India Blocks Release of Oscar-Nominated Gaza Film over Ties with Israel

Drone view of a giant sand portrait of Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza in 2024 and the focus of the Oscar-nominated film "The Voice of Hind Rajab," created on a beach near Scarborough, North Yorkshire, Britain, in this undated handout image. (A Letter from Lucy/Handout via Reuters)

16:30-21 March 2026 AD ـ 03 Shawwal 1447 AH

India has blocked the release of "The Voice of Hind Rajab", a film about the killing of a five-year-old Palestinian girl by Israeli forces, the movie's distributor told AFP on Saturday.

The Oscar-nominated docudrama by French-Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania recounts the real-life death of Hind Rajab in Gaza last year as her family attempted to flee during Israel's war with Hamas.

Manoj Nandwana of Jai Viratra Entertainment, the film's Indian distributor, said a member of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) told him that the film's theatrical release would "hamper India's relations with Israel".

"After screening it for the board it was clear to me that they would not clear it for release in India," Nandwana told AFP on Saturday, adding that he was not officially notified of the denial.

"The film has been released all over the world including in Israel. Why is it bad or sensitive for Indians?" Nandwana asked. "It's strange."

The film was, however, screened at an international film festival in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata in November last year, Nandwana said.

New Delhi has expanded ties with Israel in defense, agriculture, technology and cybersecurity while balancing diplomatic interests in the Middle East and historically supporting Palestinian statehood.

Last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Israel for two days -- his second trip since 2017 -- just days before Israel and the United States began a campaign of airstrikes on Iran.

Parliamentarian Shashi Tharoor from the opposition Congress party said blocking the film was "disgraceful".

"In a democracy, screening a film is a reflection of our society's freedom of expression and has nothing to do with government-to-government relations," he said in a post on X.

"This practice of banning films or books because of the offense they might cause to foreign countries must stop immediately. It's unworthy of a mature democracy."

"The Voice of Hind Rajab" was nominated for Best International Feature at this year's Oscars but lost to the Norwegian family drama "Sentimental Value".

Last year, the film won the Silver Lion grand jury prize at the Venice Film Festival where it left audiences in tears at its premiere.

Qiddiya City Signs MoUs with Five Leading Travel and Tourism Companies

The MoUs aim to establish shared frameworks for cooperation with a select group of travel and tourism service providers - SPA

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15:50-10 September 2026 AD ـ 28 Rabi’ Al-Awwal 1448 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

15:50-10 September 2026 AD ـ 28 Rabi’ Al-Awwal 1448 AH

Qiddiya City Signs MoUs with Five Leading Travel and Tourism Companies

The MoUs aim to establish shared frameworks for cooperation with a select group of travel and tourism service providers - SPA

Qiddiya City has announced the signing of memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with five major travel and tourism service providers: Al Faris International Travel and Tourism, Travel Destinations Solutions, Al Matar Commercial Services Company, AlMosafer Travel and Tourism Company, and Fursan Travel and Tourism Company.

The agreements form part of a strategic direction aimed at expanding Qiddiya City's network of partnerships in the travel and tourism sector, strengthening its readiness to welcome visitors, and developing more integrated pathways for accessing its diverse destinations and experiences from within the Kingdom and abroad, SPA reported.

The MoUs aim to establish shared frameworks for cooperation with a select group of travel and tourism service providers, contributing to the development of more integrated and flexible solutions for the visitor journey; from planning and booking, through travel and arrival arrangements, to enjoying Qiddiya City's experiences more smoothly and efficiently.

Through these partnerships, Qiddiya City will leverage the specialized expertise, booking infrastructure, and commercial networks of these travel companies. The joint focus will be on delivering integrated and flexible solutions across every stage of the visitor journey, from initial planning and booking to travel arrangements and arrival.

These MoUs reinforce Qiddiya City's ongoing commitment to build quality partnerships with key players in the tourism and travel ecosystem, and form part of its future plans to develop integrated tourism solutions that enhance the readiness of its destinations to welcome visitors from within the Kingdom and abroad.

