A new film depicting the exodus of Hindus from Kashmir in the 1990s has ignited a political and social firestorm in India. 'The Kashmir Files', directed by Vivek Agnihotri, follows a university student who discovers his Kashmiri Hindu parents were killed by Islamist militants, contrary to what he was told. Released on Friday, the film has received mixed reviews from critics, with some calling it 'exploitative' and Islamophobic, while supporters argue it highlights a neglected chapter of Kashmir's history.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and key ministers in his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government have publicly praised the film. Several BJP-ruled states have waived tax on it, and police in Madhya Pradesh have been offered a day off to watch it. Modi dismissed criticism as a 'conspiracy to discredit' the film. The controversy underscores the sensitive nature of Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region that has seen an armed insurgency against Indian rule since the late 1980s.
In the 1990s, Islamist militants targeted Kashmiri Hindus, particularly upper-caste Pandits, leading to the deaths of many and the displacement of hundreds of thousands. Most never returned. The film focuses on this exodus, which journalist and author Rahul Pandita says has been largely overlooked. 'They're experiencing an emotional catharsis,' he said of the Pandits' reaction to the film. However, documentary filmmaker Sanjay Kak, himself a Kashmiri Pandit, noted that many other tragedies in India's history have also been ignored by mainstream cinema.
The debate centres not on whether the exodus occurred—which is widely accepted—but on how the story is told and by whom. Critics argue the film lacks nuance given the complex history of the region, while supporters see it as a long-overdue acknowledgment of the Pandits' suffering. The film's release comes amid heightened tensions in Kashmir following the revocation of its autonomy in 2019.
