The Kashmir Files is making headlines again! The Kashmir Files was described as ‘propaganda, vulgar film’ by jury head Nadav Lapid at the closing ceremony of the 53rd IFFI Goa. Following widespread criticism, IFFI jury member Sudipto Sen took to Twitter to clarify a few points. He said that Nadav Lapid’s comments on The Kashmir Files are his personal opinion. He also stated that as a juror, he did not make any political remarks.
When Israeli filmmaker and IFFI jury chair Nadav Lapid called The Kashmir Files a ‘vulgar’ film, he sparked outrage. His comments went viral on social media platforms, eliciting numerous responses.
Sudipto Sen, a jury member and filmmaker, took to Twitter to clear the air about the controversy. He stated, “Whatever has been said by IFFI 2022 Jury Chairman Mr Nadav Lapid about the film, The Kashmir Files, from the stage of closing ceremony of 53-rd IFFI was completely his personal opinion.
In the official presentation of the Jury Board to the Festival Director and in the official Press Conference, where we 4 juries (the fifth jury had to leave for her personal emergency) were present and interacted with the press, we never mentioned anything about our likes or dislikes. Both were our official collective opinion (sic).”
He went on to say, “As juror, we are assigned to judge the technical, aesthetic quality and socio-cultural relevance of a film. We don’t indulge in any kind of political comments on any film and if it is done, it is completely in personal capacity – nothing to do with the esteemed Jury Board (sic).”
The jury members for this year’s IFFI were Nadav Lapid, Javier Angulo Barturen (documentary filmmaker from France), Sudipto Sen (writer and director from India), Pascale Chavance (film editor from France), and Jinko Gotoh (animation film producer from the United States).
What did Nadav Lapid say about the Kashmir Files?
The jury head, Nadav Lapid, took the stage at the IFFI closing ceremony to deliver a speech. He also expressed his dissatisfaction with The Kashmir Files.
He stated, “All of us are disturbed. It felt to us like a ‘propaganda, vulgar movie’ inappropriate for an artistic competitive section of such a prestigious competition. I feel totally comfortable sharing these feelings openly on stage since the spirit of the festival truly accepts critical discussion which is essential for art and life.”
The Kashmir Files is a film directed by Vivek Agnihotri about the killings of Kashmiri Pandits during the Kashmir insurgency. Anupam Kher, Mithun Chakraborty, Darshan Kumar, and Pallavi Josh star in the film, which is set in the 1990s. The film became one of the highest-grossing films in 2022.