Nandita Das to be next chairperson of CFSI

Jaya Bachchan, Hema Malini and Nafisa Ali have also  headed the body mandated to promote children’s cinema in India.

While an official announcement regarding her appointment is yet to be made, Information & Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni told Deccan Herald that the actress had agreed to take up the position.

Das, who has left for South Africa to participate in the Durban International Film Festival, confirmed the development. “It means lot of responsibility. I hope I can make some difference as the need to make and distribute good quality films for children is huge,” she said.

The position of CFSI chairperson had fallen vacant when incumbent Nafisa Ali resigned to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Lucknow on a Samajwadi Party ticket.

Das, who has acted in a large number of critically-acclaimed films, recently made her debut as a director with Firaaq, a sensitive film in the backdrop of the Gujarat riots. A social activist, Das also served on the jury of the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago.