Subhash K Jha (DNA; February 5, 2016)

After Anupam Kher, it’s Nandita Das who has opted out of the controversial Karachi Literary Festival. Says Nandita, “I have been unwell since Wednesday morning and unfortunately I am unable to go Karachi. I felt terrible letting down the organisers, but it’s beyond my control. I had offered to do the sessions via Skype to make sure one can participate and the intent with which the Lit Fest is organised, is upheld.”

Nandita has been embroiled in a verbal slug-fest of sorts with her colleague Anupam Kher over the supposed denial of a visa by the Pakistan government for his visit to the literary festival. Nandita explains her stance saying, “As a firm believer of people-to-people initiatives, I want to be very clear that anybody’s visa being denied is detrimental to the process, especially of artistes. At the time I made my comments, it was not clear if the visa was denied or Mr. Kher had not send his documents in the first place.”

Nandita, who did a Pakistani film Ramchand Pakistani on cross-border amity, says, “For the moment, let us assume that the Pakistan bureaucracy came in the way of this cultural event. As an artiste, I would separate this bureaucratic road-block from genuine efforts to strengthen friendship.”

Reacting to Anupam’s tirade against those artistes who referred to him as the Indian government’s champion, Nandita says, “ I was disappointed to hear what Anupam Kher had to say on television. If we dismiss those we disagree with as anti-nationals, we risk diminishing the possibility of dialogue and it invites shrill abuses.”

She won’t get rattled by efforts to portray her as not being nationalistic enough for not protesting when Anupam was denied entry into Pakistan. “I don’t feel the need to prove my nationality in public debates. My work, my life is reflective of my cultural and national identity and we have to draw a line between jingoism and nationalism. And I only want to reiterate that whenever the two countries have the possibility of artistic exchange, we should do our best to enable them. Surely, this sentiment is not any different than what the Indian governments recent diplomatic efforts signal.”