MUMBAI: It seems that Subhash Ghai’s International film school, Whistling Woods, has received a new lease of life. News has just come in that the director has signed an MOU with Bradford College.
The Background: Earlier in 2012, Subhash Ghai’s film school was in a lot of trouble. The Supreme Court had ordered Ghai to return the 20 acres of land in Filmcity, Mumbai that was allotted for the film school.
However, the filmmaker had decided not to give up hope, and had mentioned to us that the school would continue on the Film City premises till July 2014. “We have built one world-class institute from the ground up. We are more than ready to set up another, if needed, to ensure continuity of the Whistling Woods vision,” said Ghai.
“Subhash Ghai by name is a liability and not an asset. The asset is the children who are the future of the film industry so please protect them,” he had added.
The filmmaker had the foresight to fight the odds stacked against him, and proclaimed that “Whistling Woods is in question today. But I can assure you that it will be alive for 100 years no matter how much one tries to bend it.”
He then went on to make other provisions to ensure the institute continues unhindered.
But a severe blow was dealt to Ghai when the High Court of Punjab stayed the sale of 20 acres of land, which he was trying to purchase in Jhajjar district of Haryana.
The Good News: Bravely fighting against all these setbacks – the latest news for Whistling Woods seems positive: Whistling Woods has signed an MoU with Bradford College of UK.
Reportedly, Whistling Woods International will set up a campus in UK.
This is the second international collaboration for WWI, which already has an MoU in place to set up a campus in Nigeria.
The Whistling Woods International Bradford College Film School will be located in Bradford, U.K and will provide three-year undergraduate programmes in filmmaking and animation from September 2013.
Meghna Ghai Puri, WWI president, and Subhash Ghai’s daughter said, “We have always envisioned being international, in our alliances, in our faculty, and we are living up to it.”
Founder and chairman of WWI, Subhash Ghai said of his new endeavour; “Cinema can unite the world. Whistling Woods shouldn’t be only in Mumbai.”
Seen at the press con to flag of WWI’s MoU with Bradford, Subhash Ghai was wearing a grey shirt and his trademark sweater vest. Ghai was spotted with Trevor Griffiths, the famed English dramatist. The man also looked visibly relieved that all his troubles relating to the institute may now finally be at an end.
