SHUBHANGI SHIFA
Ranchi, Mar 11: The Kashmir Files was released in cinema halls on March 11. It stars Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumaar, and Mithun Chakraborty in lead roles and Vivek Agnihotri has written and directed the film. The official synopsis of the movie reads: 32 years later, the emotions and the pain remain the same. Witness the brutally honest story of the Kashmir Genocide.
Ever since the trailer launch, the movie became a talking point among the watchers, especially those who have been affected during the mass exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990.
This mass migration happened in February-March 1990 and lakhs of Hindus relocated from the state in a span of a few weeks. The community’s sense of security was shaken after killings in the region. Now more than three decades later, the ‘real story’ of this migration has been depicted in ‘The Kashmir Files’.
Many social media users expressed their opinion as the movie was released. Mainstream Bollywood has been known to steer clear of sensitive and political matters and Kashmir issue has never been addressed head-on. As The Kashmir Files released, netizens wanted people to witness the entire incident through the movie.
One social media user wrote, “This film is 130 Cr Indians now (sic).” Another commented, “Not a movie but a true story, my story, your story, story of what every Hindu has 2 endure all thanks 2 Secularism. As a Hindu in general and a Kashmiri Pandit I own this movie. A humble request to all to please watch #TheKashmirFiles as it released in theatres today (sic).”
“Subtle depiction of horrific events often fails to do justice to the actual tragedy that was once suffered. Filmmaker Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri makes it clear from the word go that his film, The Kashmir Files, will not be subtle. A gut-wrenching watch, it is based on the plight of Kashmiri Pandits who faced a massacre and forced exodus from their own land by the Islamic militants,” said Pooja Mishra, who saw the film, at PVR Cinemas.
Some watching the film in Fun Cinemas, Ranchi, even chanted ‘Jai Shree Ram’ and raised slogans while in the theatre. One viewer, Rashi Singh said, “It does not matter whether you’re a right-winger or a leftist. The movie moves you to the soul. It’s heartbreaking to see that people faced such atrocities.”
“The hitherto unaddressed wounds of Kashmiri Pandits find a gut-wrenching depiction in Vivek Agnihotri’s latest film, The Kashmir Files. Kashmir – this singular world in itself encapsulates so many contrasting visuals and feelings, from breathtaking beauty to the aching loss of innocent lives. Brutality, massacre, elusive peace and human rights violations continue to threaten its pristine beauty. It’s impossible to divorce Kashmir from politics, and it’s equally difficult to encapsulate the years and centuries of complex Kashmiri history into a feature-length film,” an Instagram user wrote.
