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Danish Aslam is currently finishing
post production on his first feature film as a Director titled
‘Break Ke Baad' |
New Delhi:
They are making films with big names and editing critically
acclaimed movies. The alumni of Jamia Millia Islamia's Mass
Communication Research Centre, who are going places in the film
industry, give credit to the university for shaping them up.
At the same time, they feel
ex-students working in Bollywood should have a strong network and
also interact with those pursuing their course.
Lauding their university, directors Danish Aslam, Alankrita
Shrivastava and editor Sandeep Singh Bajeli say that the
environment and experience that Jamia provides played a major role
in moulding their personalities and giving them the right
perspectives.
It also provided mindspace and instilled confidence by laying
stress on practical teaching, they feel.
Bajeli, editor of the critically acclaimed film "Lahore" and "Phas
Gaye Re Obama", says Jamia does not limit students to any one
aspect of filmmaking but allows them to explore and experiment in
every department.
"After a strong foundation was laid in the first year, where I
learnt from puppetry to radio jockeying to street theatre, I
started grasping the finer nuances of filmmaking and learnt
intuitively. Jamia encouraged me to have an independent outlook,"
he said.
Danish Aslam, director of Imran Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer
"Break Ke Baad", has the similar views.
"The special thing about Jamia is that it offers a broad course
focused on practical knowledge. It was only after familiarising us
with various other creative mediums apart from filmmaking that the
regular course commenced," he said.
Alankrita, who debuted in Bollywood with Gul Panag starrer
"Turning 30", says the experience at the varsity freed her mind
and helped her to discover herself.
"The place has an unique atmosphere and the training enabled me to
work hard in the industry. We watched and studied a lot of films
during those days, which eventually helped us significantly," said
the director.
Apart from the course structure, faculty and equipment, which are
among the finest, the university makes sure that its students are
modest and humble.
"There are many people in the industry from other reputed media
institutes who are very arrogant. They have a superiority complex
for no reason. But this is not the case with all of us who are
from Jamia," said Alankrita.
Other Jamia students believe it's all about the approach towards
the course.
"The thing about the courses at Jamia is that they are general in
nature and not specific to say just direction or editing.
Moreover, the focus of these courses is not to get you an entry
into Bollywood, but a well-rounded learning," said Akshay Singh,
cinematographer of "Turning 30". He has also worked on films like
"Raajneeti" and "Kites".
However, the students feel interaction between the ex-students
working in the film industry and those who are pursuing their
degrees should increase. They also emphasise on better networking
among pass-outs in Mumbai.
"The sharing of knowledge between us and the students would be
wonderful and beneficial for both. Our experiences would help them
to get a head start in Bollywood. Therefore, the interaction
levels must go up," said Aslam.
Agreed Alankrita, who was unhappy with the lack of communication
and suggested that both sides should intermingle once in a while.
Ex-Jamia students working in Mumbai were oblivious to the fact
that others from the same institution were also in the industry.
"There were people whom I knew, but was unaware that they were
from Jamia too which did come as a surprise. Ultimately, these
things do affect you when you are in a new place and a support
structure is surely needed," said Bajeli.
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