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   From: alt.fan.jai-maharaj@googlegroups.com   
      
   Dr. Jai Maharaj posted:   
   >   
   > 'Dunkirk' Sparks Debate in India Over Failure to Show   
   > Soldiers From the Country   
   >   
   > By Nyay Bhushan   
   > Hollywood Reporter, hollywoodreporter.com   
   > July 28, 2017   
   >   
   > While Christopher Nolan's film has received critical   
   > acclaim in India, some media reports have questioned why   
   > the film has ignored the "significant contribution" of   
   > Indian soldiers in Dunkirk.   
   >   
   > Dunkirk opened in India last Friday to stellar reviews   
   > and what is considered a strong box-office opening for a   
   > Hollywood film, bringing in an estimated $2.4 million.   
   > But not everyone in the country is impressed.   
   >   
   > Various reports in leading media outlets have questioned   
   > why Christopher Nolan's movie ignored what the Times of   
   > India newspaper calls the "significant contribution" of   
   > Indian soldiers at Dunkirk. The article, titled "How   
   > Nolan forgot the desis (Indians) at Dunkirk," notes that   
   > the omission should be seen in light of the fact that the   
   > "British public is more well-informed today about the   
   > Indian role in the World Wars."   
   >   
   > It also refers to Oxford historian Yasmin Khan's book The   
   > Raj at War, in which the author writes, "Britain did not   
   > fight the Second World War, the British Empire did."   
   >   
   > International observers are also echoing a similar   
   > sentiment. In a column for Slate, John Broich, an   
   > associate professor of history at Case Western Reserve   
   > University, wrote that the appearance of Indian soldiers   
   > in the film "would have provided a good reminder of how   
   > utterly central the role of the Indian Army was in the   
   > war. Their service meant the difference between victory   
   > and defeat."   
   >   
   > Broich, whose views have also been quoted by the   
   > Hindustan Times newspaper, points out that there were   
   > four companies of the Royal Indian Army Service Corps at   
   > Dunkirk adding that "observers said they were   
   > particularly cool under fire and well-organized during   
   > the retreat."   
   >   
   > According to historical data, some 2.5 million soldiers   
   > from the Indian sub-continent served with the British   
   > army during World War II. But the depiction of Indian   
   > soldiers in Hollywood films revolving around the war have   
   > been few and far between. One of the most notable   
   > onscreen appearances was last seen in 1996's The English   
   > Patient, which featured British Indian actor Naveen   
   > Andrews (Sense8, Lost) in a supporting role as an Indian   
   > Sikh soldier, Kip Singh, serving in the Italian campaign   
   > of the war in the Oscar-winning film, which starred Ralph   
   > Fiennes and Juliette Binoche.   
   >   
   > Referring to historical accounts of the war, in an   
   > article headlined "Miracle at Dunkirk: Indians too were   
   > trapped with Allied forces," India Today pointed out that   
   > 1,800 Indian soldiers were tasked with transporting 2,000   
   > mules carrying arms and ammunition to the war zone in   
   > France. Since the British army had disbanded its animal   
   > transport companies after World War I, Indian companies   
   > were brought in to transport supplies over terrain in   
   > France that wasn't accessible for cars.   
   >   
   > Continues at:   
   >   
   > http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/dunkirk-sparks-debate-in   
   ia-failure-show-soldiers-country-1024935   
      
   Does Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk ignore the role of the   
   Indian army?   
      
   BBC News   
   July 27, 2017   
      
   http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-40724861   
      
   Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi   
   Om Shanti   
      
   http://groups.google.com/group/alt.fan.jai-maharaj   
      
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