'TKF': Following Singapore ban, Vivek Agnihotri spars with Shashi Tharoor
On Monday, Vivek Agnihotri's film The Kashmir Files (TKF) that portrays the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley was banned in Singapore. In a statement, Singapore's film classification authority said the ban was "for its provocative and one-sided portrayal of Muslims." Now, the news has sparked an online debate between Congress leader Shashi Tharoor and Agnihotri. Here are the details.
Why does this story matter?
The ban in Singapore comes after the Bollywood film completed a glorious run in Indian and other foreign theaters. While the Centre and even Prime Minister Narendra Modi have come out to support the cause featured in the movie, TKF has had significant opposition ever since its premiere in March. Now, it remains to be seen if any other country takes steps against TKF.
Film 'beyond' Singapore's film classification guidelines
The assessment of the Hindi-language film was published by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) in a joint statement with the Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth (MCCY) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). They said TKF was "beyond" the city-state's film classification guidelines, according to Singapore portal Channel News Asia's report. Things got heated when Tharoor tweeted the article on Tuesday morning.
'Please stop making fun of Kashmiri Hindu genocide'
In response, Agnihotri tweeted, "Dear fopdoodle, gnashnab @ShashiTharoor, FYI, Singapore is [the] most regressive censor in the world. It even banned The Last Temptations of Jesus Christ (ask your madam), (sic)." He added that Singapore has a record of banning films including The Exorcist or Zoolander. Sharing screengrabs of shows and movies banned there, he wrote, "[Please] stop making fun of Kashmiri Hindu Genocide."
Read the exchange here
Then, Agnihotri brought in Tharoor's late wife into the argument
The National Award-winning director didn't stop there. In another tweet, he attached a screenshot of tweets made by Tharoor's late wife Sunanda Pushkar. In the thread, she had discussed the injustices done to Kashmiri Hindus and how she's asked to subdue her stance. Noting that her husband was told to "handle" her, Pushkar said she either had to be a "Kashmiri or a wife."
'Delete your tweet and apologize to Pushkar's soul'
"Is this true that Late Sunanda Pushkar was a Kashmiri Hindu? Is the enclosed SS true?" Agnihotri asked the MP. Then, he said, "If yes, then in Hindu tradition, to respect the dead, you must delete your tweet and apologize to her soul."
