The 5th edition of the Indian Screenwriters Conference (ISC) was inaugurated today by Chief Guest Aamir Khan. The eagerly awaited biennial which is organised by the Screenwriters Association (SWA) is being held from August 1-3 at St. Andrews Auditorium, Bandra.
The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Where Mind Is Without Fear’ that focuses on the challenges facing Indian screenwriters today.
Present at the opening ceremony were Mr. Sanjay Chouhan – SWA Executive Committee member and Convenor of the 5th ISC. Also present were Mr. Sunil Salgia – SWA Executive Committee member and Co-convenor of the 5th ISC, Mr. Zama Habib – General Secretary of the SWA and Preeti Mamgain – President of the SWA.
The conference started with a 2-minutes silence that was observed in memory of deceased SWA members.
Following this, Mr. Sanjay Chouhan, spoke about the journey of Screenwriters Conference and how it has grown by leaps and bounds over the years. He said, “The inaugural edition of ISC which was held in 2006 at FTII Pune was attended by 275 delegates, whereas the first day of this year’s edition is attended by over 800 aspiring screenwriters”
While Preeti Mamgain spoke about the history of the Screenwriters Conference and how it has become a force to reckon with over the years.
Eminent journalist and Padma Shri awardee Vinod Dua delivered the Keynote Address that followed the inauguration ceremony at the conference. It was preceded by an introduction by Zama Habib in which he introduced Vinod Dua.
Post this, scriptwriter and SWA Executive Committee member Anjum Rajabali (Ghulam, Raajneeti) engaged in a candid conversation with Aamir Khan much to the delight of the audiences. The conversation was about his take on scriptwriting, his experience of being a producer, working with scriptwriters and why they deserve to be respected and compensated well.
In the course of the conversation, Khan also shared interesting anecdotes on how he ended up producing Lagaan (2001) after rejecting it initially and why he takes a share in the profits. The actor-producer also remarked that he was glad to be finally attending the Indian Screenwriters Conference after several unsuccessful attempts in the past.
Khan also said that he believes in giving writers their due respect and rights and considers them an extremely important part of the filmmaking process. Having worked on the scripts of his films namely Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988), Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992) and Hum Hain Rahi Pyaar Ke (1993) has also helped him to understand the scriptwriting process and a writer’s psyche in a much better way, the actor confided.
He also added that a script undergoes an instrumental journey from the idea to the execution stage and can play a big role in altering one’s opinion about the same.
Khan cited the example of Lagaan and admitted that he found the initial idea of the film bizarre when Ashutosh Gowarikar narrated it. But after Gowarikar came to him with a full-fledged script and screenplay, Khan by his own admission was blown off and agreed to act and produce in it.
Aamir Khan who was extremely delighted to be the Chief Guest at the inaugural ceremony of the 5th Indian Screenwriters Conference said, “I have always believed scriptwriters are an extremely important part of the filmmaking process. And they need to be given their due and the respect they deserve. For I truly believe that the film industry will grow only when the writers grow.”
Filmyfilmindia 
Leave a comment