Recent FTII passouts find foothold in film and TV

[stalker]

as per an article in TOI, October 9

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PUNE: If you thought passouts of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) were struggling for big breaks, think again. A survey

conducted by the premier institute has revealed that alumni from the last three batches are doing fairly well for themselves and taking home reasonably fat pay cheques.

Conducted over a period of three months, the survey has looked at factors like pay packets, current employers and the kind of breakthroughs achieved.

The survey findings show that editing graduates earn between Rs 3 and 5 lakh per annum. Those working in television are getting paid around Rs 4 lakh annually. Most work as freelancers with reputed TV production houses, coordinators for commissioned programmes for the likes of the UNDP and UNESCO and creative directors with multinational companies.

Some have even made their mark in tinsel town. While Anuradha Singh edited Salman Khan's 'Marigold,' Shaan Mohammed worked on Aamir Khan's production, 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na' .

Around ten cinematography passouts from the last batch are fetching around Rs 6 lakh per annum. As for those employed in television, some are working under well-known cinematographers like J.S. Bhaskar and P.S. Vinod, commanding an average pay of Rs 2.5 to Rs 12 lakh per year.

"We are not rating our alumni on income alone, but also on the kind of work they are doing," says FTII director Pankaj Rag, who initiated the study. "Given the lack of trained manpower , these students didn't have to struggle hard to get jobs," says Bipin Naria, cinematography faculty.

Most ex-students from the acting course are making a mark in off-beat cinema and the booming entertainment television channels, observes Rag.

For instance, Anurag Sinha featured as a protagonist in Subhash Ghai's 'Black and White,' Swati Sen acted in Vishal Inamdar's 'It's Breaking News,' Anuya Bhagwat bagged a role in Kranti Kanade's critically-acclaimed , 'Mahek' , and Rasika Dugal was seen in Anurag Kashyap's 'No Smoking' and Santosh Sivan's recently-released 'Tahaan.'

Kannakee Bhuyan was seen in Sudhir Mishra's 'Khoya Khoya Chand,' while Gaurav Dwivedi has been cast in Ketan Mehta's forthcoming film, 'Rang Rasiya.' Auroshikha Dey will soon be seen in a Nagesh Kukunoor venture.

Others have taken up roles in television serials and voice-overs for television commercials and animated films. Some have chosen to wait for lead roles, refusing to make do with supporting roles.

The scriptwriting department has a success story to tell as well. Seven of the 12 students who passed out last year have already sold their scripts to leading production houses at an average price of Rs 7.5 lakh.

Most art direction passouts are earning between Rs 3 to 5 lakh per annum. "Most are working as assistants to leading art directors in the film industry. In fact, their employment was confirmed even while they were studying ," says Rag.

The average pay of the audiography course alumni is Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 lakh per annum for those in television and around Rs 6 lakh per annum for the ones working on feature films.

FTII's role as a facilitator between its students and the industry has resulted in such job opportunities. Film producers and directors are invited every year to the campus to choose students from the scriptwriting and art direction courses. Plays by students from the previous batch are staged in Pune and Mumbai where well-known directors and others from the film industry are invited. "That's why we don't feel the need to have a special placement cell for our students," says Rag.
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do you think we need a placement cell?

[Mandar]

may i know who are you plz.? just wondering

[stalker]

I am the STALKER! And you?