Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid spoke exclusively to India Today and said that he is nobody’s property and politicians have a way of making profit out of controversies.
New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 30, 2022 15:59 IST
Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid spoke to India Today over the controversy that erupted over his remarks on “The Kashmir Files.”
By India Today Web Desk: In an exclusive interview to India Today’s Rahul Kanwal, Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid spoke at length about the controversy over his comments on The Kashmir Files. When told that his comment has erupted into a huge controversy and that the Israeli ambassador had to apologize for what he said, Lapid said he is nobody’s property. He also said politicians have a way of making profit out of controversies.
Further in his interaction, the Israeli filmmaker said, “No one can be determined what propaganda is. I accept this fact, it’s a brilliant movie. There is no specific key to differentiating any film based on propaganda. The most terrible things that have happened in history might give birth to propaganda and to manipulated movies.”
ALSO READ | Nadav Lapid feels ‘fear’ made other jury members change statement on The Kashmir Files
Lapid even apologised if people got hurt because of his remarks.
He further said how, as an artist and a filmmaker, he expressed his views regarding the film and had no intentions to hurt the sentiments of the people.
Responding to the controversy, one of the juries at the 2022 International Film Festival of India said that cheap manipulation was done by people both in Israel and India.
“All of this is cheap manipulation in order to incite people.” He also added that other jury members felt the same way, but refrained from speaking openly,” he said.
The filmmaker stirred a massive controversy after he called “The Kashmir Files” a ‘vulgar’ and ‘propaganda’ film during the closing ceremony of the film festival, held in Goa.
Directed by Vivek Agnihotri, The Kashmir Files was screened at the film festival alongside 14 other films.
ALSO READ | Nadav Lapid on his ‘propaganda’ comment for The Kashmir Files, calls it ‘cheap manipulation to incite people’
WHAT DID NADAV LAPID SAY?
Speaking at the closing ceremony of 53rd edition of the International Film Festival of India, Lapid said, “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 in 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 starred Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumar, and Pallavi Joshi among others. The movie is based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990 from the valley.
VIVEK AGNIHOTRI’s REACTION
A day after Lapid’s comments, Agnihotri said he will quit filmmaking if Lapid and other intellectuals are able to prove that events depicted in his film are false.
“I challenge the world’s intellectuals and ‘urban Naxals’ as well as the great filmmaker who came from Israel if they can prove that any shot, dialogue or event of ‘The Kashmir Files’ is not absolute truth, I’ll stop making films,” the Indian filmmaker said in a video statement shared on his official Twitter page.