These partnerships also contribute to expanding the scope of cooperation with sector partners and providing more flexible and efficient options for the visitor journey, supporting the company's objectives in establishing Qiddiya as a global destination that brings together entertainment, sport, and culture, offering inspiring experiences built on the concept of "Power of Play."

Entertainment

Stars Ready for Busy Toronto International Film Festival

Roy Thomson Hall is one of the main venues for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). VALERIE MACON / AFP/File

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10:09-10 September 2026 AD ـ 28 Rabi’ Al-Awwal 1448 AH

Asharq Al Awsat

10:09-10 September 2026 AD ـ 28 Rabi’ Al-Awwal 1448 AH

Stars Ready for Busy Toronto International Film Festival

Roy Thomson Hall is one of the main venues for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). VALERIE MACON / AFP/File

North America's largest film festival kicks off Thursday in Toronto with a jam-packed line-up of more than 200 films and high-wattage stars including John Malkovich, Penelope Cruz, Chris Rock and K-pop superstar Lisa.

Hot on the heels of Venice and Telluride, the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) draws hundreds of thousands of attendees to screenings and red-carpet events for some of the year's most anticipated premieres, said AFP.

Underdog stories take center stage in the program for the festival's 51st edition, which will host the world premiere of "I Play Rocky."

Directed by Oscar winner Peter Farrelly ("Green Book"), the film tells the unlikely story of how a then-little-known Sylvester Stallone (played by Anthony Ippolito) took on Hollywood to bring to the screen -- and star in -- a movie that would change his life.

Opening night is reserved for the world premiere of "Being Heumann," a biographical drama directed by Oscar winner Sian Heder ("CODA") that highlights the tenacity of US activist Judy Heumann, who fought for the rights of people with disabilities.

The Apple TV production stars Ruth Madeley in the title role and Oscar nominee Mark Ruffalo.

Another biopic debuting at this year's TIFF is "Villeneuve: The Rise of a Legend," which chronicles the ascent of Canadian racing star Gilles Villeneuve from his humble beginnings in Quebec to the pinnacle of Formula 1.

- Chris Rock behind the camera -

TIFF offers something for every taste, including several films expected to be in the awards conversation this season.

US comedian Chris Rock is bringing Hollywood satire "Misty Green" to the festival in a film that marks his return as writer-director. It stars Rosalind Eleazar as an actress who has fallen on hard times and is now seeking a second chance.

The cast also includes Oscar winner Daniel Kaluuya, Oscar nominees Adam Driver and Anna Kendrick, and Rock himself.

Another programming highlight is "Wild Horse Nine," which follows two CIA agents on Easter Island during the tense final days of Salvador Allende's government in Chile.

Directed by Martin McDonagh ("The Banshees of Inisherin"), the movie debuted in Venice and screened at Telluride, but stars John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell are expected in Toronto to boost their Oscar campaigns.

Also making their way to Toronto from the Telluride festival in Colorado are "Elsinore," starring Andrew Scott and Olivia Colman, and the musical comedy "The Debut," the latest directorial effort from Jesse Eisenberg.

British megastar Helen Mirren will arrive in Canada's largest city for the world premiere of psychological thriller "A Talent for Murder," in which she plays author Patricia Highsmith, who is pressured by her agent to write one final Tom Ripley novel.

Director Zack Snyder ("Watchmen,300") will present "The Last Photograph," a blend of action and drama starring Stuart Martin and Fra Fee, which follows a former DEA agent on a mission in the South American jungle to locate two missing nephews.

Arriving directly from Venice are "Bunker," a psychological thriller starring real-life husband and wife Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz as a couple in crisis, and "Bucking Fastard," the latest film from German director Werner Herzog.

On the documentary side, Lisa, the K-pop star known for her work with the girl group Blackpink - will launch the intimate "Always Lalisa," which showcases the start of her solo career and her first steps as an actress in "The White Lotus."

The Toronto International Film Festival runs until September 20.

