Hindi
Need to integrate the spirit of nation-building in each citizen: I&B minister
New Delhi: “India is a pivotal power in Asia and as a member of the BRICS consortium, we would like to play a crucial role to strengthen ties between the member countries” said union minister of Information and broadcasting Anurag Singh Thakur.
Thakur was addressing the virtual inaugural of ‘BRICS Film Technology Symposium’, being organised by FICCI, jointly with the ministry of I&B and FTII, here on Wednesday. “India takes pride in organising the first-ever BRICS Film Technology Symposium as a part of the special event planned in the run-up to the BRICS summit to be held in India,” he said.
According to the minister, the focus of the BRICS Film Technology symposium is to acknowledge the service sector and technicians working for the film industry. “I am sure the symposium will create opportunities for the working professionals in the field of film technology of all BRICS nations to explore the world of cinema with a new perspective and vision,” said Thakur, highlighting the need to win the hearts and minds of the people from all BRICS nations. “A film symposium is an event which brings together one and all through the medium of cinema technology.”
“Organising the first-ever BRICS Film Technology Symposium is a step in this direction to bring the people from all member states together. Through the medium of films, art and culture we have also opened avenues for cooperation which will be supporting development and growth in the film business,” he added.
The two-day symposium intends to form partnerships and provide a platform for technological companies and organisations promoting films and bring the film community together for better communication, cooperation and collaboration.
“BRICS countries are significant players in the field of VFX animation, computer-generated imagery, and media outsourcing. There is a great potential for collaborating with each other to enhance the technology in film production and cinematic experiences for the world of entertainment. The BRICS Film Festival which we will be organising along with the 52nd International Film Festival of India will provide us another opportunity to interact and share the best of our Cinemas,” said MIB secretary, Apurva Chandra.
The event is spread over two days with sessions conducted by eminent speakers from all the BRICS countries. A virtual exhibition is being held as well.
Hindi
Remembering Gyan Sahay, the lens behind film, television and advertising
From a puppet rabbit selling poppadums to Hindi cinema, he framed it all.
MUMBAI: There are careers, and then there are canvases. Gyan Sahay, the veteran cinematographer, director, and producer who passed away on 10 March 2026 in Mumbai, had one of the latter. Over several decades in the Indian film and television industry, he turned lenses, lights, and the occasional puppet rabbit into something approaching art.
A graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) in Pune, Sahay built his reputation as a director of photography across a career that stretched from the early 1970s all the way to the digital age. He was the kind of craftsman who understood that a well-composed shot is not merely a technical achievement but a quiet act of storytelling.
For most Indians of a certain age, however, Sahay will forever be the man behind the rabbit. His direction of the iconic long-running television commercial for Lijjat Papad, featuring its now-legendary puppet bunny, gave the country one of its most cheerfully persistent advertising images. It was the sort of work that sneaks into the national subconscious and takes up permanent residence.
His big-screen credits as cinematographer include Anokhi Pehchan (1972), Pagli (1974), Pas de Deux (1981), and Hum Farishte Nahin (1988). In 1999, he stepped behind a different kind of camera altogether, making his directorial debut with Sar Ankhon Par, a drama that featured Vikas Bhalla and Shruti Ulfat, with a cameo by Shah Rukh Khan for good measure.
On television, Sahay was particularly prized for his command of multi-camera production setups, a skill that made him a go-to technician for large-scale shows and reality programmes. In an industry that has never been especially patient with complexity, he was the calm hand on the rig.
In later life, Sahay turned teacher. He participated regularly in masterclasses and Digi-Talks, often hosted by organisations such as Bharatiya Chitra Sadhna, sharing hard-won wisdom on cinematography, the comedy of timing in a shot, and the sweeping changes brought by the shift from celluloid to digital. He was also said to have been involved in a project concerning a biographical film on Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy.
Tributes from the film industry poured in following the news of his passing, with colleagues remembering him as a senior cameraman who served as a rare bridge between two entirely different eras of Indian cinema. That is, perhaps, the finest thing one can say of any craftsman: he kept up, and he brought others along with him.
