A PIL has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking a stay on the streaming of the film, Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, on the OTT platform, Netflix, till the allegedly inaccurate and misleading portrayal of the Indian Air Force in the movie is modified or deleted.
The petitioner, Satyam Singh Rajput, through Advocate Amit Sharma, has stated that “in the garb of creative and artistic freedom, the production house of the film has portrayed the Indian Air Force in undue negative light.” The petition further notes, “Some scenes and dialogues in the movie are factually incorrect and misleading, and portray an inappropriate work culture, to glorify the screen character of former Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena. Several male officers have also been projected as misogynists to suit the film’s false narrative. The false and negative portrayal of the Indian Air Force is an abuse of freedom of expression which ought to be censured.”
“The gender discrimination which has been portrayed in the movie is incorrect, false and misleading. Over and above, it is not factually corroborated. The glorious and prestigious Indian Air Force has ensured that the organization is gender-neutral and has always provided an equal opportunity to both male and female personnel. It is a wellknown fact that the Indian Air Force (IAF) has the largest number of women officers serving actively. The Indian Air Force was the first to open all its branches to women officers, including combat roles in 2015,” the plea said.
The petition filed further explained, “The movie Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl has lowered the standing of the prestigious and glorious Indian Air Force in the eyes of the ordinary citizens. We hold our armed forces in the highest esteem, and show our utmost respect to them. The Indian Air Force which is the epitome of valour, courage and sacrifice cannot be allowed to be portrayed in the negative light. In the garb of artistic and creative freedom, we should not allow the image of our armed forces being tarnished and maligned. The blatant attempt on the part of the production house of the movie to portray and depict the Indian Air Force in the negative light weakens the courage and morale of the next generation of IAF officers.”
The petition also stated, “No other job in the country involves such harsh duty in extreme conditions on land, water, air, even underneath seas. Away from their families and devoid of privileges such as leave on festivals and weekends to convenient work timings and work leisure balance as enjoyed by civilians, armed forces personnel undeniably deserve at least a sense of respect for their tireless duty towards the service of the country and its citizens.”
“The Army Officers spend a majority of their time at the border away from their families, in the service of the nation. A movie/web series portraying the lives of female Indian Air Force officers in such a derogatory and dark light, works to plant seeds of doubt in their minds and imbalance in their families. This would cause irreparable damage to the mental peace and psychological health of the soldiers and hence also negatively impacts their performance, focus and endurance,” the plea added.