With its representation of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley during the 1990s unrest, The Kashmir Files has earned the hearts of the viewers. Many states have proclaimed it tax-free, while others have promised free screenings or half-day vacations for staff who want to see the film. This has ‘confounded’ Savita Raj Hiremath, one of the producers of Amitabh Bachchan’s Jhund, which was released on March 4. She recently turned to social media to ask why her film was not made tax-free, despite the fact that it received favourable critical acclaim and dealt with a topic that is “critical to the country’s prosperity.”
Jhund, which was launched on March 4, received rave reviews at its initial release. However, Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir Files eclipsed it a week later. The film was backed by the federal government and numerous state governments, which made it tax-free. Savita Raj Hiremath, the producer of Jhund, afterwards expressed her perplexity on Facebook. While The Kashmir Files is a significant film, she believes Jhund is equally so.
Savita started her Facebook note by saying, “I recently watched Kashmir Files and as the story of Kashmiri Pandits exodus it’s heartbreaking and is a story that needed to be told. It is a good voice for Kashmiri Pandits! But as the producer of Jhund, I am perplexed. After all, Jhund is also an important film and has a story and a big message that has received tremendous acclaim and word of mouth from the audience (sic).”
Savita went on to say that she was intrigued as to what criteria the government uses to choose which films are exempt from the entertainment tax. “So, I want to find out what’s the criterion on which the government selects a film to support it so strongly by making it tax-free, endorsing it through social media and asking offices to showcase the film or give a half-day holiday to its employees. After all, Jhund also has a subject that is so crucial to our country’s growth. Jhund is not just talking about the disparity between caste and economic disparity but also shows a way to make the lower strata of society find their success story (sic).”
In states including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Karnataka, Tripura, and Goa, The Kashmir Files, starring Anupam Kher, Darshan Kumar, Mithun Chakraborty, and Pallavi Joshi, was declared tax-free. Only terms of box office, Jhund has raked in roughly Rs 15 crore so far, compared to Rs 116 crore for The Kashmir Files.