Javed
Akhtar
at
9th
Ajanta-Ellora
International
Film
Festival:
Mr.
Javed
Akhtar
was
speaking
in
an
exclusive
interview
on
the
second
day
of
the
9th
Ajanta-Ellora
International
Film
Festival.
The
interview
was
conducted
by
noted
film
director
Jayprad
Desai.
Apart
from
the
enlightening
interview
of
Mr.
Akhtar,
the
day
was
also
full
of
other
interesting
events,
including
a
masterclass
by
renowned
film
director
R.
Balki.
Javed
Akhtar
at
the
9th
AIFF
Mr.
Akhtar
further
said
that
the
hero
of
the
1960s
films
came
from
a
humble
background.
He
was
very
much
a
taxi
driver,
rickshaw
puller,
labourer,
or
teacher.
Nowadays,
the
picture
has
changed.
Today's
heroes
belong
to
rich
families.
They
have
nothing
to
do
with
the
political
and
social
situation
of
the
country.
So
today's
films
don't
deal
with
political
themes
or
even
social
issues;
they
revel
only
in
personal
stories.
Language
is
not
just
a
means
of
communication,
Mr.
Akhtar
said,
it's
a
river
flowing
with
the
water
of
culture.
Cutting
a
people
from
their
language
is
like
cutting
the
roots
of
a
tree.
If
we
lose
our
language
we
also
lose
our
culture
and
our
stories.
But
unfortunately,
today
people
who
do
not
understand
the
importance
of
a
language
are
making
decisions
about
it.
Narrating
his
experience
of
visiting
the
World
Heritage
Site
of
Ellora
Caves,
Mr.
Akhtar
said,
"I
am
deeply
moved
by
watching
the
glorious
sculptures
of
Ellora
Caves.
I
feel
so
sorry
and
wonder
why
I
didn't
come
to
see
it
earlier.
I
can
say
for
sure
that
people
who
created
this
mesmerizing
piece
of
art
made
it
out
of
passion
and
not
for
the
sake
of
money.
Generations
after
generations
pursued
this
passion.
We
cannot
even
comprehend
their
commitment
and
dedication.
However,
if
we
can
absorb
even
a
thousandth
of
their
passion
and
tenacity,
we
transform
this
nation
into
heaven."
Famous
film
director
Anubhav
Sinha,
Founder-Chairman
of
the
AIFF
Organising
Committee
Nandkishor
Kagliwal,
Vice-Chancellor
of
MGM
University
Dr.
Vilas
Sapkal,
Festival
Director
Ashok
Rane,
Artistic
Director
Chandrakant
Kulkarni,
Convener
Nilesh
Raut,
Poet
Dasu
Vaidya,
and
a
large
number
of
film
enthusiasts
and
citizens
were
present
on
this
occasion.
Balki's
Masterclass
received
overwhelming
response
from
the
audience
Along
with
the
screening
of
many
acclaimed
films,
an
interesting
line
of
events
were
also
organised
on
the
second
day
of
the
9th
Ajanta-Ellora
International
Film
Festival.
This
also
included
a
masterclass
by
R.
Balki,
director
of
films
like
Paa,
Chini
Kam,
Ghumar,
Shamitabh,
and
Padman.
The
Masterclass
received
an
overwhelming
response
from
aspiring
students
of
filmmaking,
film
enthusiasts,
and
film
lovers.
The
Masterclass
was
moderated
by
director
Dyanesh
Zoting.
Before
that
R
Balki's
film
Ghumar
was
screened.