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| 72 Hooreen': Why is there a controversy over the film to be released in India next month? |
After 'Kashmir Files' and 'Da Kerala Story', another film made in India, '72 Hooreen' has been mired in controversies even before its release. There is concern in political and religious circles regarding the title and story of this film.
The film is slated to release on July 7 and according to its teaser released on social media, the film attempts to show how leaders of terrorist organizations lure innocent youths to 'Jannat Mein Hoor Ka Lash' of non-Muslims. Incites to murder.
Religious groups and political circles in India and Indian-administered Kashmir have expressed serious concern over the film and debates for and against it continue on social media.
Directed by award-winning Bollywood director Sanjay Pooran Singh Chauhan, the film features Kashmiri actor Aamir Bashir in the lead role and Kashmiri Pandit filmmaker Ashok Pandit is the associate producer of the film.
Ashok Pandit released the 'first look' of the film on Twitter a week ago, but after the backlash, Twitter suspended Ashok Pandit's account.
What's in the movie teaser?
The Rs 100-crore film depicts the psychological struggle of a young man, who, inspired by the speeches of extremist leaders, develops doubts and suspicions about the incitement to armed violence.
The film shows images of Osama bin Laden, Masood Azhar, and other extremists in an attempt to convey that youths are 'lured' to heaven by 72 hours after they are killed during attacks.
Ashok Pandit, the assistant producer of the film, wrote in a tweet last week, "As promised, here is the first look of the film, I hope you will like it." What if you get one bad death instead of the 72 hours promised by the terrorists.'
Acute reaction
A video message of Mufti Yasir Nadeem Al-Wajdi of India's largest religious institution 'Darul Uloom Deoband' has been released on Twitter, in which he said that 'You people think that there is terrorism in the world because of the greed of 72 hours. However, it accounts for only two percent of the world's violence. The rest of the people who kill people in shock and in normal situations, do they do it in the cycle of nymphs, declare them as terrorists too. Muslims openly say that ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and other groups are really terrorists. But when fanatic groups lynch Muslims, no one calls them terrorists.
Sara Hayat Shah, Spokesperson of the National Conference in Kashmir, said in a statement that the aim of such films is to portray Muslims as symbols of terror and sabotage in a democratic and secular country. In fact, it is a communal agenda.
The Grand Mufti of Jammu and Kashmir Mufti Nasirul Islam has said that he will call a meeting of representatives of all religious parties and take up this matter with the Government of India. He said that we do not want this conflict to spread further. The producers of this film should understand that Muslims are the second largest religious group in India and Muslims want to live in this country with respect, dignity, and peace and they should be given this right.
Suhail Bukhari, the spokesperson of the People's Democratic Party, said that there have been a series of films that not only promote communalism but are also creating a dangerous trend by spreading hatred against Muslims.
A key BJP leader in the Valley and head of the Jammu Kashmir Waqf Board, Derakhshan Andrabi, in his cautious response, said that the films are fiction and their aim is to make money. Life is not just about movies and story writers. The job of filmmakers is to make films and make money, but sometimes they make films in such a way as to make films more popular.
A new trend in filmmaking
Bollywood filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri's film 'Kashmir Files' was released in March last year and there was an uproar in the entire country. It was related to the historical events of leaving. But the critics said that the events have been distorted in it. After the controversy over the film, Agnihotri was provided security by the Government of India as he claimed that he received death threats.
The film was praised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the screening of the film was made tax-free in several BJP-ruled states. However, after the screening of the film at many places, hateful rallies against Muslims took place outside the theaters and incidents of attacks on Muslims also took place in some places.
Earlier this year, the release of filmmaker Sudeepto Sen's film 'The Kerala Story' created communal tension in India. The film is about a Hindu girl, who after conversion is sent to join ISIS in Syria. The film claimed that 32,000 women in Kerala were forcibly converted to Islam and forced to join ISIS. The plot of the film and the claims made in the riots also created tension between the Muslim population of India and the extremist Hindus.
Regarding this new trend of filmmaking in India, well-known Kashmiri actor and filmmaker Mushtaq Ali Ahmad Khan says that 'It is the work of politics to create distance and increase hatred between people, art unites people and increases love. Mushtaq Ali says that this new trend of films based on specific political ideologies is 'negative and unhealthy'.
Kashmiri actor Aamir Bashir, who played the lead role in the film 72 Hours, refused to comment on his role in the film. He said, 'No, thanks, I'm traveling out of the country.'
However, 'Da Kerala Story' director Sudeeptu Sen praised the film '72 Hours', saying it "exposes centuries of deception and bigotry".