Trigger warning: Islamophobia, violence, rape
The pandemic has impacted every job including the business and film industries. I make this observation because these industries make millions of dollars have been severely effected. Nobody thought about a hot button issue such as… Just guess: it’s the Hindu-Muslim divide.
Here, in my opinion, Vivek Agnihotri used his mastermind to benefit off of cheap publicity for his film “The Kashmir Files”. He leapt at the chance to use this issue to gather name and fame.
In my opinion, Agnihotri describes himself as a supporter of prime minister Narendra Modi not for the sake of supporting Modi, but for the prestige it brings him. Here, the weight of political power is a central motivation. Take Kangana Ranaut pretending to be a Modi bhakt (devotee) for instance.
Opportunists have no religion, they just do everything according to the benefits they can reap. If Agnihotri was a good and sensible director, surely, he would have made movies on both the groups (Kashmir pandits and Muslims) because both have been the targets of violence.
According to the Kerala unit of Congress, from 1990 to 2007, 399 Kashmiri pandits were killed by terrorists, and 15,000 Kashmiri Muslims were killed. These numbers are sure to make many Anupam Kher bhakts uncomfortable.
The ‘Jammu Massacre’ of 20,000 Muslims
Why there is no movie based on the Jammu massacre of 20,000 Muslims in 1947. In November 1947, 20,0000 Muslims were murdered by mobs and paramilitaries led by Hari Singh, who was the (then) ruler and commander of the Dogra army. The real facts of this massacre have been kept under the wraps.
Horace Alexander’s article in The Spectator brought this issue to light. Before the massacre, Muslims accounted for 60% of the population of Jammu. After it, they were reduced to a minority.
An August 10, 1948 report published in The Times said, “2,37,000 Muslims were systematically exterminated–unless they escaped to Pakistan along the border–by the forces of the Dogra State headed by the Maharaja in person and aided by Hindus and Sikhs.”
The Kunan Poshpora Incident
Accounts say that more than a hundred women were raped by Indian security personnel in the twin villages of Kunan and Poshpora in Kashmir. What a pity that the people who were responsible for security were the ones committing mass rapes.
The government denies this shameful course of events by blaming the lack of sufficient proof against the Indian security personnel.
Similarly, the Gujarat riots of 2002 led to heinous acts of sexual violence being committed against Muslim women. For example, Bilkis Bano watched a Hindu mob kill her child. They also gangraped her and four family members including her mother.
Her daughter Saleha was killed by a man named Shailesh Bhatt by “smashing” the child on the ground. Thousands of women were raped and killed. Many families were burnt alive. Countless Muslims were killed brutally. There is a long list of crimes.
The Chittisinghpora Massacre
On 20 march, 2000, almost 22 years ago, 35 Sikhs were killed by a group whose members had their faces covered. The identity of the perpetrators remains unknown to date.
A matter of agony must be paid attention to for humanity’s sake, and not because it has affected a specific section of the society. Every coin has two sides. We must think about the dignity of women and others from all religions. After all, India is a symbol of unity in diversity.
We need to work on strengthening this unity rather spreading hatred using divisive policies and pop culture products, for political benefits.
In conclusion, I would like to quote Alexandre Dumas who said: “All for one and one for all, united we stand divided we fall.”