India, Netflix head for showdown over attack on national sentiment in TV series

Admin I Wednesday, September 04, 2024

INDIA – American streaming platform, Netflix is heading for a showdown with India over what the latter refer to as insensitivity to the national sentiments of India.

Specifically, the Indian government says Netflix is hurting the national sentiments of Indians.

India is angry that in a new TV series now streaming on the platform, Muslim terrorists were given Hindu names, prompting outrage across the country.

The controversy erupted after the recent release of ‘IC 814 – The Kandahar Hijack’, directed by Anubhav Sinha.

The plot in the series is based on the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 by the Pakistan-based terrorist group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen.

In a statement, Indian Home Affairs Ministry said from 1999, the hijackers addressed each other as “Chief,” “Doctor,” “Burger,” “Bhola,” and “Shankar.”

The same names, according to the statement quoted by the Indian Express have been adopted by the Netflix series, despite the fact that the real names of the terrorists are now known.

“No one should play with the sentiments of the country, sentiments should be respected. We are not that liberal,” a Ministry of Information official said.