The 69th National
Film Awards were announced on Thursday at a press conference by the jury of the National Media Centre in Delhi. The award function was livestreamed on the Press Information Bureau's Facebook and YouTube pages. In the same vein, Vivek Agnihotri's
The Kashmir Files won the National Award for the best feature film on national integration.
The film displays a horrific turn of events about the Kashmiri Pandit mass exodus back in the early 1990s. It narrates the nerve-wracking violence against the Hindu community in the valley.
Also Read: The Kashmir Files: 5 Truths We Liked About The MovieAs The Kashmir Files won the National Award for best feature film, director
Vivek Agnihotri is excited that the film has finally gotten its much-deserved validation.
Vivek Agnihotri is happy for the Kashmiri Hindu community
An elated Agnihotri was in the US when he received a call
about the buzz his film had created. The Kashmir Files have garnered mixed reviews. While some praised the filmmaker's efforts to bring out the suppressed truth, others called it propaganda.
"It was very early in the morning when my phone started buzzing, and that's how I got to know about it. I had no clue. I'm very happy, especially for the Kashmiri Hindu community, because the film was their voice of pain and struggle. I was just the medium. We just made our film honestly and presented it to the world. I am very happy that it has
received validation now," said the filmmaker.
However, Vivek Agnihotri is well prepared for the film to receive even more
negative reviews for its sensitive display regarding one particular community, even after its glorious win.
Also Read: Who Has Questioned Bollywood These Days Apart From Kangana Ranaut And Me? , Asks Vivek Agnihotri'Do you think that the trolls won't hate or attack me anymore? In fact, the backlash is going to increase after the national award because we stand vindicated,' says the 49-year-old director.
Having said that, the filmmaker believes brushing off the naysayers and haters is the best way to move forward.
He further added, 'Some 8-10 voices mean nothing to me. They are just a bunch of negative people. I don't care about them. More than trolls with a different political inclination, there were maximum people who
loved the film. And this National Award is for them.'
He also believes this accolade will encourage more filmmakers and actors to delve into real cinematic narratives. 'Getting the most prestigious recognition will definitely encourage many other filmmakers to make films on such real subjects," Agnihotri concluded.
Vivek Agnihotri's wife,
Pallavi Joshi, who played the opposition in The Kashmir Files, bagged the National Award for Best Supporting Actress for the same movie.
The filmmaker is currently working on his next historical-drama, The Vaccine War.
