Director Vivek Agnihotri claims 'pressure' on New Zealand censor board to ban movie

The tweet also has a screenshot of a WhatsApp message attached to it, complaining of the Muslim communities in New Zealand, planning to protest against the release of the movie, consequently making the censor board and the NZ external affairs ministry apprehensive of its release.

Hyderabad:The recently released controversial brainchild of filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri, 'The Kashmir Files ' is facing 'pressure' in New Zealand ahead of its release, as implied by Agnihotri in one of his tweets this morning. Quoting it as 'Important and Urgent', Agnihotri took to Twitter to ask 'Indians for support to oppose the undemocratic tactic that some communal groups in New Zealand are trying to pull off.'

The tweet also has a screenshot of a WhatsApp message attached to it, complaining of the Muslim communities in New Zealand, planning to protest against the release of the movie, consequently making the censor board and the NZ external affairs ministry apprehensive of its release. The message further mentions that the movie has marked 'an exceptionally good number of sessions', but the authorities have to 're-evaluate' the decision of its release.

The tweet reads: "IMPORTANT & URGENT: Some communal groups are trying to put pressure on New Zealand Censor to ban #TheKashmirFiles. I request all Indians to be united and oppose this undemocratic tactic by radicals with utmost humility and release this film about HUMANITY and HUMAN RIGHTS. #FOE," drawing focus at a potential threat to human rights and freedom of expression.

The movie, which depicts the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the valley in the 1990s, was released on March 11 and has already hit the 100 crores mark at the box office. Since its release, it has considerably stirred the political atmosphere in the country, creating several controversies despite scoring a unanimous appraisal from most of its viewers. Featuring Anupam Kher, Mithun Chakraborty, and Pallavi Joshi, the movie has surpassed the performance of its predecessor 'The Tashkent Files' in the first week of its release.

With Prime Minister Modi endorsing the film in one of his tweets a few days back, several state governments have even declared the movie tax-free. Meanwhile, Agnihotri has also been provided with the 'Y' category of CRPF security by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The decision came after Agnihotri's security threat assessment by Intelligence and other security agencies in the purview of the controversy the movie has drawn.