Payal Kapadia, who was on warpath with FTII, earns praise from her alma mater for Cannes win

Kapadia charted history by becoming the first Indian filmmaker to win the Cannes Grand Prix award for ‘All We Imagine as Light’; in 2015, she had led a student protest against the appointment of actor-turned-politician Gajendra Chauhan as FTII chairman

Amid the outpouring of congratulatory messages for Payal Kapadia, who won the second highest honour at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, a message from her alma mater FTII lauding her has garnered much attention.

At the gala, which concluded on Saturday, Kapadia charted history by becoming the first Indian filmmaker to win the Grand Prix award for All We Imagine as Light.

On Sunday, the Film and Television Institute of India in a post on X said it is a moment of pride for the FTII as its alumni create history at Cannes and congratulated Kapadia for the award.

Back in 2015, Kapadia was on the warpath with the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

She had led a student protest against the appointment of actor-turned-politician Gajendra Chauhan, best known for his portrayal of Yudhisthir in the mega TV serial Mahabharat, as the chairman of the Pune-based premier institute.

According to the protesting students, Chauhan did not match the vision and stature of past chairmen of the FTII governing council, and his appointment appeared “politically coloured”.

During the 139-day strike, the students also allegedly gheraoed and confined the then FTII Director Prashant Pathrabe in his office over some academic issues. This had led to the police entering the campus and arresting some of the protesters.