NEW DELHI (AP) 鈥� Israel鈥檚 envoy to India on Tuesday denounced a filmmaker from his country after he called a blockbuster Bollywood film on disputed Kashmir a 鈥減ropaganda鈥� and 鈥渧ulgar movie鈥� at a film festival, stoking a debate about recent history that fuels the ongoing conflict.
Naor Gilon, Israel鈥檚 ambassador to India, said he was 鈥渆xtremely hurt鈥� by comments made by filmmaker Nadav Lapid in which he said the movie 鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� was unworthy of being screened at the highly acclaimed International Film Festival of India. The event, organized by the Indian government in western Goa state, ended Monday.
鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� was released in March to a roaring success and is largely set in the late 1980s and the early 1990s, when attacks and threats by militants led to the migration of most Kashmiri Hindus from the Muslim-majority disputed region. Many film critics and Kashmiri Muslims have called the film hateful propaganda, while its fans and proponents, including India鈥檚 many federal government ministers, see it as essential viewing of the plight of Kashmiri Hindus, locally called Pandits.
Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan and both claim the territory in full. In 1989, tens of thousands of mostly Kashmiri Muslims rose up against Indian rule, leading to a protracted armed conflict in the region.
On Tuesday, Gilon tweeted at Lapid, saying: 鈥淵OU SHOULD BE ASHAMED.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 no film expert but I do know that it鈥檚 insensitive and presumptuous to speak about historic events before deeply studying them and which are an open wound in India because many of the involved are still around and still paying a price,鈥� Gilon tweeted. He also accused Lapid of inflicting damage on the growing relationship between India and Israel.
The festival jury has distanced itself from Lapid鈥檚 remarks and called them his 鈥減ersonal opinion.鈥� An internationally acclaimed director, Lapid鈥檚 movies 鈥淪ynonyms鈥� and 鈥淎had鈥檚 Knee鈥� have won awards at major festivals.
At the time of its release, 鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� was endorsed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and promoted by his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party by offering it tax breaks in some states governed by it.
The film, however, set off heated debates. Its supporters praised it for speaking the truth about Kashmiri Hindus, while critics said the film was aimed to stoke anti-Muslim sentiments at a time when calls for violence against India鈥檚 minority Muslims have increased.
Nonetheless, the film was a blockbuster. Made on a budget of $2 million, it has earned more than $43 million so far, making it one of India鈥檚 highest-grossing films this year.
The filmmakers of 鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� have repeatedly said it exposes what they call the 鈥済enocide鈥� inflicted on the region鈥檚 Hindus and likened it to Hollywood鈥檚 鈥砈chindler鈥檚 List鈥� that tells the story of the Holocaust. But many critics, including some of Bollywood鈥檚 top directors, have called it divisive, full of factual inaccuracies and provocative.
Hindus lived mostly peacefully alongside Muslims for centuries across the Himalayan region of Kashmir. In the late 1980s, when Kashmir turned into a battleground, attacks and threats by militants led to the departure of most Kashmiri Hindus, who identified with India鈥檚 rule, Many believed that the rebellion was also aimed at wiping them out. It reduced the Hindus from an estimated 200,000 to a tiny minority of about 5,000 in the Kashmir Valley.
Most of the region鈥檚 Muslims, long resentful of Indian rule, deny that Hindus were systematically targeted, and say India helped them to move out in order to cast Kashmir鈥檚 freedom struggle as Islamic extremism.
According to official data, over 200 Kashmiri Hindus were killed in the last three decades of the region鈥檚 conflict. Some Hindu groups put the number much higher.
Tensions in Kashmir returned in when India鈥檚 Hindu nationalist government stripped the region's semi-autonomy, split it into two federal territories administered by New Delhi and imposed a clampdown on free speech accompanied by widespread arrests. Kashmir has since witnessed a spate of targeted killings, Police blame anti-India rebels for the killings.
On Tuesday, 鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� actor Anupam Kher, who plays a protagonist, called the criticism of the film 鈥減replanned.鈥�
鈥淚f the Holocaust is right, then the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits is also right,鈥� Kher said in a video posted on Twitter.
鈥淭he Kashmir Files鈥� is directed by Vivek Agnihotri, whose previous film 鈥淭he Tashkent Files鈥� alleged a conspiracy in the death of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. The film was heavily criticized for presenting unproven conspiracy theories as facts.
Sheikh Saaliq, The Associated Press
