Netflix India has assured the Indian government that its future content will align with the “nation’s sentiments,” according to sources. This commitment follows controversy surrounding its web series, IC 814 Kandahar Hijack. The series, which revisits the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight by Pakistan-based terrorist group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, has sparked backlash, leading to a meeting between Netflix and government officials.
Directed by Anubhav Sinha and released on August 29, the series depicts the hijackers with names traditionally associated with Lord Shiva, like “Bhola” and “Shankar.” Critics argue this portrayal distorts historical facts and misrepresents the terrorists, offending Hindu sentiments.
The release of IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack has ignited a social media debate. BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya accused the filmmakers of trying to whitewash the actions of Pakistani terrorists by giving them Hindu names, potentially misleading future generations. In contrast, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Shiv Sena-UBT leader Priyanka Chaturvedi criticized the backlash, pointing out inconsistencies in demands for historical accuracy in cinema.
On platforms like X (formerly Twitter), hashtags such as #BoycottNetflix and #BoycottBollywood trended, with users accusing the filmmakers of rewriting history and minimizing the terror caused by the real hijackers.
However, a Union Home Ministry document released after the 1999 hijacking clarified that the hijackers—Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Shakir a.k.a. Rajesh Gopal Verma, Mistri Zahoor Ibrahim, Shahid Akhtar Sayed, and Ibrahim Athar—used nicknames like Bhola, Shankar, Doctor, and Burger to refer to each other during the incident. “To the passengers of the hijacked plane, these hijackers came to be known respectively as (1) Chief, (2) Doctor, (3) Burger, (4) Bhola, and (5) Shankar, the names by which the hijackers invariably addressed one another,” the government statement noted.
In a related controversy, actor-turned-politician Kangana Ranaut’s upcoming film Emergency—where she portrays former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi during the 1975-1977 emergency—faces scrutiny. The Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), a leading Sikh religious organization, has objected to the film, causing delays in its release as the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) reviews these concerns.
Following the certification delay, Ranaut expressed frustration, calling it “hugely demotivating and unjust” that censorship affects filmmakers like her, who depict historical events. Referring to IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, Ranaut criticized the lack of censorship on OTT platforms, arguing on X that these platforms allow for “unimaginable amounts of violence and nudity” and permit “distorting real-life events to suit politically motivated sinister motives” without consequences.
