Actor Vijay Varma called out Pune-based Film and Television Institute of India’s (FTII) former chairman, Gajendra Chauhan, for claiming he’s ‘proud’ of filmmaker Payal Kapadia after her Cannes win for her film All We Imagine As Light. He took to his Instagram stories to share a post about a recent comment Gajendra made on Payal.

Vijay Varma calls out Gajendra Chauhan

Vijay shared a post on his Instagram stories in which Gajendra claims he was ‘proud’ to be the chairman at FTII when Payal was studying there. It was a statement he had given to PTI. He told them, “Congratulations to her and I feel proud that I was the chairman at the time when she was doing the course there.”

Vijay shared a meme that reads, “Karwali bezzati? (Got insulted?)”, adding, “Sir ye chup rehne ka time tha (Sir this was the time to stay silent),” with a giggle emoji. Since Payal won the Le Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival for her film, people have called out FTII for claiming her as an alumnus.

Payal at FTII

In 2015, Payal was one of the students who took part in a protest after Gajendra’s appointment as FTII chairman. She stopped going to classes in protest and had her scholarship taken away. Later, when her short film Afternoon Clouds made it to Cannes, FTII changed its mind and supported her. Gajendra told PTI, “That protest was not against me, it was against the director and the administration.”

This year, she made history when her film, All We Imagine As Light, won the much-coveted award. This was the first time in 30 years that an Indian movie had competed at the festival’s main competition. Payal and her actors Chhaya Kadam, Divya Prabha, and Kani Kusruti attended Cannes.

Gajendra on Payal

Talking to Times Now, Gajendra claimed he was ‘proud’ of Payal for her achievements. He also claimed that there was a ‘vast difference’ between talent and discipline. He told them, “I would just like to say, we are all very proud of her. I’d like to congratulate her for her achievement. There is a vast difference between being talented and being disciplined. Talent is all very fine but being disciplined is also very important.” He also added that he was ‘proud of what (he) achieved at FTII’.

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