SATURDAY, MAY 04, 2024
Vivek Menezes
We’re almost at the end of an extremely tumultuous end-pandemic twelve months filled with astonishing events, but there is no doubt who is Man of The Year when it comes to speaking truth to power, and standing up for what is right. That is Nadav Lapid, chairman of the jury at the 53rd International Film Festival of India, who showed his mettle right here in Goa last month by simply stating what everyone already knows, but is afraid to say in public. What is more, the 47-year-old Israeli auteur never backed off, and kept on quietly repeating the facts in an act of public courage that both shames and inspires the rest of us. Mazel tov to him and toda raba as well.
It was bears repeating what exactly set off the astonishing media maelstrom with Lapid at its epicentre. After an unusually smooth and efficient edition of Asia’s oldest - and India’s largest - banquet of international cinema, in which the jury saw 15 movies for consideration for the prestigious Golden Peacock award (it was eventually won by the Costa Rican production I Have Electric Dreams), its chairman’s evaluative comments at the closing ceremony (which included the Minister of Information and Broadcasting, and Israel’s Ambassador to India) culminated with these lines: “We were all of us disturbed and shocked by the 15th film, The Kashmir Files that felt to us like a propaganda, vulgar movie inappropriate for an artistic competitive section of such a prestigious film festival. I feel totally comfortable to share openly these feelings here with you on stage since the spirit of the festival can truly accept also a critical discussion, which is essential for art and for life.”
As we know, all hell then broke loose. Social media was bad enough – though it was sad to see some Goans who should know better act intemperately - but television was even worse. For just one example, it will be impossible to forget Rahul Kanwal’s shrill hectoring of Lapid. Another lowlight occurred when the Israeli ambassador barraged his own countryman with nonsensical non sequiturs on Twitter: “In Indian culture they say that a guest is like God. You have abused in the worst way the Indian invitation to chair the panel of judges at @IFFIGoa as well as the trust, respect and warm hospitality they have bestowed on you” and “The friendship between the people and the states of India and Israel is very strong and will survive the damage you have inflicted.”
These kinds of media-driven maelstroms are not rare, and have become even more common in our era of creeping totalitarianism. We have reached past the point George Orwell predicted in Nineteen Eighty-Four, where there are many perfectly true things that are effectively taboo “thoughtcrimes”, and if you are suspected to harbour this “crimethink” the mob will definitely be unleashed. That is precisely what happened at IFFI last month, but it didn’t end up as usual, because, instead of meekly apologising and then disappearing - which is what everyone expected – Lapid turned back to India and carefully explained why he spoke out, and what is at stake.
“I don’t regret what I said about The Kashmir Files,” the Israeli director told New Indian Express, in just one of many interviews: “I had the feeling it needed to be stated. At a certain level, the way things turned out, I think my intuition was right; these words needed to be spoken.” He explained that “the story is not about me. It’s not even about the film. The real question is something different. People can like or dislike or admire or hate a movie. All of this is valid, and I’m not against an emotional, engaged discussion. However, a big part of the reactions to what I said was sheer madness. At the end of the day, it’s your country, it’s your society, but I ask whether you are scared to speak your truths because it results in a storm of violence and menace. I saw and read things in the media and wondered if it is normal to react to a film critique in this manner.”
Lapid pointed out what has been painfully obvious all along: “The Kashmir Files is a fake film. It is a propaganda film. It behaves as though it is trying to create a piece of art about life, existence, historical events, about a moment in time, about human beings – as most movies do. But in the end, it is just promoting – in my opinion – in an extremely vulgar and cheap way, an evident set of political positions, using a variety of, what I consider and extremely cheap cinematic manipulations. Cinematically, I cannot take this film seriously. From the outside, it seems like a kind of joke. But the fact that this film has been treated extremely seriously by its makers – and by many people who watched it – and the decision of the International Film Festival of India to include it in its most prestigious international competition section, you feel forced to take a stand on it.”
There is huge credit due to Lapid, because he took the trouble to prepare himself, and did not flinch from the task: “I don’t know how people, who have been separated from their homes or relatives, and who have been through these atrocities would react to such a movie. There are all kinds of reactions. But if I had been connected to such an atrocity, the last thing that I would have wanted is a film like The Kashmir Files to represent my voice. I would prefer something more serious. It’s certainly not my hobby to offend people, but I think sometimes, outrage and offence are easy tools to silence critical thought and artistic discourse. We are not children. I would think that the role of art is not just to make people feel comfortable and nice. Art must be biting and, sometimes, harsh and offensive. Do it with intelligence and style, not with stupid vulgarity.”
(Vivek Menezes is a writer and co-founder of the Goa Arts and Literature Festival)
