• This article tells how Bollywood portrayed Pakistan till 2014-15 with e.g. What Dhurandhar does differently? Should electronic media reflect on its coverage during a terror attack? Should Films be in sync with India’s foreign policy? 

An earlier article covered, What does Box Office Collection Mean  Release of the movie Dhurandhar has exposes the hypocrisy of the Liberals. Baby did that too but Dhurandhar is direct and factual. It includes printing of fake Indian currency in Pakistan, 26/11/ plan and lots more.

It is unlike Pathaan where an ex ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) and RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) agent join hands to thwart the attempts of an ex Indian RAW agent’s plan to spread virus in Delhi. Similarly “Tiger Zinda Hai is about ex-spies Tiger and Zoya coming out of hiding to lead a daring rescue mission in Iraq, joining forces with their rival intelligence agencies (RAW & ISI) to save Indian and Pakistani nurses held hostage by terrorists, ultimately.” Search

No one who understands geopolitics can make a movie showing ISI and RAW working together. How can Bollywood forget the 1999 Kandhar Hijack, 1993 Mumbai Blasts, 2001 Parliament attack, 2002 Godhra burnings or 26/11/08 Mumbai not to forget terrorist attacks across India?

Were these Aaman ki Asha movies contrary to the way Pakistan behaved with India?   Also read What stops me from Loving Pakistan + How many Indians died in the Kashmiri Terrorist Movement + List of Terrorist Attacks in India

Unlike earlier, Dhurandhar is in sync with India’s current policy ghar mein ghuske marege.

This article tells how Bollywood portrayed Pakistan till 2014-15? It compares two movies with Dhurandhar on portrayal of Pakistan. Next, should TV channels reflect on live coverage during a terror attack and lastly should films be in sync with India’s foreign policy? 

1. How Bollywood portrays Pakistan?

In 2015, Professor Dheeraj Sharma of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad wrote a very interesting article in The Hindustan Times on how communities are portrayed in Bollywood.

Excerpts, “I am not a regular movie viewer. However, I was cajoled into watching the Salman Khan-starrer Bajrangi Bhaijaan and I was surprised at the director’s treatment of the subject. The majority of Indians were projected as narrow-minded, conservative, and discriminating. However, a majority of the Pakistanis were shown as open-minded and non-discriminating. This led me to empirically examine if this portrayal is a one-off presentation of stereo typicality or largely prevalent in Bollywood films. My research team and I examined randomly selected 50 films from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s and 2000s and 2010s.”

“In addition, we examined 20 Bollywood movies that had Pakistan as the setting. In 18 of those films, Pakistanis were projected as welcoming, courteous, open-minded and courageous.” If Pakistanis were so courteous why are Hindus and Christians persecuted and forced to migrate to India or convert like Derek O’Brien cousins did. 

On one hand, successive governments spoke about terrorism emanating from Pakistan whilst Bollywood was showing a different reality. Were movies thus not nullifying the efforts of the Government of India w.r.t. Pakistan?

2. How was Pakistan part of movie Pathaan?

A young lady who has seen the movie wrote, “RAW agent (SRK) is trying to save India when he realises ex-RAW agent (John) is trying to detonate a virus in India as part of his personal vengeance. ISI agent (Deepika) tries to help SRK but eventually betrays. Later she pleads guilty (when she knows that Pakistan is planning to launch virus on India via John).” Eventually she i.e. ex-ISI joins hands with RAW to defeat ex-RAW agent plans. Dream!  

A summary on IMDB, “Pathaan and Rubina (Deepika) get hold of Rakhtbheej but Rubina ditches Pathaan and leaves him to die at the mercy of Russian government.” Given the friendly relations between Russia and India, would they allow a RAW agent to die as shown in movie! 

Thereafter, Jyoti Malhotra wrote in ThePrint, “Pathaan is an unabashed attempt at, at least partially, taking another look at the India-Pakistan relationship.”

Also, “defence journalist Gaurav Sawant tweeted, “Pak ISI is friendly only in Bollywood films. In life, ISI has been responsible for bleeding India from 1993 Mumbai serial blasts (257 killed) to 26/11 (166 killed) and despite being permitted to probe Pathankot, has refused to probe and punish perpetrators of radical Islamist terror.” Source

Read  SRK got you to cheer for a Pakistani agent and you cannot even deny it  AND One-sided Pakistan love in Bollywood

The movie drew a reaction from Kargil Veteran Major Rakesh Sharma, Shaurya Chakra. Sadly, the article is no longer there on Linkein. Those who risked their lives to kill Pakistan sponsored terrorism will react differently from those living in the comfort of metros.

3. When movie Haider was released it drew strong reactions from faujis.  

A retired officer wrote in 2015, An Indian Army Officer Review of Haider Excerpts, “I was stationed in Kashmir in mid-nineties. This was the same period when hordes of militants from across the border infiltrated in Kashmir to spread terror. Lashkar-e-Taiba, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen and scores of other terrorist groups were having a free-for-all rampage in Kashmir. They would infiltrate from Pakistan, recruit cadre, take them to Pakistan for training, bring them back and perform heinous acts of terror.”

“This was the same period when Indian Army made greatest sacrifice to save India and humanity from reign of death and blood.”

“Haider shook me to core. It made me question for the first time – Whom are we fighting for? Whom are we defending? The same people who could make this film because of Army’s protection collude with an anti-national Jihadi writer to make a villain of Indian Army?”

Unless one has experienced what terrorism is, it might be easy to fall prey to one-sided views forgetting you are creative and alive because of security provided by the Indian Armed Forces.

4. How has Dhurandhar shown Pakistan?

Senior Journalist Sandipan Deb wrote in News18, “One, it has been called a crude propaganda film. But Vishal Bharadwaj’s Haider openly pushed for “liberation" of Kashmir from India and no one called it propaganda. Rang De Basanti glorified violent anarchists and no one minded.”

“Later, speaking about heaps of ISI-printed fake Indian currency being circulated across the country through hubs in Uttar Pradesh, he says that he expects no help from the current UP government.”

Those who say India must love Pakistan must read Why Pakistan will never let India live in peace

5. Dhurandhar is also reflection time for sections of the Media - examples

a. Kandhar Hijack – Dhurandhar refers to large number of protestors outside the PM house. Since TV is telecast live supporters of hijackers surely knew of public pressure building up and would have hardened their stand with GOI negotiators. Protest but no need for channels to show it in the news.

b. Kandhar Hijack - Former Police Commissioner of Mumbai, D Sivanandan wrote in The Brahmastra Unleashed, “RAW had pinpointed a mobile number that had been in constant touch with numbers in Pakistan and with the hijackers. When the handlers in Mumbai were short of cash, a Jaish-e-Mohammad (JEM) terrorist from Pakistan arranged money with the help of a local handler.” 4 terrorists were arrested from Jogeshwari, were part of the hijack. Pg 124-126. Passport of one of the 5 hijackers was made in Mumbai. 

Wish Dhurandhar had covered this.

c. 26/11/ Mumbai attack – Dhurandhar shows what we knew. TV channels showing commando moves were shown live, seen by their handlers in Pakistan and communicated to terrorists.  

I am not against Bollywood. Personally, love listening to Hindi songs of the 1960-1970’s gives me so much happiness for which I am grateful to the lyrists, music directors and producers. But NATION FIRST.

Bollywood changed after an individual moved to Dubai in the late 1980s.

Should the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in national interest, design guidelines for the Censor Board to follow for all movies that depict Pakistan or China?

Also read

1. How many Indians died due to terrorism and insurgency

As always am happy to stand corrected. Love.