New Delhi: The depiction of a professor from Delhi’s prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University as a supporter of Kashmiri separatists in the recently released Bollywood film ‘The Kashmir Files’, has upset some students of the institution.
As per the students, the film that depicts the support extended by a JNU professor to the separatists, is not everybody’s stand at JNU, on the Kashmir issue. However, despite this, the students believe that it is necessary to expose people with such views.
It is the sentiment of one person and not the entire university, students feel, as JNU plays an important role in nation building. From national security to science and technology advancement, JNU students have made important contributions to every sector in the country.
According to Siddhant, who is pursuing his PhD from the School of International Studies at JNU, there is nothing objectionable or wrong about the scenes from JNU, shown in ‘The Kashmir Files’, as there are some people in the university who have controversial views on such divisive issues.
Although, there are only a handful of such people here, whose reach is very good, and whatever they say, immediately grabs media attention and becomes the talk of the town, he said.
“Most of the students and faculty members at JNU, do not hold views that are opposed to national interests. Neither are they involved, in any way, with such divisive things,” he further said, adding that it is, therefore, absolutely necessary to expose characters like Professor Menon.
Another student, Deepanshu, who is pursuing a postgraduate degree from JNU, said: “I have seen the film and such films should continue to be made. People of all communities should know how the Kashmiri pandits suffered in the Valley. We all feel that making such films has become even more important when the government has not taken adequate steps against the criminals.”
However, according to him, JNU has been potrayed in a very bad light, which is not correct, because such people exist everywhere. Such scenes shown in films are often done for publicity stunt too.
“This is not an issue with this institution alone. JNU also gives back a lot to the country. We are everywhere in the country supporting and contributing towards nation building. There is immense scope for positive debate among students studying here. Students have the freedom to speak, learn, understand and have a platform to voice their opinions,” he said.
As per Sabarish, another PhD scholar at JNU, any controversy related to the university is given more importance while the fact that most of the students and professors here, work very hard on academics too, is often ignored. “After 9 a.m. it is almost impossible to spot a vacant seat in any library. But these things are rarely shown in any film,” he said.
Sabarish, who submitted his PhD thesis this month, added: “JNU is just like any other university. There are obviously students and staff members with different views. But their controversial statements are only used to highlight this place as the citadel of divisiveness by filmmakers and journalists. The university has also also been imparting quality education for decades now. It is one of the top universities in the country.”
Deepa, another post-graduate student at JNU, said that the things that have been shown about JNU in the ‘The Kashmir Files’ are before people. It is a fact that such slogans were raised in JNU which can easily irk common people, and there is no justification for such activity within any university campus.
“Most of the students here neither agree with these points nor are involved in any such controversies. Issues here are very different from those shown on TV. The outside world knows very little about these problems. There are excellent scholars in JNU. Even today, JNU students are holding big posts in many government departments. Most of them are IAS and IPS officers,” she said.
