IC 814 Row: I&B Ministry asks makers to update disclaimer with THIS key information

On September 3, Monika Shergill, Vice-President, Content, Netflix India, met members of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) regarding the controversy surrounding IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack. The I&B Ministry had summoned her, citing concerns over the hijackers' portrayal in the Vijay Varma-led series that retells the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 from Kathmandu. In the show, two hijackers are shown using aliases Bhola and Shankar, which drew the ire of a section of the population.

An insider from the streamer's team told mid-day that creator Anubhav Sinha and his team had relied on extensive research at the development stage. The source said, "The writers and researchers had gathered information from credible sources, including official documents available in public domain. They also referred to a Home Ministry statement from January 6, 2000, that was available on the Ministry of External Affairs website. In the statement, [it was made clear] that Shankar and Bhola were indeed the code names used by the hijackers. The intention was never to hurt religious sentiments. The internal legal team looked into this at the early stages of development and passed it. Ahead of the meeting with the I&B Ministry, they prepared a comprehensive set of documents to support their depiction, emphasising that these aliases were not invented by the creative team, but were part of the record."

Sinha and Shergill

Another insider also informed Mid day that the research included meeting survivors of the incident and government sources. "The research actually went on for years before these facts were incorporated into the script. Nowhere has any fact been altered. The research included reading every possible book that existed, meeting survivors of the event and a couple of sources which were directly involved from the government's end. There were also legal teams at Netflix and the co-producer Matchbox Shots to vet everything before the show went ahead."

Sources say that at the meeting, Netflix representatives were reminded to be mindful of religious sentiments and public sensitivity. Respecting the concerns raised, the streamer's team updated the disclaimer that appears at every episode's beginning. Shergill issued a statement that read, "For the benefit of audiences unfamiliar with the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814, the opening disclaimer has been updated to include the real and code names of the hijackers. The code names in the series reflect those used during the actual event. India has a rich culture of storytelling and we are committed to showcasing these stories and their authentic representation."

On Tuesday at an IC 814 event, Sinha got exasperated when a press member questioned why the terrorists' real names were not used. He asked the person to watch the show before getting into a debate.