Two days after calling The Kashmir Files ‘vulgar’ and ‘propaganda’, IFFI jury head and Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid has now said that he stands by his comments. In a recent interview with the Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz, the filmmaker shared that he knows how to recognise propaganda disguised as a movie”. He also alleged that the film was ‘pushed’ into the film festival due to political pressure. Here’s what all Lapid said:
Nadav Lapid’s Fresh Attack On The Kashmir Files
During the interview, the jury head went on to call Vivek Agnihotri’s movie “crude, manipulative and violent” as quoted by Indian Express. “Making bad films is not a crime, but this is a very crude, manipulative and violent propaganda film,” Lapid said and explained that it was his ‘duty’ to express his views about the film as the head of the jury.
“The truth is that I also couldn’t help but imagine a similar situation that might happen one day soon in Israel, and I would be happy that in such a situation the head of a foreign jury would be willing to say things as he sees them. In a way, I felt it was my duty to the place that invited me,” he added.
Nadav Lapid Alleges Vivek Agnihotri Movie Was ‘Pushed’ Into IFFI
Nadav Lapid also alleged that Vivek Agnihotri’s movie was also ‘pushed into the official competition’ due to political pressure. “We learned that the film was pushed into the official competition of the festival due to political pressure… I feel as a foreigner who arrives there, you have an obligation to say the things that the people who live there may have a harder time saying,” he said.
The filmmaker further defended his comment and questioned what else would one expect him to talk about on such a platform. “In such contexts I don’t believe in secrets and whispers. If you stand on stage and are asked to speak, what will you talk about? Only about the beaches you saw and the food you ate?” he added.
