Legal action against Netflix over 'IC 814' for historical misrepresentation
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Delhi High Court on Monday seeking a ban on the public viewing of the Netflix India series IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. Per reports, the plea alleges that the series distorts facts about the real identities of the hijackers involved in the 1999 Indian Airlines Flight 814 hijacking. It claims that this distortion perpetuates harmful stereotypes and misinformation.
PIL alleges the series shows hijackers with Hindu names
The PIL, filed by Surjit Singh Yadav (a farmer and president of Hindu Sena), alleges that the series erroneously depicts the real hijackers as having Hindu names, including 'Bhola' and 'Shankar'—which are also names of Lord Shiva. This, the plea argues, has hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community. The PIL seeks a direction from the Centre and Maharashtra government to cancel the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) certificate and ban public viewing of IC 814.
Centre summons Netflix India's content head over series
To note, in reality, the five hijackers involved in the 1999 incident were reportedly identified as Ibrahim Athar, Shahid Akhtar Sayed, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Zahoor Mistry, and Shakir. Meanwhile, the central government, on Monday, summoned the content head of Netflix India over the series. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has sought an explanation on this contentious aspects of the series. The government contends that nobody has the right to play with the sentiments of the nation.
'IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack': All about the series
IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, directed by Anubhav Sinha, premiered on Netflix India on August 29. It is based on the book Flight into Fear: The Captain's Story, written by journalist Srinjoy Chowdhury and Devi Sharan, the captain of the hijacked flight. The show is headlined by Vijay Varma, and features acclaimed actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapur, Patralekhaa, Dia Mirza, and Arvind Swamy in prominent roles.
