Veteran Actor Anupam Kher was on Wednesday appointed as the new chairperson of India's premier Film and Television institute (FTII) replacing Gajendra Chauhan.
The 62-year-old Kher, in November 2015, had led a march to counter the protests on “intolerance” of NDA government and a wholesale return of national awards by writers, filmmakers and artists. He, along with many film and television personalities, had walked to Rashtrapati Bhavan, calling it “march for India”.
His wife Kirron Kher is a member of BJP and Lok Sabha MP from Chandigarh.
Mr. Kher will succeed controversial Gajendra Chauhan under whose Chairmanship, the FTII for the first time in its history saw a 139-day strike. Among other things, one of the demands of the students was to replace Mr Chauhan. Chauhan’s term ended in March this year and the post has been vacant since then.
Mr. Kher an alumnus of National School of Drama, has acted in over 500 films, many of them critically acclaimed projects. His repertoire includes international projects such as Bend It Like Beckham and Silver Linings Playbook.
In the last NDA government, Mr. Kher headed the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). He was conferred the Padma Shri in 2004 and the Padma Bhushan in 2016 for his contribution in the field of cinema and arts.
Mr. Kher said he was "deeply humbled and honoured" to be appointed chairman of the "iconic FTII". "I will perform my duties to the best of my abilities," he said in a tweet.
Kirron Kher was amongst the first to congratulate him.
"Congratulations my dear @AnupamPkher for becoming FTII Chairman! Know you will do a great job!," she said on Twitter.
Born on March 7, 1955, in Shimla, Mr. Kher completed his education from the DAV School in the city. He made his acting debut in 1982 with Aagman , but the 1984 Mahesh Bhatt film Saaransh was his breakout role. Then just 28, Mr. Kher played the role of a retired middle class man grappling with his son's death.
After Saaransh , he went on to star opposite many big Bollywood celebrities, including Anil Kapoor, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar, sometimes as the villain, the comic relief or the friendly father.
In 2002, he attempted to become director with Om Jai Jagadish but the film was not a success. Kher has also written and starred in a play about his own life called Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai , which was directed by Feroz Abbas Khan.
