‘Could Disrupt Social Cohesion’: ‘The Kashmir Files’ Banned in Singapore

'The Kashmir Files' directed by Vivek Agnihotri was refused classification in Singapore.

The Kashmir Files poster.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

The Kashmir Files, directed by Vivek Agnihotri, will be banned in Singapore, Channel News Asia reported. The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY), and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said, in a joint statement, that The Kashmir Files has been assessed to be “beyond” Singapore’s film classification guidelines.

The authorities told the publication, “The film will be refused classification for its provocative and one-sided portrayal of Muslims and the depictions of Hindus being persecuted in the on-going conflict in Kashmir."

"These representations have the potential to cause enmity between different communities, and disrupt social cohesion and religious harmony in our multiracial and multi-religious society," they added.

They further said that their film classification guidelines state, “any material that is denigrating to racial or religious communities in Singapore” won’t be approved for classification.

Sashi Tharoor shared a report about the ban on Twitter and wrote, "Film promoted by India’s ruling party, #KashmirFiles, banned in Singapore."

Vivek Agnihotri responded to the tweet, "Dear fopdoodle, gnashnab @ShashiTharoor , FYI, Singapore is most regressive censor in the world. It even banned The Last Temptations of Jesus Christ (ask your madam)...Please stop making fun of Kashmiri Hindu Genocide. (sic)"

While The Kashmir Files was a box office success, it also faced criticism after its release for ‘distorting history’. The film is based on the Kashmiri Pandit exodus of the 1990s and stars Anupam Kher, Mithun Chakraborty, and Pallavi Joshi.