After a controversy, The Kashmir Files gets viewing in New Zealand
Thakur Ranjit Singh
Auckland, April 8, 2022
The premiere of The Kashmir Files, organised by the New Zealand Indian Manukau Association with Kashmiri Pundits, media and community organisations in Auckland on March 28, 2022, was an emotionally charged event.
Those emotions removed the fallacy that the film was fiction and a false narrative. Any doubts were washed away by the tears of Kashmiri Pundits at the screening. There was sadness and helplessness at the atrocities committed on people, including women and children in the name of religion. It was a gross betrayal by the Indian Government and how misinformation kept their story hidden and stolen for 32 years.
Heartless violence
The movie revealed gross and heartless violence by the terrorists who were fighting for their God and religion. Kashmiri Pandits, including those in Auckland, claim that the movie reveals just 10% of the violence and atrocities suffered by the people there.
India was partitioned in 1947 on the premise that it will avoid communal bloodshed. But the irony is that the partition continues to create terrorist attacks, bloodshed and death. The Kashmir Files depicts just a portion, in which Pakistan sympathised and supported jihadists. It also depicts the gross failure of Indian leadership and sections of political parties betraying the Kashmir Pandits.
A salute to Produce Vivek Agnihotri who steered away from the usual masala spice and made a movie without a love story, songs or an invincible hero who wallops villains. The real heroes – the Kashmiri Pandits were unable to do anything against the villains (the heavily-armed Jihadists) and their Hindu people and the Congress government, through their silence, inertia and inaction.
There was a betrayal of the highest order where Hindus were backstabbed by their friendly neighbour; competent officers barred from performing their duty; Police officers given ‘Padmashri’ (a Civilian Honour) to remain quiet; media people assaulted and silenced and displaced Hindus in refugee camps, many dying of sickness and scorpion and snake bites.
Lesson to Fiji Indians
Fiji Indians may be able to relate to their stolen history where our Girmityas were too ashamed to tell the atrocities committed on them by the British. Hence our indenture history remained hidden. Similar is the case in The Kashmir Files, where a grandfather, Pushkar Pandit, played by Anupam Kher, is helpless and unable to tell the extreme pain and suffering inflicted by terrorists and wants to save his grandson Krishna from them.
Viewers get a deep hunger to help convey their sufferings to people across the world. A grand salute to The Kashmir Files for succeeding in telling and retrieving and salvaging the untold history and inspiring utter resentment towards Jihadi terrorists and their guardians such as politicians, incompetent officers, and non-caring governments.
The film also reveals how educational institutions are misused to instigate Kashmiri youths against Kashmiri Pundits, in institutions such as Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). It also clearly shows how separatists are supported under the name of ‘Azaadi’ (freedom) which becomes the slogan of the terrorists.
There are some catching dialogues such as: ‘Today Kashmir is burning; tomorrow the whole country will burn!’, ‘Why are Kashmiri Hindus denied justice?’, ‘Why was a situation like this allowed to take place despite Kashmir being an integral part of India?,’ ‘The mainstream Hindus are also responsible for this situation of Kashmiri Hindus,’ Media is the mistress of terrorism.’ They force us to consider how impotent India’s supposedly democratic system was, and how uncaring the Congress leaders were. Some haunting Kashmiri songs add further credibility and reality to what was the suffering of the helpless people of Kashmir.
There are some emotional, gruesome, distressing and sad moments in the film that would haunt the viewers.
Every Hindu should go beyond merely watching The Kashmir Files and applauding Agnihotri’s efforts. A film like this is made only once in the centuries-old history of films. This film is many times better than any masala film that makes millions of dollars. The money made by the film will not go to the actors who support terrorism. I pray that every Hindu watching the film develops hatred against terrorism and gets inspired to work for the nation and Dharma!
Thakur Ranjit Singh is a Kiwi Fiji Indian journalist, media commentator and blogger, based in Auckland. He is a third-generation Fiji Indian and grandson of an indentured labourer from Rajasthan, India. Email: thakurjifj@gmail.com
