII issue or the row over statements made against SRK, but people who are returning the National Awards also want to voice their concern over the killings of rationalists like Narendra Dabholkar, MM Kalburgi and Govind Pansare.

The bigger picture
Filmmaker Saeed Mirza, former director of FTII, who has returned his National Award along with Kundan Shah, says, “The issue is just not limited to FTII; but there is a larger picture to look at. How much can one tolerate the growing intolerance? I am not asking people to support us, but I want them to understand the situation and then take a stand. It is important to come out and express your opinion. ”

But, not everyone agrees. Filmmaler Vivek Agnihotri, who supports Anupam Kher’s rally, says, “It seems people just want to target the government. Students of the FTII have called off the strike. What is the need to now return the awards now? The concept of intolerance in India is misleading people. I am supporting Kher’s rally.”

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar says, “People have started calling the nation intolerant only after 2014 and more so in the last three to four months. Why didn’t they raise their voice during the Kasmiri Pandits issue and during the anti-Sikh riots? Where were these people when Vishwaroopam was banned and Salman Rushdie was refused an entry to the Jaipur Literature Festival? Also, a National Award is given for your creative work and not to support your ideologies. It is unfair to return it; filmmaking is a team effort and someone shouldn’t just return it without the consent of the members of the film.”

Why now?
Activist Ashoke Pandit has gone a step ahead and asked why did these people not return their awards during the Sikh killings in 1984. But to this Kundan Shah reacts, “It is a wrong question. One cannot ask why I haven’t returned my award before and why I am returning it now. The point is simple — I am witnessing the intolerance and decided to raise a voice against it.”

Social issues
Filmmaker Madhusree Dutta, who also returned her National Award, which she received for making films on social issues, claims that it is the need of the hour. “I think it is more difficult to return an award than getting one. People should see what has been happening in the country. We should be progressive, not regressive. But, with all the killings and bans being imposed and government not responding the FTII students’ demand, it is only correct to call the nation intolerant. I have taken the decision to return the award, not because I have any political agenda, but because I am a citizen who believes that the freedom to express is being curtailed,” she explained.

Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 6, 2015)

Mirror (October 29) had earlier reported that 12 filmmakers including Dibakar Banerjee, Anand Patwardhan and Paresh Kamdar had returned their National Awards on October 28 to protest against the "growing intolerance" in the country and to show their support for the FTII graduates who were protesting the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as Chairman of the institute's Governing Council and four other "political" appointments. On Thursday, 24 other filmmakers returned their National Awards. Among them were veteran filmmakers Kundan Shah, Saeed Mirza, cinematographer Satya Rai Nagpaul and writer Arundhati Roy.

"Whether this is going to have an impact or not, isn't something I've thought about. I am protesting because I believe that what is happening is wrong," says Nagpaul, pointing to issues surrounding the FTII and to the murder of scholar M M Kalburgi and the Dadri lynching.

He returned his award for cinematography for his debut feature, Anhe Ghore Da Daan and was quick to refute allegation that the 'award vapsi' campaign is politically motivated to mar the Centre's image during the ongoing Bihar elections. "I can assure you that is not the case. This is a spontaneous response of several filmmakers who are joining the cause out of their own conviction," he asserts.

Former Chairman of FTII, Saeed Mirza, admits he doesn't know Gajendra Chauhan but didn't think he was qualified to be heading the FTII. "Respect the institute as a center for excellence," asserts the filmmaker, adding that students have gone back to their classes to continue with their studies, but would not accept Chauhan. Returning the National Award for Best Directorial Debut for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Kundan Shah pointed out that the protest is not against the BJP but its ideology. "We want to have a dialogue with the government and come up with a solution acceptable to both the government and the students," he says.

Anupam Kher, Madhur Bhandarkar and Ashoke Pandit have strongly opposed the rebels. Has this move divided the industry? "No, every professional has the democratic right to express his opinion. It's not a polarised industry," avers Nagpaul.
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Anirban Das (MID-DAY; November 6, 2015)

Eminent filmmakers and technicians have stepped up the protest against the appointment of Gajendra Chauhan as chairman of Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) by deciding to return their National Awards. The list includes directors Kundan Shah and Saeed Mirza.

“I owe this award to my alma mater, FTII. There would have been no Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983) if I hadn’t studied there. We want to ask if Gajendra Chauhan is the right person to head FTII. It is like a slap on the thinking populace of this country,” said Shah at a press conference held yesterday.

Mirza, who is a former FTII director, says, “We do not have any political agenda. We are not only addressing the issue of FTII, but many other things too, like the killing of rationalists.”

Others who joined the ‘award waapsi’ gang include directors Anwar Jamal, Virendra Saini, Pradip Krishnen, Manoj Lobo, Amitabh Chakraborty, Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti, filmmakers Tapan Bose and Madhusree Dutta, editor Irene Dhar Malik, cinematographer Satya Rai Nagpaul, sound designers Vivek Sachidanand, PM Satheesh and Ajay Raina.

Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; September 1, 2014)

Sai Kabir, who started his career with Saeed Mirza 21 years ago, has now managed to get him to write the script for his upcoming film, Divine Lovers, which stars Kangna Ranaut and Irrfan in lead roles. “He is like my guru; whatever I have learnt today is because of him. In fact, I landed in Mumbai only to assist him. So whenever I wish to make an important decision in life, I seek his advice. When I was in talks with producers in France, I was in touch with him and he was very happy to see my work. He is always available to his students,” says Sai.

Saeed Mirza’s last film as a director was Ek Tho Chance that was supposed to release in 2009. “He heard my film’s story and he loved it. I was overwhelmed by his response. He stays in Goa and has already started working on the film’s script. I will be visiting him and we will soon begin work on the film. His wisdom has really helped me and I am fortunate that he has agreed to be part of my film. Moreover, this is his first project in five years.”

When contacted, Saeed Mirza confirmed the story. “This film is like Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s novel, Love in the Time of Cholera. It is about the impossibility of love and yet somehow there is a love. I liked this concept,” he said.