The Kashmir Files- As received

 

1. This is my promised thread on Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri ji's #TheKashmirFiles. Before & after the amendments to Article 370, I did a fair bit of reading on Kashmir including documents on the portal iKashmir, and books by Shri Jagmohan, A.G.Noorani and Rahul Pandita. So in that sense I "knew".

2. But nothing, I repeat nothing, could have prepared me for the visceral impact of #TheKashmirFiles. As a hardcore movie buff, if there is a movie in my memory that captures the sheer power of the cinematic medium to give expression to facts, it has to be #TheKashmirFiles.

3. The confidence of the makers of this movie is evident right from the word go. As opposed to the usual escapist and evasive disclaimers, this movie's disclaimer does not distance the makers from the movie. Instead,they own upto it.That shows their faith in their research.

4. The use of Kashmir's cold to convey a constant sense of foreboding showcases the maker's brilliance.The movie's impact would have been incomplete & not as effective without the background score of Rohit Sharma.Clearly,everyone associated with the project understood their responsibility.

5. Coming to the structure of d movie, Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri's decision to opt for a non-linear style of narration where the story moves constantly between the past & the present couldn't have been more effective to showcase the *continuing* nature of the genocide through its denial.

6.The way the movie brings together Kashmir,student politics,education,Marxist negation of documented facts & its extra-warm relations wid Islamists is a testament to the work Vivek Agnihotri has put in over the years. In that sense,this movie is culmination of his previous efforts.

7. Now to the characters. Every character represents a certain generation of Kashmir and their respective vantage points. Effectively three generations have been captured in the movie, telling us that three generations of Kashmiri Pandits have suffered in *independent* Bharat.

8.The absolute need for memorialisation of history is brilliantly captured in the scenes between Anupam Kher & his grandson played by Darshan Kumaar. Failure to memorialise leads to movement away from the roots & *denial* of the lived experience, reinforcing the importance of history education.

9. The naming of the characters, from Pushkar Nath Pandit to Sharda Pandit to Bitta and Radhika Menon, and the use of these fused characters to represent multiple real personalities is a testament to Team Vivek Agnihotri deep emotional and intellectual investment in the movie.

10.The movie is not a mere collage of known events. Even that wuda been an achievement given d current state of Bollywood.But the movie goes much beyond that & invests in multiple layers in every scene,from faith to loss of home to hope to realisation of apathy & finally the denial.

11. The only way Vivek Agnihotri could have given effect to his vision was through a cast that lived the characters of the movie with the knowledge that this was history being depicted. I think everyone who was part of this movie consciously embraced the trauma and chose to channel it.

12. If watching the movie has such a deep impact, I can't begin to imagine what making it & playing the characters would have done to those involved. Either they have allowed the experience to do its job whatever the consequence, or they would have had to practice detached attachment. And I certainly can't imagine what the victims of the genocide went through. 

13.There were portions of the movie to which my entire being reacted despite all the training I have put myself through over the years to restrain & hold back my emotions as a person & as a lawyer. Some dear friends have often called me a *robot*, but this movie shattered the robotic barrier.

14. This movie is as real and as authentic as it gets & I think deep gratitude and congratulations are in order for the super talented cast of the movie. On this front, one *has* to start with Anupam kher for being, not playing, Pushkar Nath Pandit.

15.This *has* to count as Anupam Kher ji's finest work ever.Even if he manages to do a better job in any other movie,which I doubt is possible,nothing is ever going to come close to this role.He was born for this role. It seems as if his life journey prepared him for this role.

16.For once,I don't have the words to capture the layers and nuances of Anupam Kher ji's performance except to say that his character spoke to me like an elder from my own family.He has channeled his heritage & the pain of his people,*our people*,through this performance. To me,his Karmic account has been settled.

17. Next is the performance by Bhasha Sumbli ji. Aptly named *Sharda* in the movie, she represents not just the trauma suffered by the women of the Kashmiri Pandit community, but the genocide of all that Sharda stands for - spirituality,knowledge,family,language, script- Civilisation.

18. From being forced to eat rice soaked in the blood of her husband to the prescient passing image of the *saw mill* when she drops her son Shiva at the school, you know all through the movie what she is going to be put through & you brace yourself for it. And even that doesn't prepare you.

19. The literal and metaphorical vivisection of a society that worships Ma Sharda couldn't have been depicted better and it stays with you. It stays as it must. Take a bow @Bhasha Sumbli ji 

20. Mithun Chakraborty's understated performance as a helpless bureaucrat who tries, in vain, to warn the apathetic dispensation at the Centre and the genocidal dispensation in the State showcases his depth as a performer. Truly this actor is giving his best in his second innings.

21. Apart from *mainstream* commercial cinema, I have watched Mithun ji's performance as Shri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and as the Goenka-esque editor in Guru. But his role as Brahma Dutt in #TheKashmirFiles is truly a stand out performance.

22. Pallavi Joshi's performance as Prof. Radhika Menon is an amalgamation of multiple usual suspects from the Marxist establishment.The performance was so effective that most people found it difficult to unsee the vile Radhika Menon after the special screening. What more can one say!

23. Darshan Kumaar's speech at the Delhi-based Marxist college campus captures his transformation from denial to acceptance of the truth & his decision to become its vocal ambassador.That speech is his standout moment. May his role inspire real-life transformations on campuses!

24. Chinmay Mandlekar delivers a chilling performance as Bitta. From being a ruthless terrorist to the *Kashmiri Gandhi* who wants peace and justice, Mandlekar does complete justice to the reptilian nature of this character.

25. As for the rest of the cast, Puneet Issar, Prakash Belawadi and others provide the perfect supporting foil through their representation of the role of the State establishment and media during the *genocide*, not exodus, of Kashmiri Pandits.

26. What's poignant throughout the movie is that the characters keep chanting Om Namah Shivay, even when their end is near and inevitable. The punarsthapana of the Shiva Linga by the third generation of Pandits after the amendment to Article 370 represents Civilisational hope and resurgence.

27. Going by the reactions to the movie from movie goers across the country, the movie has stupendously done what it presumably intended to- Inform Bharat of the Kashmiri Pandit experience and awaken it to its implications for the rest of the Bharatiya Civilisation.

28. The makers of the movie have done their job putting their reputations, careers and lives on the line. It is now for us to do ours and vocally support this movie and similar efforts.Resist efforts to blockade this movie. We have a right to know the truth and this is inalienable.

29. This generation finally has the good fortune of seeing this Civilisation's history being captured on the big screen by gutsy and brilliant film makers such as Vivek Agnihotri. It's time to push the Overton Window further in favour of Dharma and Desha.

30. If you believe that you don't have the guts to watch this movie,effectively you have lost the right to opine on this Civilisation.If you can't even watch,you can't be expected to stand up for the Civilisation when the time comes. So grow a spine, watch, internalise & channel.

31. Kashmiri Pandits deserve to have our attention, finally. This was long due. We owe it to them and the land of Rishi Kashyapa, Adi Shankara and all our spiritual giants and heroes to watch this movie and spread the word.Let this movie start discussions,conversations & debates.

33. I have just one criticism or suggestion for Vivek Agnihotri ji to consider. This movie shouldn't have had an intermission. No pop corn breaks for this one. I genuinely didn't want to see ppl having pop corn at this movie. But that's just my opinion. 

34. To quote my friend Nupur Sharma, if at all there was any flagging of focus and commitment to the cause of this Civilisation, this movie has served as the perfect "top-up" at the right time. Thank you Team Vivek Agnihotri. Om Namah Shivay. Vande Mataram. Over and out.