San Francisco Frontiers - Filmmakers try to cash in on India-Pakistan battle

The nuclear-armed rivals exchanged artillery, drone and air strikes in May, after India blamed Pakistan for an armed attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir.

The fighting came to an end when US President Donald Trump announced a surprise ceasefire.

Now, some Bollywood filmmakers see an opportunity to cash in on the battle.

India tagged its military action against Pakistan "Operation Sindoor", the Hindi word for vermilion, which married Hindu women wear on their foreheads.

The name was seen as a symbol of Delhi's determination to avenge those widowed in the April 22 attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam, which sparked the hostilities.

Film studios have registered a slew of titles evoking the operation, including: "Mission Sindoor", "Sindoor: The Revenge", "The Pahalgam Terror", and "Sindoor Operation".

"It's a story which needs to be told," said director Vivek Agnihotri.

"If it was Hollywood, they would have made 10 films on this subject. People want to know what happened behind the scenes," he told AFP.

Agnihotri struck box office success with his 2022 release, "The Kashmir Files", based on the mass flight of Hindus from Kashmir in the 1990s.

- Coloured narratives -

The ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party gave that film a glowing endorsement, despite accusations that it aimed to stir up hatred against India's minority Muslims.

Since Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014, some critics say Bollywood is increasingly promoting his government's ideology.

Raja Sen, a film critic and screenwriter, said filmmakers felt emboldened by an amenable government.

"We tried to wage a war and then we quietened down when Mr Trump asked us to. So what is the valour here?" Sen told AFP of the Pakistan clashes.

Anil Sharma, known for directing rabble-rousing movies, criticised the apparent rush to make films related to the Pahalgam attack.

"This is herd mentality... these are seasonal filmmakers, they have their constraints," he said.

"I don't wait for an incident to happen and then make a film based on that. A subject should evoke feelings and only then cinema happens," said Sharma.

Sharma's historical action flick "Gadar: Ek Prem Katha" (2001) and its sequel "Gadar 2" (2023), both featuring Sunny Deol in lead roles, were big hits.

In Bollywood, filmmakers often seek to time releases for national holidays like Independence Day, which are associated with heightened patriotic fervour.

"Fighter", featuring big stars Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone, was released on the eve of India's Republic Day on January 25 last year.

- Anti-Muslim bias -

Though not a factual retelling, it drew heavily from India's 2019 airstrike on Pakistan's Balakot.

The film received mixed-to-positive reviews but raked in $28 million in India, making it the fourth highest-grossing Hindi film of that year.

This year, "Chhaava", a drama based on the life of Sambhaji Maharaj, a ruler of the Maratha Empire, became the highest-grossing film so far this year.

It also generated significant criticism for fuelling anti-Muslim bias.

"This is at a time when cinema is aggressively painting Muslim kings and leaders in violent light," said Sen.

"This is where those who are telling the stories need to be responsible about which stories they choose to tell."

Sen said filmmakers were reluctant to choose topics that are "against the establishment".

"If the public is flooded with dozens of films that are all trying to serve an agenda, without the other side allowed to make itself heard, then that propaganda and misinformation enters the public psyche," he said.

Acclaimed director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra said true patriotism is promoting peace and harmony through the medium of cinema.

Mehra's socio-political drama "Rang De Basanti" (2006) won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film and was chosen as India's official entry for the Golden Globe Awards and the Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category.

"How we can arrive at peace and build a better society? How we can learn to love our neighbours?" he asked.

"For me that is patriotism."

I.Wright--SFF