The Kashmir Files Row: Nadav Lapid Apologises For His IFFI Statement, Says ‘Didn’t Want to Insult’

Days after calling The Kashmir Files 'vulgar and propaganda', Nadav Lapid apologises for his statement at IFFI Goa. The Israeli filmmaker says his statement has been interpreted in a manner that has hurt people.

The Kashmir Files Row: Nadav Lapid, the international filmmaker who invited a new controversy with his statements against The Kashmir Files at IFFI Goa, has now apologised for the same. In his latest interview with a channel, he said his intentions were not to hurt someone or to mock those who have suffered. Lapid spoke to CNN News-18 and said he apologises if people have interpreted his statements in a way that hurts them.

“I didn’t want to insult anyone, and my aim was never to insult people or their relatives, who have suffered. I totally totally totally apologize if that’s the way they interpreted it,” he said.

Lapid’s apology comes a day after he talked to an Israeli newspaper and mentioned he felt it was his duty to speak about a film that was ‘crude and manipulative’. He said he owed this much truth to the country and its people who invited him as the jury head of the festival.

Lapid told Ha’aretz, “Making bad films is not a crime, but this is a very crude, manipulative, and violent propaganda film. The truth is that I also couldn’t help but imagine a similar situation that might happen one day soon in Israel, and I would be happy that in such a situation the head of a foreign jury would be willing to say things as he sees them.” He added that ‘The Kashmir Files’ was ‘pushed into the festival due to political pressure.’

Earlier, while speaking at the closing ceremony of IFFI Goa, Lapid said, “All of us were disturbed and shocked by the 15th film ‘The Kashmir Files’. That felt to us like a propaganda, vulgar movie, inappropriate for an artistic competitive section of such a prestigious film festival (sic).”

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