Thread by @GabbbarSingh

Finished watching #Shikara

Will discuss its art & politics separately.

Art: For a foreigner who has little context or bias, this wud appear thoroughly confusing. Everything happens for no rhyme or reason. Shoddily assembled scrapbook of news clippings. Painfully Painfully long

2.5 hrs into the movie the guy next to me looks around a packed hall and says "Bahut logo ko bevkoof bana Diya"

A kid was watching doraemon with the volume up on his father's phone, without people minding it. Someone said, at least one person is watching something interesting 😂

So basically, no matter which side you are inclined to, this movie especially the 2nd half is torturous.

Politics: This is where it gets murky. They show everything is hunky dory, Hindu Muslim brotherhood, song n dance, suddenly the Indian army kills one person for no reason.

And that becomes the basis of subsequent violence. The makers don't invest any time in showing the existing cracks, and how the cracks widened. Zero scholarship or nuance. One day a guy is a cricketer next day AK47 wielding terrorist. Just like that

And majority of movie is about the sad state of affairs of KPs in refugee camps indirectly creating another villain (Indian govt).
Kids are shown shouting "Mandir wahi banayenge" and suddenly the hero enters to monkey-balance, and teach the kids a lesson. The biggest issue..

which also is the current controversy is about the complicity of local Kashmiri Muslims in the genocide. The movie does try very hard to create 3 camps.

1) Peace loving KPs & KM neighbors.
2) Militants (who want revenge)
3) Indian army

So instead of the Azaadi narrative and Wahabi influence, it becomes a story of Revenge. Typical Bollywoodiya trope. That's what Vidhu Vinod Chopra should be accused of.

Kashmiri Pandits deserve a better movie to tell their story. This one just has a 1st mover advantage.

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PS: Vishal Bharadwaj hired Basharat Peer and made a masterpiece in Haider. Vidhu Vinod hired Rahul Pandita and made an unwatchable mess. Something to ponder.