Israel’s ambassador apologises to India, slams Israeli filmmaker for Kashmir Files criticism

Israel’s ambassador to India, Naor Gilon, lambasted the filmmaker from his country, who called ‘The Kashmir Files’ a “propaganda” and “vulgar movie” at the International Film Festival in Goa. Gilon also apologised to India in an open letter on Twitter, a day after jury head Nadav Lapid criticised the movie at the closing ceremony of the film festival on Monday.

The theme of ‘The Kashmir Files’, directed by Vivek Agnihotri, pertains to the targeted killing of Kashmiri Pandits and their subsequent exodus from the Kashmir Valley in 1990.

Gilon tweeted: “An open letter to #NadavLapid following his criticism of #KashmirFiles. It’s not in Hebrew because I wanted our Indian brothers and sisters to be able to understand. It is also relatively long so I’ll give you the bottom line first. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED.”

“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,” Gilon pointed out.

“Feel free to use the liberty to sound your criticism of what you dislike in Israel but no need to reflect your frustration on other countries,” Gilon told Lapid.

Read more at: You should be ashamed: Israeli envoy slams IFFI jury head Nadav Lapid for ‘The Kashmir Files’ criticism

India-Israel ties are very strong and will survive the “damages” inflicted by his remarks, Gilon said in his tweets addressed to Lapid.

“As a human being I feel ashamed and want to apologize to our hosts for the bad manner in which we repaid them for their generosity and friendship,” the ambassador said.

“I’m no film expert but I do know that it’s insensitive and presumptuous to speak about historic events before deeply studying them and which are an open wound in India because many of the involved are still around and still paying a price,” Gilon said in his thread of tweets.

The Israeli ambassador said he was extremely hurt to see the reactions in India that Lapid was doubting Holocaust and Schindler’s List, a movie based on the Holocaust.

“I unequivocally condemn such statements. There is no justification. It does show the sensitivity of the Kashmir issue here. From your interview to Ynet the connection you make between your criticism of #KashmirFiles and your dislike to what is happening in Israeli politics was quite evident.”

The film festival’s jury board has distanced itself from jury head Lapid’s remarks, calling them his “personal opinion”.

BJP leader Khushbu Sundar thanked Gilon and said his words acted like a “balm of comfort”. “The pain and trauma depicted in the film is not a display of distorted history but what Kasmiri Pundits actually went through.”