Naseeruddin Shah Backs SRFTI Students, Urges Citizens To Support Their Protest; Watch

Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of targeting students at Kolkata’s Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI), urging citizens to support their protest against the administration. In a video shared on Instagram, Shah alleged that students demanding accountability had faced show-cause notices, surveillance, threats and pressure to vacate their hostels.

What did Naseeruddin Shah say about the SRFTI protest?

Shah described the students as aspiring filmmakers and alleged that the action against them was an attempt to intimidate young people who challenged the administration. He also criticised what he called the promotion of propaganda and warned against efforts to influence the next generation of filmmakers. “The BJP, the bloody jhuti party after its manipulative victory in the Bengal elections, now seems all out for revenge on anyone who does not subscribe to their beliefs and their policies,” Shah said in the video.

“These are the young people who in the future will tell us the truth about themselves and about our country and about the state we are in,” he said, before urging “all right-minded citizens” to support the students’ demands.

His comments come as students continue an indefinite sit-in outside vice-chancellor Santosh Ajmera’s office, demanding accountability for alleged violence on campus and action against those responsible.

Why are SRFTI students protesting?

The agitation follows confrontations on September 27 and October 4 involving students and members of outside groups. Students have alleged violence and intimidation, including the assault and groping of women students. The administration has faced criticism over disciplinary action against protesters, with six students reportedly rusticated and others issued show-cause notices.

Regular academic activities across SRFTI’s film, electronic and digital media departments have been suspended until November 13. The administration has also asked parents of students staying on campus to take their children home, a move the students’ union has described as pressure to end the protest.

Filmmaker Payal Kapadia has also expressed solidarity with the protesters, saying she was “horrified” that students were facing disciplinary action while no action had been taken against those who allegedly assaulted them and groped women students.

The controversy has also reached Parliament, with CPI(M) MP John Brittas writing to Union ministers seeking intervention and an independent inquiry into the allegations.