Israel’s ambassador to India today publicly denounced a filmmaker from his country who called ‘The Kashmir Files’ a propaganda and vulgar movie at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa. Envoy Naor Gilon also apologized to India in an open letter on Twitter, a day after filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who is heading the festival jury, slammed the movie at the closing ceremony of the festival yesterday.
‘The Kashmir Files’, directed by Vivek Agnihotri, revolves around the exodus and killing of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley in 1990. It has been mired in controversy since its release in March, with many calling it a poignant depiction of a tragic period and critics alleging it is loose with facts.
Gilon said Lapid abused the Indian invitation to the judges’ panel in the worst way.’In Indian culture, they say that a guest is like God. You have abused in the worst way the Indian invitation to chair the panel of judges at @IFFIGoa as well as the trust, respect, and warm hospitality they have bestowed on you, he added. The Israeli envoy said his country men should be humble as Indians are consuming a lot of Israeli content, including the ‘Fauda’ TV series.