A Shot at Revival

Films Division of India (FDI) was established in 1948. Initiated by the country’s first Prime Minister,Jawaharlal Nehru,its role was to inform,educate and entertain Indian audiences through documentaries,features and news reels. The content covered politics,current affairs,health and social awareness.

Part of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry,it was an integral part of media and communications in the country. Films commissioned or produced by FDI were carefully slotted to run just before movie screenings in cinema halls and on projectors in rural areas. Subsequently,they would be screened on Doordarshan. Mathialagan,a director who has been working with FDI for over 10 years,says,“To watch some of the films in the division’s archive is like a journey through the country’s history.” Some of the significant documentaries made by FDI are A Painter of Our Time (1980),a documentary on MF Husain by Santi P Chaudhury,Destination Bombay (1975) by GL Bhardwaj and the award-winning film about dance therapy,Dance Also Cures (1980).

Aware that the younger generation may not connect with it,FDI now aims to reinvent itself to draw a new and varied audience. Avijit Mukul Kishore,an independent cameraman who curated this session,says the motive behind choosing these films was to show two different periods in Indian history — a young democracy curious about the future and an emerging global hub at the helm of transition.

The FD Zone made its debut on July 14 at the Peddar Road office of the Films Division in Mumbai. With this,FDI aims to make its archives accessible to a larger audience,besides continuing its usual mandate of promoting indie films and documentaries. It also intends to keep the combo of indie films and documentaries going for its FD Zone screenings.

In the last two decades,the dominance of satellite television — which beams more than 100 Indian and international channels into our homes — and the increasing number of multiplexes in cities have edged out the platform that documentaries had because of the division. Its functioning had also been stymied by factors like not having a director general for the last two years. The changing entertainment and information scenario demands that the division rehauls itself. “What is the reason for its existence now? That is the fundamental problem,” says veteran filmmaker Shyam Benegal,who shared a long association with it. “It needs to redefine its purpose if it must survive,” he adds.

With the appointment of VS Kundu as its new director general recently,a revival of its activities is awaited. Steps have been taken to digitise their films. For instance,DVDs of Mani Kaul films were sold during a festival of his movies earlier this month. The film club,with its weekly screenings,is another step in that direction. “We will have filmmakers and scholars curate these screenings. We are using social networking sites to spread the word,” Kundu says.

Reviving Films Division requires effort. This is something Kundu,despite having no formal training in cinema,and his team understand. “We’re now going to open our doors to the outside world,” says Suresh Menon,a director at FDI,who claims that over 118 films have been commissioned to indie filmmakers over the last two years. “It will take some time to reinvent our profile but I’m optimistic about the division’s survival,” he says.

Wait and watch might be a good mantra for those who are looking towards FDI’s turnaround.