The significance of the Holocaust was trivialised in the film Bawaal, according to a statement from the Israeli embassy on Friday, July 28. Varun Dhawan and Jahnvi Kapoor’s leading roles in the Nitesh Tiwari movie received criticism for equating their romance with the atrocities of World War II.
The Israeli Embassy tweeted, “The Israeli embassy is disturbed by the trivialisation of the significance of the Holocaust in the recent movie ‘Bawaal’.”
“There was a poor choice in the terminology used in the film, and while we assume no malice was intended, we urge everyone who may not be fully aware of the horrors of the Holocaust to learn more about it,” they concluded.
In order to promote a greater understanding of the universal lessons learned from the Holocaust, they stated, “Our embassy is constantly working to spread educational materials on this important subject, and we are open to engaging in conversations with all people.”
The Simon Wiesenthal Centre (SWC), a Jewish human rights organisation dedicated to the memory of the Nazi Holocaust victims, had already written an open letter to Prime Video requesting that the movie be taken down from the streaming service.
Social media users have also criticised the movie for its allegedly implausible and callous plot.