NUJS Kolkata banned all movies from being shot on campus, after complaints from faculty and students for disturbance caused by the shooting of a Bhojpuri film inside the Salt Lake law school.

According to an office order signed by the registrar and circulated today to faculty and staff members, department heads, campus supervisors, personal assistants to the vice chancellor and registrar and to the student juridical association president (see copy below):

The campus premises of the university shall not be used anymore for any kind of film shooting activities. This has approval of the vice chancellor.

Sources within the campus commented that students and faculty had raised objections before the administration, headed by NUJS vice chancellor (VC) Ishwara Bhat, against the film’s shooting, due to “students facing issues in enjoying campus facilities, disturbance during class and generally, being drooled at by the crew members”.

The shooting inside the campus went on for five days, confirmed three sources within the campus.

One source commented: “One fine morning last week I entered the campus to see this farce going on right inside the front gate. On inquiry, I got to know that a Bhojpuri movie is being shot of all things. I’d got a considerable shock, to be honest. This continued for next five days, including song and dance routines even while classes were going on. [Some students and teachers] objected quite vociferously.”

It is understood that no information was shared with faculty members before giving permissions to the film crew, and the shooting only stopped after students and faculty raised objections before Bhat on Sunday night, as they were told he was out of station at a wedding until then.

“The whole episode has just left me with a very bad taste in the mouth,” one source added. The film, zila champaran, was reportedly scheduled to be shot from 16 January onwards in Kolkata.

Another campus source added: "An institution of excellence in legal academia where student's interest and teaching is being compromised due to raucous shooting of sensual songs inside the offices of administration  and as well without any approvals or sanctity of security for the students and faculty. It [...] speaks volumes on the state of current administration which compromises on the few effective working days it has on such activities."

NUJS is due for a judicial review, which was signed off by its ex-chancellor, former Chief Justice of India (CJI) TS Thakur in November. No members were appointed to the commission until November, and CJI Thakur has now retired.

A day before the renewal of Bhat’s tenure as VC in September 2016, students had signed a resolution raising several administrative irregularities at the law school.

We have reached out to Bhat for comment yesterday but have not received a response.