The Kashmir Files - 2022

What is The Kashmir Files movie about?

The Kashmir Files is a 2022 Hindi film that shows a fictionalised account of the harrowing struggles faced by the Kashmiri Pandit community in 1990, better known as the 1990s exodus of Kashmiri Hindus. Starring veteran actors like Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, and Pallavi Joshi, the film follows Krishna, a college student, as he tries to discover the truth about what happened to his family and Kashmiri Pandits and how they were displaced. 

The Kashmir Files is the second instalment in the director Vivek Agnihotri's untold stories of the independent India trilogy. The film was released on 11 March 2022 and became a commercial success. It was the third highest-grossing film of 2022. The critical reception was mixed; however, it received praise for its compelling acting and cinematography. But the storyline was also criticised for historical revisionism and for spreading Islamophobia. 

Table of Contents

• Details of The Kashmir Files
• Story of The Kashmir Files
• Release of The Kashmir Files
• Reviews of The Kashmir Files
• The casting of The Kashmir Files
• The crew of The Kashmir Files
• Character Analysis of The Kashmir Files
• Songs of The Kashmir Files
• Behind the scenes of The Kashmir Files
• The controversy of The Kashmir Files
• Box Office Collection of The Kashmir Files
• Awards of The Kashmir Files
• Interesting facts about The Kashmir Files
• Conclusion of The Kashmir Files

Details

Story

The Kashmir Files switches between the years 2020 and 1989-90. In the present day, ANU student Krishna, raised by his grandfather, Pushkar Nath, believes his parents died in an accident. He is divided between the two opposing narratives of the Kashmiri Pandit exodus of the 1990s, as told by his liberal leftist professor Radhika Menon and his grandfather. Believing his professor's narrative, he contests the ANU's student election and blames the Indian Government for what happened in Kashmir. Pushkar is angered by Krishna's stance but can't do anything to faze him.

After Pushkar's death, Krishna travels to Kashmir to fulfil Pushkar's last wish. He meets Pushkar's four friends, Brahma (civil servant), Mahesh (doctor), Vishnu (journalist), and Hari (police officer), who were in Kashmir when Karan (Krishna's father) died. They narrate the events of what actually happened to Krishna's family and Kashmiri Pandits. 

In 1989-90, Islamic militants banished Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir valley. And Karan is brutally murdered by militant commander Bitta during one of the raids. After Karan's death, Kashmiri Pandits are forced to live in Jammu under terrible conditions. With Brahma's help, Pushkar's daughter-in-law gets a job in Nadimarg, and the family shifts there. One day, Bitta and the other militants, dressed as Indian Army, murdered all the Kashmiri Pandits living in Nadimarg, leaving only Pushkar and Krishna alive.

After listening to the harsh truth of how his parents were brutally murdered, Krishna confronts Bitta, who refuses any involvement. Krishna returns to Delhi and gives a compelling speech during the student elections. He shares the history of Kashmir and his discovery during his brief stay there. While he is initially ridiculed for the speech, gradually, some students welcome the alternate narrative. 

Release

The Kashmir Files were released on 11 March 2022 on over 630 screens in India. Due to the success of the film, it was eventually increased to 4,000 screens. The film was re-released in India on 19 January 2023. The Kashmir Files was distributed by Zee Studios and premiered on Zee5 on 13 May 2022. 

Reviews

The Kashmir Files received a mixed critical response. It was applauded by Kashmiri Pandits and described as a cathartic experience by some of them. The movie received praise for its cast and emotive acting. However, many domestic and foreign reviewers criticised the film for lacking nuance and a compelling storyline. It was also criticised for showing only one side of the issue and trying to rewrite history. 

Despite the criticism, The Kashmir Files is rated 8.7 out of 10 on IMBd from a total of 5,62,858 ratings. On RottenTomatoes, it received an excellent rating of 94%. 

