IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack Casting Director Reacts To Boycott Calls, Says 'We Did Proper Research'

IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack Controversy: The recently released crime thriller drama series starring Vijay Varma, Naseeruddin Shah, Dia Mirza and others in pivotal roles has caused an uproar on the Internet owing to its narrative and concealing of facts. The series, directed by Anubhav Sinha, is based on the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814.

According to records, six terrorists -- Ibrahim Athar, Shahid Akhtar Sayed, Sunny, Ahmad Qazi, Zahoor Mistry, and Shakir of the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen terrorist outfit, held the flight hostage over their demands of the release of Pakistani terrorists held in prison in India -- Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar.

However, the streaming series is getting slammed on social media over the alleged whitewashing of the Pakistani intelligence agency, ISI, for humanising the cruel terrorists and over its misleading content. Several users also alleged that the religion of the hijackers was deliberately changed by the makers.

Casting director clarifies on claims

After #BoycottNetflix and #BoycottBollywood trended on X, IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack casting director Mukesh Chhabra issued a clarification over the alleged "name change" of hijackers. He said that the team's creative decision was backed by proper research.

"I am reading so many tweets about the names of the hijackers. We did the proper research. They used to call each other by those names—nicknames or fake names, whatever you want to call them. And thank you, everyone, for loving the ensemble cast. A big thank you to my team, and especially to Anubhav Sinha for trusting us and giving me the freedom to explore (sic)," Chhabra wrote on X.

What's the reality behind "identity swap" in IC 814 The Kandahar Hijack?

Journalist-writer-lyricist Neelesh Misra, who wrote the book 173 Hours in Captivity: The Hijacking of IC814, cross-verified Chhabra's claims over alleged identity swap of the terrorists. He wrote, "Shankar, Bhola, Burger, Doctor and the Chief, the brother of then-jailed Masood Azhar himself. All the hijackers assumed false names. That is how they referred to each other and how the passengers referred to them throughout the hijacking. Regards, the author of the first book on the IC-814 hijacking."

The hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 and the subsequent hostage crisis lasted for seven days and ended after India agreed to release the three terrorists, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, Masood Azhar, and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar.

(With IANS inputs)