Entertainment

Series Finale of ‘Babylon Berlin’ Offers Dark Mirror for Today’s Germany

German directors and screenwriters Henk Handloegten (L), Tom Tykwer (2ndR) and Achim von Borries (R) and German actor Volker Bruch (2ndL) and German actress Liv Lisa Fries pose on the red carpet upon arrival for the premiere of the "Babylon Berlin" TV series' fourth season, at the Delphi Filmpalast in Berlin on September 20, 2022. (AFP)

10:31-9 September 2026 AD ـ 27 Rabi’ Al-Awwal 1448 AH

Series Finale of ‘Babylon Berlin’ Offers Dark Mirror for Today’s Germany

The hit TV series "Babylon Berlin" has captivated audiences by portraying the chaos and excitement of Weimar-era Germany, but the dark shadow of Adolf Hitler's rise to power will bring down the curtain on the show's upcoming final season.

Season 5 will debut online in Germany at a time when many are fretting about the rise of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which scored a breakthrough victory in a state election last Sunday.

The timing is "pure coincidence," insisted the directors behind the program, Tom Tykwer, Achim von Borries and Henk Handloegten.

But viewers and critics are still certain to draw uncomfortable parallels and resonances in the gritty hit drama from public broadcaster ARD.

Inspired by crime novels from German author Volker Kutscher, the big-budget series is set against the backdrop of the final years of the Weimar Republic, Germany's 14-year experiment in democracy.

The era, sandwiched between the end of World War I and Hitler's ascent, was a period of liberal social attitudes, rapid technological progress and cultural achievement.

But it was also a time of economic hardship, inflation and deep political polarization worsened by the humiliation of military defeat and the Great Depression.

Broadcast in 140 countries, the show chronicles the investigations and romances in Berlin of Gereon Rath -- a young police inspector from Cologne traumatized by World War I -- and his partner Charlotte Ritter, a young Berliner from a modest background who dreams of a career in law enforcement.

- Rise of extremes -

The final run of "Babylon Berlin", which will premiere on Thursday at a red-carpet event in Berlin's famed Zoo Palast cinema, does not yet have an international release date.

Since the show first aired in 2017, the directors have focused the narrative on the final four years of the Weimar Republic, from the global crash of 1929 to Hitler's seizure of power in 1933.

Tykwer, also known for films such as "Run Lola Run" (1998) and "Cloud Atlas" (2012), said the show's creators did not necessarily set out to create a parable of our own times.

"We were drawn to these themes even before the major upheavals in Europe and globally," said Tykwer.

The director said they were surprised when the historical drama began resonating as democracy in Germany and around the world faced a crisis of rising nationalism and mounting voter distrust.

When work on the project began in 2013, the far right had no presence in the German parliament and the AfD had only just been founded as an anti-euro party.

It has since transformed into an anti-immigration party and radicalized, with opponents regularly accusing it of racism, collusion with neo-Nazi extremists and ties with Vladimir Putin's Russia.

The AfD has also steadily grown in popularity, entering parliament in 2017 and finishing second in the most recent national election in February 2025.

The party now routinely leads national opinion polls, well ahead of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's center-right CDU/CSU bloc.

- 'Vulnerability' of democracies -

Tykwer, in an interview with AFP, said "Babylon Berlin" reflects the "vulnerability" of democracies "and how quickly they can be brought to collapse by radical aggression, despite having been built up with such care over such a long period".

"We were drawn to these themes because they touch on something deeper and universal: the struggle between peaceful, empathy-based systems and the forces capable of destroying them."

But Tykwer and von Borries said the show is not intended to deliver any kind of clear message to voters ahead of further regional elections later this month.

But Handloegten expressed pride in having "struck a chord that truly resonates" with viewers around the world who also find themselves -- and their countries -- at a political inflection point.

"I think we took a clear political stance, especially in this final season, and that seems very necessary to me," he said.

For Handloegten, the pressures facing democracy in many countries where the series airs "were truly a source of motivation" during the show's lengthy run.

"I felt there was a contemporary relevance to it, so for me, the work we've been doing here for 13 years is, in a strange way, political."

India Blocks Release of Oscar-Nominated Gaza Film over Ties with Israel

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