Casting

Crew

Producer: Tej Narayan Agarwal, Abhishek Agarwal, Pallavi Joshi Vivek Agnihotri

Line Producer: Parv Bali, Sarahna Deep, Gaurav Gautam, The Makers Buzzz

Co-Producer: Jayprakash Rao Dhote, Mayank Singhania, Kaali Sudheer

Executive Producer: Atul Bhagat

Post-Production In Charge: Manan Agnihotri

Production Companies: Zee Studios, Abhishek Agarwal Arts, I am Buddha Production

Cinematography: Udaysingh Mohite

Music: Rohit Sharma & Swapnil Bandodkar

Singers: Salman Ali, Meghna Mishra, Swapnil Bandodkar, Shahzad Ali, Ananya Wadkar, Pallavi Joshi, Noor Mohammad

Character Analysis

• Darshan Kumaar as Krishna: Krishna is a college student raised by his grandfather. He is unaware of the actual circumstances behind his parent's death. He has a strong character and is willing to fight for his beliefs. On discovering the truth about his parent's death, he courageously confronts his enemy and shares the truth with the world. 
• Anupam Kher as Pushkar Nath Pandit: Pushkar is a Kashmiri Pandit who was driven out of his home during the exodus. He is resilient, and even 30 years after the tragedy, he still fights to show the truth to the world. 
• Pallavi Joshi as Radhika Menon: Radhika is a professor at ANU, where Krishna studies. She has her own narrative of what happened in Kashmir and is unafraid to share it with her students. She urges her students to oppose the atrocities done against innocent people and influences Krishna to believe her narrative of the incident. With her help, Krishna contests the student presidential elections. 
• Chinmay Mandlekar as Farooq Malik Bitta: Bitta is a militant commander who committed atrocities against Kashmiri Pandits. He is a cruel person responsible for ruthlessly killing many Kashmiri Pandits, including Krishna's parents. 

Songs

Behind the Scenes 

Play

• On 30 March 2022, I Am Buddha released a behind-the-scenes video showing Vivek Agnihotri asking people to participate in the first scene of the movie.
• Another behind-the-scenes video released on 4 April 2022 gave us a peek into the shooting of Pushkar's death scene. The video showed Vivek Agnihotri crying and hugging Anupam Kher as he lay on the bed. 

Controversy

Despite becoming a box-office success, the movie was heavily criticised for its historical inaccuracies. It was also blamed for historical revisionism. The Kashmir Files was chosen for screening at the Indian Panorama section of the 53rd International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in 2022. However, it sparked controversy when the Israeli director and jury Chairperson of the IFFI criticised the film by calling it 'vulgar propaganda'.  

Box Office Collection

The Kashmir Files opened to a disappointing start earning only ₹3.55 crore as it was competing with Radhe Shyam. It was initially released on only 400 screens. But it gained quick popularity over the next two days, and the number of screens was raised to 2,000 and then 4,000 by the end of week 1. The film was expected to end its theatrical run at ₹250 crores. However, it became a huge commercial success with an estimated box office collection of ₹340.92 crores. 

• Opening Day: ₹3.55 crore
• End of Opening Weekend: ₹27.15 crore
• End of Week 1: ₹97.3 crore
• End of Week 2: ₹207.33 crore
• End of Week 3: ₹238.28 crore

Awards

Interesting Facts

Here are a few interesting facts about the movie.

• It took only 30 days to shoot The Kashmir Files. 
• It was the third-highest-grossing film of 2022.
• The Kashmir Files was the first movie to cross ₹250 crores in the aftermath of the pandemic in India. 
• Many of the characters in the movie were taken from real-life people. The character of Krishna is based on Himanshu Ganjoo, Radhika Menon is based on the JNU professor Nivedita Menon, and Bitta is based on the terrorist Bitta Karate. 
• The Kashmir Files was supposed to be released on 26 January 2022 to coincide with Republic Day. However, it was postponed due to the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. 
• The first film in Vivek Agnihotri's trilogy is The Tashkent Files, a gripping thriller about the death of former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, followed by The Kashmir Files.

Conclusion

The Kashmir Files may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is worth watching at least once in your life. The stellar cast, the high-quality cinematography, and the tragic tale of a young man discovering his past will draw you in and make you sympathise with the harsh realities of a mass exodus.