Director Blessy has declined an invitation to participate in a film festival in Israel
The film festival is scheduled to be held in December this year
The Aadujeevitham director took this decision due to the ongoing suffering faced by Palestinians
Renowned Malayalam filmmaker Blessy, known for his films, including Kaazhcha (2004), Thanmathra (2005), Palunku (2006), Calcutta News (2008), Bhramaram (2009), Pranayam (2011), Kalimannu (2013), and Aadujeevitham - The Goat Life (2024), among others, has declined an invitation to attend an upcoming film festival in Israel, scheduled to be held in December this year.
Why Blessy skipped the Israel film festival
In an interview with Chandrika Daily, Blessy said he turned down the invitation due to the ongoing suffering faced by Palestinians. He revealed that the invitation to participate in the Israel Film Festival came through the Israeli Embassy in Delhi. He also added that around ten Indian filmmakers had been invited to the festival.
Blessy said that whether in Gaza or Ukraine, due to the international conflicts, the ordinary people, who are not involved in politics, have to face violence and loss, which he called deeply unfortunate.
The filmmaker further said that the inclusion of a question in the delegate form for the festival, whether he had previously visited Palestine, Pakistan, Turkey, or Algeria, made him understand the motive behind the festival. So, he preferred not to attend such festivals where there might be disputatious political discussions.
The Goat Life director also said that Indian artists, including himself, fear to voice their opinions not due to a lack of courage but due to the fear of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and fear suppresses courage, according to Blessy.
He also recalled an incident from the SIIMA Awards held in the Gulf, where he had a conversation with the Maharaja director, who had asked him why he remained calm despite the National Award snub. Blessy said that he had replied to the director saying that it doesn't matter how loudly one speaks, nothing changes in reality. According to him only peace is lost, and there are unwanted attention from the authorities.
