Bollywood blockbuster ‘Airlift’ irks Indian government

NEW DELHI: A hit Bollywood movie about the evacuation of more than 170,000 Indians from Kuwait in 1990 has angered the government with its portrayal of the country’s diplomats as selfish and unfeeling.

The foreign ministry took the unusual step of issuing a statement on “Airlift”, a fictionalised account of the real-life rescue mission that was released last week to rave reviews.

It shows Indian diplomats leaving Kuwait soon after the Iraqi invasion that sparked the first Gulf war, and portrays the foreign ministry in New Delhi as apathetic to the desperate pleas of Indian migrant workers stuck there.

“@AirliftFilm: Great entertainment but rather short on facts,” foreign ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted late Thursday.