Sagir Ahmed Director and FTII Professor Died

Filmmaker Sagir Ahmed passed away last night at 11 pm. A trained student in direction and a lecturer of media studies, Sagir Ahmed has been a renowned scholar and a brilliant director. He obtained his diploma from the FTII in 1968.

Ahmed`s exposition “Sholay, Satyajit Ray and the Warring Clans of Indian Cinema” in 1976 was highly acclaimed and reviewed in leading newspapers of the country.

Sagir Ahmed joined FTII as a professor of screenplay writing. He directed award-winning odia film ‘Dhare Alua’ in 1983. He also wrote screenplay for “Matira Bandhana”.

He is also one of the avant-garde Odia filmmakers of the 1980-90s, who has come out of the narcissistic mould narrative cinema and have broken new ground. His creation ‘Avritti’ is important contribution in this direction.

Born in the Cuttack of 30’s, he was heavily influenced by the Left ideology. This influence which left its indelible imprint in almost all his works, is due partly to Ahmed’s acquaintance with renowned director Ritwik Ghatak. Ghatak’s radical outlook and original thinking left a lasting impression on Ahmed’s outlook.

May his soul rest in peace.