Veteran actor Anupam Kher took everyone by surprise when he resigned as the Chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) in Pune on October 30, a year after his appointment. Citing his international assignments as the reason, he stated that it has been an honour for him to serve at FTII but it would be difficult for him to continue further. Anupam also requested the Ministry to scout for someone suitable for the post during his notice period.

https://twitter.com/AnupamPKher/status/1057554789695811584

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Now speaking to a leading daily, Anupam revealed that he hadn't disclosed his decision to resign to the governing council, which was formed by him in the course of the year and includes members like Kangana Ranaut, Divya Dutta, Rajkumar Hirani, Arvind Swami and Satish Kaushik. As expected, the members of the council were shocked to know about Anupam's sudden exit. "[It's only after I tweeted that] they started calling me to say that they joined because of me. I told them to continue their work for the FTII," revealed the actor.

Further affirming that he wouldn't be able to do justice to the job, he added, "It's a great institution, but it needs somebody who can give it a little more time. I was doing that, but now I need to find new horizons. I am thrilled that the series is doing well."

The 63-year-old actor is currently busy filming New Amsterdam – an American television show, in New York and would require him to be stationed in the US for "nearly nine months between 2018 and 2019". Anupam has been cast as a neurosurgeon in the NBC series, co-starring Ryan Eggold, Janet Montgomery, Jocko Sims and Tyler Labine.