MUMBAI: The National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) has appointed noted film director Ramesh Sippy as its chairman. He replaces veteran actor Om Puri who had chaired the Corporation since April 2008.

The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has also appointed Jawahar Wattal and Odiya cinematographer AK Bir as independent directors. The ministry has made a conscious decision to ensure focus on both mainstream as well as parallel cinema with the appointment of these three eminent personalities.

After 2003, the Corporation lost ground in its existing commercial activities and could not identify any alternative source of revenue that led to declining revenues, high manpower costs and almost no development activities.

However, over the last three years, efforts have been made to segregate the marketing of films, separating mainstream and developmental projects.