Earlier today, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts’ (BAFTA) announced music composer AR Rahman as the ambassador for ‘Breakthrough Initiative’. Supported by Netflix, the initiative aims to identify, celebrate, and support up to five talents working in film, games, or TV in India.
In his statement, Rahman said that he was happy to work with BAFTA to discover the talent that the country has to offer. “This is a unique opportunity for promising artists to be supported by a world-renowned organisation, to not only make connections with other talented creatives across the world but to be mentored by BAFTA-winners and nominees. I am looking forward to seeing the brilliant talent chosen from India to be showcased on a global stage,” said the composer.
The applications for the flagship initiative are now open. It is part of BAFTA’s year-round work to support talent. BAFTA Breakthrough India will help facilitate the development of relationships between British talent and India’s homegrown creatives. The Chief Executive of BAFTA said Rahman shares their team’s passion for identifying new talent. “He is well-positioned to support the initiative, with his broad spectrum of work drawing recognition across Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu films, which will help BAFTA to appeal to a wide section of the industry”
The year-long mentoring and guidance programme will have a jury of British and Indian industry experts. They will be selecting the five new talents from across India. The participants will receive one-to-one mentoring, global network opportunities and full voting BAFTA membership.