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JNU attack: Top Bollywood stars silent ‘because money is involved’, says FTII chairman
Brijendra Pal Singh was present with actors Shivaji Satam, Aditya Shrivastava and Dayanand Shetty, from the popular TV serial, CID, at the Pune International Film Festival meet.
PUNE: Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) chairman and television producer Brijendra Pal Singh, who received a top award at the Pune International Film Festival (FTII) on Friday said many top celebrities in Bollywood were silent over the raging Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) mob violence controversy, “because money is involved.”
“Wherever and whenever there is money involved, it is difficult to speak up,” said Singh who received the PIFF Distinguished Award on Thursday.
When asked about the silence of top Bollywood stars and television bigwigs on political controversies, especially the latest JNU mob attack, he said, “Wherever and whenever there is money involved, it is difficult to speak up. They find it difficult to express themselves because of certain factors.”
Singh was present with actors Shivaji Satam, Aditya Shrivastava and Dayanand Shetty, from the popular TV serial, CID.
About the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and pro-JNU students’ protests from youth across the country, he said, the younger generation cannot be ignored today and neither can one force people to support them.
“You can see the reflection of a society in its younger generation. You cannot ignore them. They have always been known to be rebellious. I remember being rebellious when I was younger. Sometimes it could be with a cause; sometimes without,” he said.
Singh noted that questions are raised only when an issue takes a political turn. “Every youth has an inbuilt streak that makes him/her rebellious against norms and regulations. It is a part of their formative years. Their reactions are always after a certain action. Also, it is their way of expressing. It could be right or wrong.”
He recalled how there was a students’ strike of 139 days at FTII in 2016 when he was the chairman and how he handled it in his way. “I had to intervene. I went ahead and got involved because I just could not ignore the students,” he said.
“My days as a student in FTII were great and full of nostalgia. The place exposed me to languages, communities and played an important role in my formative years,” he said.
