Article 370 - Movie

I was watching this interesting movie titled "Article 370" recently on Netflix dealing with the abrogation process of the most sensitive and complicated Article that granted special status to the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir Province.

The film is produced by Jyoti Deshpande, the erstwhile CEO & MD of Eros International along with Aditya Dhar, and directed by Aditya Suhas Jambhale. Jambhale co-wrote the script of the movie with Aditya Dhar (known for his film Uri: The Surgical Strike (2019) ).

It is set in the backdrop of an atmosphere where the lives of people living in there are witness to daily incidents of terrorism, arson, and civil unrest. The local authorities are either indifferent or corrupt.

The movie starts with the Pulwama attack that resulted in the death of 40 CRPF personnel who were traveling in an army truck to restore peace. This brutal massacre ignited ire from all corners and needed to be addressed with stringent measures.

The main scenes in  this movie are the encounter and subsequent killing of the most wanted terrorist Burhan Wani on 8th July 2016 in a remote village of Anantnag District, the Phulwama attack on 14th February 2019, the Balakot air strike that destroys the training camp of a terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed on 26th February, the death of a Dy. Commander of CRPF who sacrificed his life in fighting with Hizbul Mujahiddin, and the subsequent developments leading to the abrogation of Article 370 on 5th August 2019.

All above-mentioned scenes are worth watching if you want to deduce what happened in the back seats that lead to the Abrogation of Article 370.

Some interesting other scenes include the tie-up between the leading lady characters- Rajeshwari and Zooni, their perfect alignment in controlling the atmosphere, the ruckus in the Rajyasabha by the opposition party leader, the silent but smart show presented by the Home Minister answering every question put up by the opposition leading to the passing of the bill- all these scenes are entertaining and enjoyable.

The movie's story seems to be inspired by some real-life heroes who worked hard to liberate Jammu & Kashmir from the clutches of terrorism.

The lead woman character Zooni Haksar's identity is not established till now. She could be a real field agent, native to Kashmir, who served with multiple identities in her real life to combat terrorism and establish peace.

The other woman, Rajeshwari Swaminathan from the PMO office, too misleads us. We are forced to believe her to be a real-life Joint-Secretary to Home in the PMO office. She tackles every problem so skillfully with the aide of Zooni Haksar that we are compelled to believe that they are two mesmerizing women due to whose flawless endeavors it was possible for the Government of India to abrogate Article 370 without the loss of any innocent lives.

Burhan Wani is the only real character who is popular to the world.

The Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister's portrayed are perhaps former CM Omar Abdullah and present CM Mehbooba Mufti.

Chauhan's character is thought to be that of one real-life Major Leetul Gogoi, but it may not be true.

On the whole, it is a movie worth watching by all fans of thriller dramas.

I am not sharing the whole story as it may decrease the suspense of it all to watch it in movies or on OTTs.

You need to watch it and experience the real picture of the life in Kashmir and feel sorry for them. Further, you should know and value the teamwork put forth by the actors and producers of this movie. Only then can you understand what makes a movie 'a movie worthy of watching'.