Actor Anupam Kher appointed new Chairman of FTII

Actor Anupam Kher arrives on the red carpet for the film "The Headhunter’s Calling" during the 41st Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), in Toronto, Canada, September 14, 2016. REUTERS/Mark Blinch - S1BEUBJCUNAB

Veteran actor Anupam Kher has been appointed as Chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) replacing Gajendra Chauhan.

Kher has acted in both Bollywood, Hollywood and theatre. Chauhan, a TV actor, had been controversially appointed as Chairman of the prestigious institute in 2015 and his term ended in March this year.

Kher has previously held the post of chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification and the National School of Drama. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2004 and the Padma Bhushan in 2016.

He is one of the few Indian actors to have crossed over to international cinema with films such as the 2002 Golden Globe-nominated "Bend It Like Beckham", Ang Lee's 2007 Golden Lion-winning "Lust, Caution," and "David O Russell's" 2013 Oscar-winning "Silver Linings Playbook."

He has written and starred in a play about his own life called "Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai", which was directed by Feroz Abbas Khan.

Kher's colleagues and contemporaries congratulated the actor on his new appointment.

His wife, Kirron Kher is a Bharatiya Janata MP who represents Chandigarh in the Lok Sabha.

Congratulations my dear @AnupamPkher for becoming FTII Chairman ! Know you will do a great job !

— Kirron Kher (@KirronKherBJP) October 11, 2017