Sandeep Marwaha Director, Asian academy film & Television

Sandeep Marwaha needs no introduction in Bollywood’s tinsel world. He is the director of the prestigious Asian Academy of Film& Television, (AAFT) located in Noida (UP), that churns out scores of young men and women, suitably trained to handle the vibrant media of television and films. But he also has glitzy star connections (being the brother – in- law of the other Kapurs: Boney, Anil and Sanjay). This dashingly handsome and impeccably dressed young man is a product of Sardar Patel Vidyalaya and Bhagat Singh College, Delhi. Then he went n on to do his M.Com from Delhi University: 198o This was followed by a Diploma in Marketing & Management of the Institute Marketing & Management which is affiliated with the Princeton University of the USA: 1979, diploma in Administrative Law of the University of Delhi: 1981 and Diploma in Taxation of Lakhotia College of Taxation, New Delhi: 1982.

For a considerable length of time Marwaha been associated with production of serials as well as films, the notable serials being: Yog Chaya, Chitrakar, Talk Show, Teen Canteen and Roshni etc The Feature Films produced by him include: Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja, Prem, Mr India, Judai, Sirf Tum, Pukar among others. As a part of his chequered career,Marwah has been an actor in telefilms such as: Nimantran, Ehsaas, Footpath,etc.

We at National Network of Education managed to catch up with Sandeep Marwaha in the midst of an extremely busy schedule and garnered a wealth of information about the Academy and his future plans to enrich the world of visual arts and media.

Excerpts from the interview:

Tell us about the beginnings of AAFT, why and how did it happen?

The academy was started way back in 1993. The underlying idea was to build up and develop an institution that could impart highly professional training to young men and women who were aspiring for a career in television, films or other visual media. You see, I was keenly aware that the world of television and films was live, vibrant and forever growing; at that point the entire northern region had no such training institute, worth the mention. So I thought it would be worthwhile to set up such an institution near the national capital, Delhi that could cater to the youth of the region.

The project was cleared and the land for the site sanctioned in1988. The entire finances for this project came from our family’s funds. During its decade long existence the AAFT has successfully trained 3000 professionals in various categories, most of whom are suitably employed in the film and television media. The academy has successfully carved a niche for itself at the international forum and has been drawing students from countries like UK, USA, France, Germany and Australia.

Please elaborate on the courses offered by AAFT

AAFT offer courses in various fields of film and TV industry ranging from production, direction, video and audio editing, acting etc. We cover the minute details of each trade with the help of renowned professionals from the respective fields. The courses offered are…

(a) Three months programmes in:

• Production Direction & TV Journalism
• Video Editing and Sound Recording
• Camera and Lighting Techniques
• Acting & Presentation
• Animation & Graphics

(b) 1-year programmes in

• Master Diploma in Visual Communication
• Post Graduate Diploma in TV Journalism and communication
• Animation & Graphics

What about the admission procedure and the rules & regulations?

An applicant is required to obtain the prospectus along with the application form for Rs. 400/- (Non-refundable). This does not either guarantee admission or impose any other liability on the Academy. All application forms may be submitted duly filled in and signed along with photographs within the specified date. Minimum educational qualification for admission to the courses is pass in Higher Secondary (10 + 2).

The applicant is required to appear for a personal interview before the final selection. Working knowledge of English will be helpful. The age for admission is between 15 to 40 Years (Relaxable in special cases). It would be worthwhile to bear in mind that students will not be permitted to seek or accept any engagement to appear in public either on the amateur or professional stage or work in films during their terms as students.

What according to you are the personal attributes, which the aspirants to a career in visual media ought to have?

• Excellent communication skills
• A passion for the media; without an innate passion, nothing much can be achieved.
• Hard work
• As sense of deep commitment. Without the basic commitment success is elusive.

What are the advantages of a career in visual media?

The extent to which you can develop and flourish is directly proportional to the degree of your personal input. If you really work hard,then the pay packets are attractive and lucrative. Moreover name, fame and recognition can come to a person almost meteorically.

And what do you feel, are the disadvantages?

There are no fixed parameters particularly with respect to the time factor. You will need to put in long hours of rigorous work, follow varied timings, cope with sudden changes in schedules etc. As a consequence your normal, daily life; personal/ family life gets drastically affected.

Does AAFT provide placement to all its students?

No, but we certainly help them in finding suitable placements. We have ample choices because most television channels and production houses keep approaching us constantly, in order to locate suitable candidates for their diverse requirements. So we recommend to them our students according to individual merit. Till date, AAFT has churned out 3000 students out of whom 2700 have found plum positions in the industry. We have not been able to keep track of the rest, but I guess they too must be doing pretty well.

Please give us details about the proposed University of Media Arts

The University of Media Arts was founded with the following objectives:

• To provide instructions, teaching and training in higher education and make provisions for research, advancement and dissemination of knowledge.
• To achieve excellence specially, in education in visual communication and other art forms.
• To create higher levels of intellectual abilities.
• To establish state of the art facilities for education and training.

Incidentally, this is envisaged to be the first ever film university within the country. This university will become fully functional from July 2004 and will conduct both bachelor’s and master’s courses in journalism, besides a master’s course in film –making.

In this industry what is the initial pay packet like?

This depends entirely on individual calibre and merit. A fresher could earn anything between Rs 5000 and 10,000.While the sky is the limit for the really brilliant ones who are masters of their artistic craft.

How do you visualize the future of the Television & film media?

There is a boom in the industry at the moment, and this boom is likely to continue in the near future. Today there are 70-80 channels; in a year’s time this number will rise to about 150. In other words this industry is growing very fast.

Read More Interviews...

(As told to Ruchira Ghosh)