IFFI 2017 Handbook

PANEL DISCUSSION
Literary Inspirations Cinema and the Written Word
“Is contemporary cinema reflecting the literature of our times” this session will be moderated by Ms Vani Tripathi Tikoo, Producer
& Actress.
Moderator - Vani Tripathi Tikoo, Producer & Actress
Vani Tripathi Tikoo is one of the youngest ever members of the Central Board of Film Certification.
Her campaigns and outreach programmes as an artist and activist have focused on encouraging
women’s participation in politics and bringing the youth to a universal platform that addresses issues
like education, empowerment and employment. As a producer, she has been deeply involved in
programmes related to environment and global sustainability. She has also been closely involved
in theatre, films and television, having worked in India as well as abroad. As an actor, she has
about 50 plays, 40-odd TV serials and six films to her credit. After graduating in political science
from Delhi University, she went to the Living Theatre Academy of Drama and learnt acting under
the guidance of the legendary theatre guru Ebrahim Alkazi. The noted theatre personalities Vani
has worked with include B.V. Karanth, Maya Rao, Barry John and Tripurari Sharma. Later, she
worked as an actor-teacher at the National School of Drama’s Theatre in Education Company.
She founded the country’s first state government-run drama school in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Natya Vidyalaya, in 2011. Vani was also attached to journalism and broadcasting in India.
She continues to contribute to Indian newspapers from time to time. She is currently on the Core
Committee for the International Film Festival of India.
Amish Tripathi
Described as ‘India’s first literary popstar’ by world-renowned film director Shekhar Kapur, Amish’s
unique combination of crackling story-telling, religious symbolism and profound philosophies has
made him an overnight publishing phenomenon, with spiritual guru Deepak Chopra hailing Amish’s
books as ‘archetypal and stirring’.
Six of his books – The Immortals of Meluha (2010), The Secret of the Nagas (2011) and The Oath of
the Vayuputras (2013), which collectively comprise the Shiva Trilogy, and Scion of Ikshvaku (2015),
Sita – Warrior of Mithila (2017), Immortal India – Young Country, Timeless Civilisation have 4 million
copies in print. His books have been translated into 19 Indian and foreign languages. The Shiva
Trilogy is the fastest selling book series in Indian publishing history. Amish is a graduate of IIM-
Calcutta and worked for 14 years in the financial services industry before turning to full-time writing.
Yatindra Mishra
Poet, editor, music and cinema scholar, Yatindra Mishra has four collections of Hindi poetry to
his credit. He has written about the life and work of various artists Girija Devi, Sonal Mansingh
and Ustad Bismillah Khan. His latest book Lata: Sur-Gatha’ on legendary playback singer Lata
Mangeshkar won the National Film Award for Best Writing on Cinema and an award for Best Writing
at the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival. Recipient of Uttar Pradesh Sangeet Natak Academy Award and
Jnanpith Fellowship, Mishra has been an advisor to the DD Bharati Channel, Doordarshan, Prasar
Bharati (2014-2016). He lives in Ayodhya.
Prasoon Joshi, CBFC, CEO
One of the most respected names in the Indian film industry, Prasoon Joshi is more than just
a talented lyricist. He is the chief of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). Born in
Uttarakhand’s Almora, the 45-year-old poet and screenwriter is a successful ad man. A science
graduate, Joshi started his career with Ogilvy and Mather and went on to become the executive vicepresident
of McCann-Erickson. He began writing lyrics in 1999 with Bhopal Express, but his big
break in films came with the song Kaun dagar, kaun shehar in Rajkumar Santoshi’s 2001 film Lajja.
He became more prominent after penning songs for films like Fanaa, Rang De Basanti, Black, Delhi
6 and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. In 2007, Joshi won the National Award for Best Lyrics for Taare Zameen
Par and a second one for Chittagong in 2013. Recently, his lyrics for Neerja songs were also well
received. Joshi was awarded the Padma Shri in 2015.
INTERNATIONAL CINEMA IFFI 2017
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