While meeting Indian authorities recently, Monika Shergill, content head of Netflix India, assured them that Netflix would focus more on relevant content without hurting the feelings of the nation. This assurance came after the huge protests that Netflix witnessed over its screening of IC 814: The kandahar hijack which was centered on the hijack of an Indian airlines in 1999.
Netflix India Content Head meets the I&B ministry, comments on IC 814 controversy: “All future content will be sympathetic, as well, towards the sentiments of the nation.”
However the series based on hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC814 by Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, which took place in 1999, had caused storm in a tea cup as for its imminent release due to an outcry that it had been extremely insensitive to the Indian cultural trauma that occurred as a result of this event.
The government was deeply displeased and ordered Shergill to participate in the explanation of the controversies which had marred the series while assuring that any future work will be more careful about the feelings of the country’s people. This meeting, conducted in Shastri Bhawan, revealed that the government’s increasing apprehension towards the possible role of OTT platforms in altering public narratives and the constant conflict of creative license versus national interests. A government source said, quoting ANI, “Nobody can risk violating the emotions of the people of this country. Respect should be given to the culture and civilization of India. You have to be careful about how it is portrayed because there are consequences. The government is very concerned about this.”
Nevertheless, Netflix defended its depiction of the hijackers in the documentary stating that it twas an accurate portrayal based on research and history. Sources further said, “Needless to say, the Netflix team has come to the meeting with a lot of research materials in support of their contention. The OTT platform will be making apresentation in which they will state that the said series is based on information that is already available in public relating to books and other pictorial material.”
The American firm, as contended by the government sources, “Hence, it is said that Netflix has promised to carry out a content assessment and ensure that there is sensitivity towards the nation in the content in the platform later on.”
What will be the outcome of the meeting remains to be seen. The web series directed by Anubhav Sinha was released exclusively on Netflix collection in India on the 29th of August. Even with the disputes, the series has been bagging positive critics for the compelling sharp of the events. But, these intriguing flaws of the series which include distortion of history and blasphemy raised several concerns on the consequences on the series and its possibility of being a unifier.
This is an Anubhav Sinha’s directorial streaming debut, co-produced by Matchbox Shots and Benaras Mediaworks. It is based on real events, and launched on August 29. Based on the book ‘Flight Into Fear’ authored by Captain Devi Sharan and Srinjoy Chowdhury, the series further hones into the very center of diplomacy, exposing the delicate negotiations behind the War Room in Delhi and the exchanges of the Negotiation Station in Kandahar.
