Agnihotri, 40 member panel to curate IFFI films

The information and broadcasting (I&B) ministry on Tuesday constituted a 40-member ‘preview committee’ with filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri as its convenor to select movies for the international film festival at Goa. Other members of the new committee include Agnihotri’s wife and actress Pallavi Joshi, author and Padma Shri-awardee Narendra Kohli and actress Hrishitaa Bhatt, an official statement said.

The move came after the  ministry recently postponed a meeting of the previous preview committee comprising around 20 members who were nominated when M. Venkaiah Naidu was the I&B minister. Film editor Aarti Bajaj, film critic and screenwriter Khalid Mohamed and film director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury are among the other members of the newly constituted committee.

The International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will be held in Goa from November 20-28. “The (dissolved) committee was cleared by M. Venkaiah Naidu in the second week of July. The process was already started and we have seen 150 films so far. We don’t know whether they will be seen again or not,” a member of the dissolved committee said.

Film critic Saibal Chatterjee is the only member of the earlier committee who has been been retained in the new committee, the member, who wished not to be named, said.

Vivek said, “I am very passionate about such film festivals. Each of the members will try and do a good job. I think what Smriti Iraniji is trying to do is bring in more professionals. All of us want one thing — the film industry should grow and these are small steps.”

Last week, the information and broadcasting ministry constituted the steering committee and the technical committee for the IFFI.

Filmmaker Jahnu Barua was appointed as the convener of the new 13-member steering committee, while filmmaker and screenwriter Nagesh Kukunoor was made the head of the 12-member technical committee.