FilmIndia (Feb-Dec 1949)

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ebruary, 1949 F I L M I N D I A Ours are the times of great proress and change. Big tasks are ahead 'ifif us. We cannot lose sight of even he smallest factor which can contripute to the achievement of the same. Ve should visualise the schools as / nstitutions which are responsible for *he social life of the country. The ^»hole outlook requires a radical hange. Children are to be taken to ne schools with an idea that they ave to live as future citizens of this and. Their social background is to e studied so that a wholesome and suitable education is given and not „ lat they are merely made able to ''■'ead and write. Our objective in imarting education should be to equip lem with a sense of ssrvice to the ation; a knowledge of the princi016 les and practice of good health and -™ivic life, a real desire for utilizing le leisure hours happily and fruitully and live a full span of clean ife. REASON'S OF INACTIVITY ! It is the function of the backround films to bring the school and le world outside closer and sponsor etter understanding about the world i the hearts of the child in which e has to live and work. The Government of India recognized the great importance of this ^iedium of education and recently Established a Central Board of Visual Education to help the provincial and \ ther Governments in this respect. | ilmost all provincial governments \ ave purchased a number of projecsrs and set apart huge sums of v^ioney but they all are faced with ne great difficulty and that is nonavailability of proper films. The Governments are not starting ^heir own separate production units or educational films, as this is the — esponsibility of private enterprise s in the case of text books. Private enterprise has been inacive due to three main reasons (a) uitable educational films do not exist Jid hence the schools are not interested in purchasing projectors immediately and (b) commercial producers are reluctant to embark upon his venture of producing educational ilms which the schools are not equip>ed to show and (c) there is no proper arrangement for the distribution }r ready availibility of such films. At present most of our educationits are either ignorant of or indiffer:nt to, the great benefits of such films ind the so-called film magnates quite in the dark about the huge opportunities that this business offers. But in advanced countries thousands of such films are produced to meet the requirements on every subject — history, geography, science, hygiene, civics, etc., etc. The production of such films is a specialized job and must mean the closest co-operation between the producer and the educationist and requires a synthesis of educational knowledge, child psychology and film technique. It can thus be entrusted only to experts. There are a few institutions who have been carrying on experiments in this direction but they had to fall back upon foreign productions many of which, being alien, are quite out of place and not of much use to our conditions. The three factors contributing to the impasse in this field have to be solved at a time and hence it is encouraging to note the wise steps taken by various Provincial Governments like Bombay, East Punjab. Delhi, West Bengal and CP. to do some practical work in this field. Eminent educationists like Dr. Tarachand, Prof. Humayun Kabir, Sjt. K. G. Saivdain, Dr. V. S. Jha. Dr. D. M. Sen and Mr. S. S. Mathur and others are considering plans to implement the various schemes in this field. The problem is being studied by expert committees. THE N. E. I. F. It is with their encouragement that Mr. Goverdhandas Aggarwal who has studied the problem thoroughly has formed a big institution like National Education and Information Films Ltd. with an authorized capital of Rupees one crore out of which shares worth Rs. 25 lakhs are being issued at present. Such a big capital is essential, if the organisation is to work on a sound footing with a long-range plan. It will have on its board of directors such astute and imaginative and nationally conscious businessmen as Sir Samuel Ranganadhan, Lala Karamchand Thapar, His Highness Khairagarh, Seth Anandilal Podar, Ex-Mayor of Calcutta, Raja Saheb of Udaipur (C. P.) Sardar Bahadur Sardar Ljjal Singh, Raja Saheb of Kollangode and Mr. Goverdhandas Aggarwal. But while these directors ensure the smooth and sound working of the business side of the concern, it can only fulfil its obligations as suppliers of 'educational films' if such films are really 'educational'. Hence to ensure the 'educational' quality and standard of its product, the National Education and Information Films Ltd. would seek advice of experts in the field. For this purpose a Central Advisory Council has been formed and it will be composed among others, of Mr. Jaiprakash Narayan, Shrimati Kamladevi Chattopadhvaya, Mr. Yusuf Meherally and Dr. H. C. Mukerjee. The Vice-President of the Constituent Assembly, Seth Govinddas, President Hindi Sahitya Samelan, Dr. V. S. Jha, Secretary Education Department, C. P. and Berar, Dr. D. M. Sen, Secretary Education Department, West Bengal, Mr. S. S. Mathur, Superintendent, Education Department, Delhi, Ajmer, Marwara and Central India and Mr. B. S. Kesavan, the Curator National Library, Government of India. Apart from this Central Advisory Council, provincial boards consisting of representatives of local educational Institutions, headmasters' and teachers' associations will be formed, and from time to time their advice will be sought to keep in contact with local problems and needs. Field work has already started and branch offices at Delhi, Lucknow Nagpur, Jubbulpore and Bangalore have been opened. This institution is combining all the three functions of production, exhibition and distribution of such films by opening provincial film libraries and establishing mobile units exhibiting educational films on a cheap basis besides producing suitable films, so as to make visual edution possible even for the poorest. It is hoped that, with adequate public and Government help this new experiment in this direction will not only render great service to the nation but also become a great commercial success thus inviting many more producers, exhibitors and film library-owners to this field. In the field of books there are a hundred and one new experiments in cheap publication and in the field of illustration and presentation. India needs a bold experiment in the field of documentaries and educational films and we wish that no time is now lost. When this scheme is taken in hand on a nation-wide basis, the period required for the education of a child will not only be reduced but a huge sum saved to the national exchequer every year. 53