Acritical comment about an Indian film by an Israeli filmmaker at the recently concluded International Film Festival of India has sparked an unseemly controversy that has blurred the lines among film-making, diplomacy and politics. Nadav Lapid, a widely respected Israeli director who was the jury head at the film festival, described The Kashmir Files as vulgar and as propaganda. That set off a wave of pushback and apologies from Israeli diplomats who not only distanced their country from the film-maker’s views but also accused him of ignorance and thanklessness towards his host — the Government of India. Many within the Indian film industry, political class and others have also weighed in, some backing Mr Lapid, others criticising him. Yet the response to Mr Lapid’s comments only underscores the dangers of not safeguarding the right to free artistic expression from political and diplomatic considerations. The film highlights the tragedy of Kashmiri Pandits who had to flee their homeland en masse in the 1990s following threats and violence from Islamic militants. However, the movie has been accused by many of painting all Kashmiri Muslims — and not just radicalised terrorists — as villains, feeding into the divisive, Islamophobic narrative peddled by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and political fellow travellers.

The fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and multiple BJP-led state governments publicly endorsed the film and bestowed tax benefits on it only lent credibility to those who claimed its fundamental aim was political and partisan. Some screenings of the films led to angry, communal sloganeering. Now Israel’s ambassador to India has suggested that his diplomats are facing threats from supporters of the film. Whether or not individual viewers of the film share Mr Lapid’s opinion, the film-maker has every right to express his thoughts. He does not represent the Israeli State. So it is unseemly for the country’s diplomats to take him on. At the same time, India must ensure the safety of Israeli diplomats. Mr Lapid has often criticised Israeli policies too, including in his films. As countries that take pride in their democracies, India and Israel should welcome independent and free expression. Ironically, the suggestion that Mr Lapid was somehow ungrateful towards his host because he criticised a film only reinforces the notion that the movie is somehow an extension of the Indian government’s public messaging. The best films stand the scrutiny of critics — as do the most robust democracies. India must remember that.