The Kashmir Files: All jury members except Sudipto Sen stand by Israeli filmmaker

• The graphic is based on a news report by Hindustan Times that claimed that during an interview, Lapid had called the film a ‘brilliant movie’
• Except Sudipto Sen, all the jury board of the just-concluded film festival, maintained that the remarks made by Nadav Lapid
• We were making an artistic statement, and it saddens us greatly to see the platform being used for politics and subsequent personal attacks on Nadav: statement by 3 jury members

After IFFI Jury head Nadav Lapid called The Kashmir Files “a propaganda and vulgar movie” causing a huge embarrassment to BJP — the movie was declared tax free in six BJP-ruled states — earlier this week, attempts are being made to twist his statement, portraying that Israeli film maker retracted his statement.

The twisting and tweaking goes on with a set of people from right wing groups who started running campaign on social media platforms, claiming that Lapid retracted his statement and described the Vivek Agnihotri-directed film “a brilliant movie,” Some people also claimed that Lapid’s statement against the movie was his personal opinion. But the neither are correct.

Notably, Lapid had said the jurors at the film festival were “disturbed and shocked” by The Kashmir Files. “That felt to us like a propaganda, vulgar movie, inappropriate for an artistic competitive section of such a prestigious film festival,” he said.

However, fact-checking website Alt News has exposed the attempts made on various news media outlets, describing that the Israeli film maker neither retracted his statement nor did he say it a “brilliant movie”.

Anupam Kher, who acted in the film, tweeted a graphic featuring the alleged quote of Lapid. Kher wrote, “Ultimately Truth always triumphs!” The graphic is based on a news report by Hindustan Times that claimed that during an interview, Lapid had called the film a ‘brilliant movie’. Others who have reported this include editorji, HT Entertainment, itimes, and RVCJ Media.

The maker of the film, Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri quote-tweeted a tabloid report and wrote, “Most honest man of the world.” The caption of the report said Lapid had apologized for his remarks.

Many also shared Lapid interview with the India Today wherein he was reported to have praised The Kashmiri Files calling it a “brilliant movie”. Based on the interview, the Hindustan Times published a report. But Lapid did not call the film a ‘brilliant movie’ during the interview, claimed the Alt News after going through the interview.

In fact, except Sudipto Sen, all the jury board of the just-concluded film festival, maintained that the remarks made by Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid about The Kashmir Files were his personal opinion even as three other co-jurors came out in support of the jury head. Nudging Sen’s statement published in a section of press, three members – American producer Jinko Gotoh, French film editor Pascale Chavance and French documentary filmmaker Javier Angulo Barturen – released a statement on Twitter endorsing Lapid’s comments.

In the joint statement tweeted by Gotoh, the three jury members said they “stand by” Lapid’s statement which he made on behalf of the jury. “We were making an artistic statement, and it saddens us greatly to see the platform being used for politics and subsequent personal attacks on Nadav,” the statement said.

Lapid, who served as the chairperson of IFFI’s international jury, termed “The Kashmir Files” a “vulgar and propaganda” movie in his speech at the award ceremony during the closing night of the nine-day film festival.

“The Kashmir Files” said to have overdramatized the exodus of Kashmiri Hindus from Kashmir following the killings of people from the community. The film, which opened to polarised reactions on March 11, is one of the most commercially successful Hindi films of the year.

-INDIA NEWS STREAM