Kashmir Files Review and Impact to Society

Vasu Murthy

This is a very powerful film.   It is a momentous occasion in Indian History where unvarnished history without any filter from the narrative keepers has been told on a visual medium.    This is why there is a visceral reaction from the Indian public in support of the film.  The veil has been lifted.  It seems like an inflection point in Indian history where the independent narratives regarding the atrocities against the majority Hindus are beginning to take hold.

The film tackles the two threads, the atrocities, murders, and genocide against the Kashmiri Hindus and the false narratives created by the left and weaves the two threads together.  The atrocities, murders, and genocide are told through the eyes of the Kashmir Pandit families. Prof. Radhika Menon’s character from ANU, presumably referring to the left wing professors at JNU that set the tone for the left narrative.  Film makers have taken real life atrocities and murders of Kashmiri  Pandits and created the parts that are combination of several of the real life characters.

The film crew had interviewed more than 700 families to learn about their experiences first hand. They distilled their learnings into a powerful narrative in the film.The killings and atrocities are shown in a gritty, in your face way even though I heard that the real atrocities are much worse.  We feel shocked and saddened by the violence and killings  just like the movie  Schilnder’s list showed the Nazi brutality in a direct , unvarnished way.  The whole of film has been color graded in dark grey colors adding to the somber nature of the film.  Similar color grading in Black and White was adopted by Steven Spielberg in the movie Schindler’s list. The film score by Rohit Sharma is haunting and brooding setting the right tone.  Cinematography by Udaysingh Mohite is also quite good.  Beauty of Kashmir is shown in dark and somber way.

The story narration is non-linear. It shifts between the two threads and goes back and forth in timeline.  It may make it hard to follow for some, but it has been set to emphasize the unsettling nature of the story. Movie goes in a fast pace in the beginning at end , slows down in the middle as the thread of  left intellectuals manipulation of the narrative is depicted.

Acting by Anupam Kher on the role of Pushkar Nath Pandit is a towering achievement. He tells the story of Pandits in a moving fashion. Other Actors Pallavi Joshi as Prof. Radhika Menon, Darshan Kumar as Krishna Pandit, Mithun Chakravarthy as Brahma Dutt have given very good performances. Chinmay Mandlekar is outstanding as the terrorist Bitta Karate giving a ice cold, steely and menacing performance. Editing and Direction are  top notch. The film has high technical qualities as well as gut wrenching narration of the atrocities.

Summary

I have seen crticism from the left that the film has depicted Muslims in an one dimensional way.  That may be true, but the film had one objective and it has fulfilled in a spectacular way.  Hopefully there will be other films that gives other perspectives  in the story of a complex painful chapter in Indian history. 

Overall the movie is a landmark achievement in throwing open a painful portion of Kashmiri and Indian History.  Vivek Agnihotri must be congratulated on changing the way the films have depicted Indian History.  The impact of this film will be felt for a long time inside Bollywood and in Indian culture and politics.

Looking forward

Looking forward, this film has set free the truth about the Kashmiri genocide and exodus. This is a cathartic moment for the Kashmiri Hindus. Voices of the Muslim population and their perspectives must also be heard. For India to move forward there needs to be a reconciliation process also between the various communities in Kashmir and in other places. I support a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the model of the Commission in South Africa after ANC took over the power to reveal further truth about the happenings in Kashmir and the healing that needs to take place. Different sections of the society should have mutual trust and respect with each other in order to co-exist. This was badly lost in Kashmir at that time. We need to find mechanisms to re-establish the mutual trust and respect. Kashmiris and the whole of India are going through a traumatic moment at this time. Some people who were the main instigators may have to be brought to Justice, while the healing of the majority of the population needs to happen. There is a long and difficult road ahead. More on this at a later time.