The Punjab government has invited film producer-director Subhash Ghai to set up a centre of excellence in acting and filmmaking on the Guru Gobind Singh Skill University campus proposed at Chamkaur Sahib.The invitation was extended by technical education minister Charanjit Channi, who represents Chamkaur Sahib in the assembly, in a meeting with Ghai on Friday during the latter’s visit to Chandigarh.
Channi said Ghai’s Whistling Woods Institute in Mumbai “ranks seventh among 1,400 acting institutes across the globe”. “The idea is to set up another branch of this institute in Punjab. As setting up the skill university campus may take time, we have asked Ghai to provide alternative arrangements for the institute,” Channi told HT. As per a technical education department official who was a part of the meeting, Ghai showed “keen interest” in setting up the centre as infrastructure will be provided by the government.
On Twitter, Ghai said the minister offered him “maximum subsidies and support”.
Ghai had planned to open such an institute in Jajjhar district of Haryana too, and took 20 acres of panchayat land on; but that allotment was cancelled in 2012 by the Punjab and Haryana high court.
As for the one planned in Punjab now, “Ghai will run the institute while the fee will be fixed by the state government,” the official added. “Filmmaking is an area from which we can subsequently generate many jobs. Moreover, Punjabi youth is fascinated by the entertainment industry, and there shouldn’t be any problem in finding natural talent.”
He claimed that representatives of Ghai’s institute will visit the department officials by the first week of May to further discuss the proposal. As per Channi, the process for the purchase of land for the skill university is likely to start by second week of May.
Source: hindustantimes.com
