Daily Times

This has proved to be true that in the history of subcontinent, from Chanakya Kotalia’s policy to Veer Chakra, India has presented lies as reality. India, that has always played victim of interventions and cross-border terrorism, had invaded Kashmir and when desired, depicted parts of Nepal on its map as Indian territory. They brought international embarrassment home at the hands of China during an intense escalation at Galwan Valley, and at other instances caused disturbance in Sri Lanka by exploiting Tamil Nadu.

One such lie is the story of the 1971 tragedy. To this day, the episode has been victim of many assumptions and controversies based on its sensitivity. The partition of the subcontinent has never been recognized by India and even today voices are being raised against it. This is a country that has miserably failed at providing basic rights to its population. It has destroyed places of worship of Sikh minorities and has later applied every tactic to demolish Babri Mosque and stop Muslims from offering their Friday prayers. A similar pattern continued and India played a hawkish game against Pakistan in East Pakistan using Mukti Bahini.

For a long time in Pakistan, perhaps, it was considered inappropriate to discuss this subject and even in the discussions that took place, political, social and especially military aspects were misleading and a deceitful narrative was presented to the world. This is not a hidden fact today as concrete evidences available with International research institutes, especially the EU Disinfo Lab validate such claims. India, which has been lately accusing Pakistan of meddling in its internal affairs, itself acknowledges heinous role it played in East Pakistan. The country’s Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and National security advisor very proudly accept their terrible role in East Pakistan.

For the first time in Pakistan, a film has been made deviating from tradition, which not only covers all these dark aspects of history but also shows the way to resolve these issues. Film “Khel Khel Mein” is a story that depicts very interesting facts and takes an in-depth look at the speculations, misunderstandings and controversial issues arising out of East Pakistan saga. It is the story of many generations, the first who witnessed the tragedy, the second who are among the victims of this tragedy, and another complete generation who were not only driven out of their motherland by the tyranny of history but also lost their identities. Today, there is a new young generation who wants to explore how we might move forward while maintaining our own identities and understanding how India invaded another country, defying all the laws of the international community.

The movie “Khel Khel Mein” also mentions that all this is just the result of misunderstandings and propaganda; otherwise people of the two countries not only wish to move forward together but also wish to see each other make progress. Proof today can be seen in the form of joy of the people of Bangladesh on Pakistan’s victory over India in the recent T-20 World Cup. The kind of love and affection Pakistan’s cricket team received during Pak-Bangladesh cricket series is evidence enough to the world.

The plight of those who got trapped in both countries is specially discussed in the film “Khel Khel Mein”. Today, not only are these people being looked after in Pakistan but steps are being taken to give them a legitimate place in the society.

The most important and central theme around which the film revolves is that “we have to realize our mistakes and to move forward we need to unite our hearts”.