IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack, which remains to be the most-watched show on Netflix, has run into controversy for allegedly hiding the real identities of the terrorists involved in the 1999 incident. There has also been demands by a section of social media users for boycott of the series even after casting director Mukesh Chhabra on Sunday claimed the perpetrators used nicknames for each other and proper research was done for the show.
According to reports, controversy erupted over the hijackers' Hindu codenames in series. Amid the controversy, Netflix India content chief Monika Shergill appeared before officials of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Tuesday after she was summoned by the government. When asked about the summon, government sources said, "Nobody has the right to play with the sentiments of the people of this nation. India's culture and civilization should always be respected. You should think before portraying something in a wrong manner. The govt is taking it very seriously."
What was the Kandhar hijack
Five terrorists Ibrahim Athar, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Zahoor Ibrahim, Shahid Akhter and Sayed Shakir hijacked the IC-814 plane during its flight from Kathmandu to Delhi on December 24 that year.
At least 154 passengers and crew were held hostage for eight days and the stand-off ended when hardcore terrorists Masood Azhar, Omar Sheikh and Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar were released and the then external affairs minister Jaswant Singh took them on a special plane to Kandahar. 'IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack' features an established cast of Vijay Varma, Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapur, Manoj Pahwa, Kumud Mishra, Arvind Swamy, Dia Mirza and Patralekhaa, among others.
