Whistling Woods film school: Curtain call

“It is important that this institute remains in Mumbai,” says Anjum Rajaballi,screenwriter and part of the faculty. The primary aim of the institute was “to create an interface” between the industry and students. “We could set it up anywhere else in India and pay less for the land. But then,the purpose with which this institute was set up gets diluted,” Rajaballi says.

Nidhi,a student of of MBA-Media and Communication at WWI,agrees,“We get a chance to interact with stalwarts from various fields. If we have a guest lecturer from the ad agency O&M in the morning,we have someone from NDTV coming in the afternoon.”

The film school is a joint venture between the state government and Mukta Arts,the company owned by filmmaker Subhash Ghai. Started under his guidance in 2006,it is located inside Mumbai’s film and television production centre,Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari,better known as Film City. Till then ,Mumbai did not have a full-fledged film school. “It was built more out of passion for films,and not to generate revenues,” says Meghna Ghai Puri,who runs the institute alongside her father.

The institute was conceptualised in 1985 by Ghai,a graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India,Pune. “My father always wanted to give back something to the industry. Initially,he had written to the state government seeking permission to set up a film library. He thought of setting up a school much later,” Meghna Ghai Puri says.

The institute has courses in direction,production,editing,acting,screenwriting,cinematography and animation. Courses vary in duration from six months to three years,both full-time and part time. It boasts state-of-the-art equipment while its faculty and guest lecturers include some of the prominent names from the industry.

Its attracts students from France,Italy,Spain,Denmark,Cyprus,and the Middle East too. “At Whistling Woods,15 per cent of the students are non-Indians,” says Chaitanya Chinchlikar,vice-president,business development.

The fees charged by WWI have ,however,been a subject of some criticism. A one-year diploma in screenwriting costs Rs 2 lakh while one in acting costs Rs 7 lakh. Meghna Ghai Puri defends the fee structure saying that they do not get grants from the government. “We suffer a loss of Rs 6 crore every year. But then,we knew that we wouldn’t make any profits for the first 12 years or so.”

A student said the institute is for the rich. “Taking a loan to study here isn’t a wise decision. No matter how good the placements are,the starting salary isn’t very high in the industry,” he adds.

Ghai’s celebrity status may have helped the institute gain attention,but it is yet to produce any noticeable talent. Rajaballi says,“It is too early. Many of the students who have graduated from here are working as assistant directors and executive producers. Soon,we will hear them making films.”

Ghai is yet to take a final decision if and where he would like to move. “We will call for a board of meeting to decide on that,” he says. “But the school will continue,either here or somewhere else,” he says with resolve.

SPOT OF BOTHER

In 2003,two petitions were filed in the Bombay High Court challenging as illegal the allotment of 20 acres of land in Goregaon for Whistling Woods. One was a PIL by Rajendra Sontakke and four other farmers of Latur and Osmanabad,the other a writ petition by Abdul Hamid Patel and Amar Sneh of Mumbai.

They alleged that in a “gross misuse of power,” then chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh had illegally permitted the allotment of the sprawling plot through a joint-venture (JV) between Ghai’s Mukta Arts and Maharashtra Film,Stage and Cultural Development Corporation (MFSCDC) on May 30,2000.

They contended that the transfer was done without inviting tenders and the land was valued at only Rs 3 crore. In an affidavit submitted by the Tourism and Cultural Affairs Department,it was stated that the land was valued by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India at Rs 31.20 crore at Rs 3,900 per sq m.

Ghai’s counsel had argued that he had invested Rs 100 crore in setting up the premier institute. He had pleaded before the court not to order the demolition of the institute building.

In its 53-page order,the High Court passed scathing remarks against Deshmukh and struck down the JV under which Whistling Woods was awarded the property. ,”Here is a case where all norms of transparency and reasonableness have been given a go-by. The present case is a classic example of arbitrary,unreasonable and illegal decision of permitting the use of available land owned by the government,without any authority of law.”

Granting no interim stay on the HC’s order,the Supreme Court has asked Ghai to surrender the vacant part of the land immediately. The 5.5 acres occupied by the building would have to be surrendered by 2014 when the on-going courses in WWIPL would have concluded.

MAYURA JANWALKAR