‘I think everybody should watch and then…’: Nikkhil Advani breaks silence on Vivek Agnihotri’s ‘Freedom at Midnight’ criticism

NEW DELHI: The second season of ‘Freedom at Midnight’, directed by Nikkhil Advani, is now streaming on SonyLIV.

Based on the acclaimed book by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins, the show is an epic political thriller that vividly portrays the pivotal events of 1947. The series intricately weaves together the stories of key personalities who played instrumental roles in shaping the subcontinent’s history.

Amid the release of the popular series, Advani has finally broken his silence and responded to earlier criticism from filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri, who accused the show of “whitewashing” history.

Advani, when asked if he had seen Agnihotri’s tweet on the series, said he had noticed the comment, but felt that people should first watch the show before forming opinions. Talking about the need for “informed decisions,” he said, “Yes, I did… But after that, he didn’t tweet. I think everybody should watch and then make informed decisions rather than just hearing what has been said.”

“I think Mr. Agnihotri is a filmmaker, and he makes the kind of films he wants to. And he is allowed to say what he wants to,” he added.

When asked if he ever feels pressure while working on a project based on historical events, considering that some people may agree with his portrayal while others might not, Advani told ANI, “Yaar, when I made ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’, some people liked it, and some didn’t.”

“So I think that’s always going to be there…I’m not making a story or a film in isolation. It’s not like I’ll make it, sit at home, and watch it without showing it to anyone… the moment you’re a storyteller or a filmmaker, you have to accept the fact that people… ‘Kuch toh log kahenge, logo ka kaam hai kehna,'” he added.

Produced by Emmay Entertainment in association with StudioNext, the show is helmed by Nikkhil Advani as the showrunner and director, with a compelling narrative crafted by Abhinandan Gupta, Adwitiya Kareng Das, Gundeep Kaur, Divya Nidhi Sharma, Revanta Sarabhai, and Ethan Taylor.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sony LIV (@sonylivindia)

The series features a stellar ensemble cast, including Sidhant Gupta, Chirag Vohra, Rajendra Chawla, Arif Zakaria, Ira Dubey, KC Shankar, RJ Malishka, Rajesh Kumar, Luke McGibney, Andrew Cullum, Richard Teverson, Alistair Finlay, and Cordelia Bugeja in pivotal roles.

Freedom at Midnight season 2 is being streamed on Sony LIV from January 9. (ANI)