India Blocks Release of Oscar-Nominated Gaza Drama ‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ Amid Deepening Israel Ties

India’s Central Board of Film Certification has blocked the theatrical release of “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” an Oscar-nominated docudrama about a Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, with a censor board member reportedly telling the distributor that releasing the film “would break up the India-Israel relationship”—a decision that highlights India’s controversial shift toward unconditional support for Israel under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

According to Variety, the Indian theatrical release of Kaouther Ben Hania’s Oscar-nominated feature, which was planned for this month, is being blocked by the country’s Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for political reasons, according to the film’s local distributor. 

Distributor Manoj Nandwana, who heads Mumbai-based Jai Viratra Entertainment, said: “The film is very sensitive,” and he was told by a CBFC member that “if it gets released it would break up the India-Israel relationship.” 

Nandwana told Variety that he screened “The Voice of Hind Rajab” for the CBFC in February, when he submitted the film for censorship approval, and was planning a March 6 Indian release “because we thought it was a good date ahead of the March 16 Oscars.” 

The Film and Its Global Success

“The Voice of Hind Rajab” is an Oscar-nominated docudrama that reconstructs the tragic final hours of a young Palestinian girl killed during Israel’s 2024 invasion of Gaza. Directed by acclaimed Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania, the 2025 film blends real audio recordings and dramatized sequences to portray the desperate last phone calls of Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old trapped inside a bullet-ridden car after Israeli forces allegedly opened fire on her fleeing family in Gaza City. 

According to Variety, in September, “The Voice of Hind Rajab” elicited more than 20 minutes of thunderous applause when it world premiered at the Venice Film Festival and then went on to win the fest’s Silver Lion. 

While the film has played widely in Europe, North America, and the Middle East—grossing more than USD 5.6 million—it remains unavailable in India.

Pattern of Political Censorship

According to Variety, this is not the first recent instance of India’s CBFC blocking a release when they deem a film to be politically sensitive. Last year, they halted the release of Indian director Sandya Suri’s Oscar-shortlisted “Santosh.” 

When Israel began its genocidal war on Gaza, India condemned the humanitarian crisis in the enclave but repeatedly abstained from UN resolutions which called for a ceasefire.

The Wire reported that as it has become a recent phenomenon with the Censor board under chairperson Prasoon Joshi, controversial films are either prescribed an unreasonable number of cuts (like it happened with Panjab ’95 and Santosh recently) or there is radio silence from the body for prolonged periods. 

The Wire noted that last year’s Oscar winner, “No Other Land,” was pulled from the MAMI 2024 line-up at the last minute. More recently, at IFFK 2025, 19 films were not cleared for censor exemption, thereby preventing the screening of acclaimed films like “All That’s Left of You” (2025) and “Once Upon a Time In Gaza” (2025). The Kerala state government defied the central government’s orders, and allowed the films to be screened. 

India’s Controversial Position on Gaza

India’s position on the Gaza conflict has undergone a dramatic transformation under Modi’s government, moving from historical support for Palestine to close alignment with Israel.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel on February 25-26 was described by his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu as “extraordinarily productive.” During the visit, India and Israel elevated their current “strategic partnership” to a “special strategic partnership.” 

Modi told the Israeli parliament: “India stands with Israel firmly, with full conviction, in this moment and beyond.” 

Netanyahu is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes charges. Yet, this has not prevented Modi from shaking hands, embracing and publicly endorsing the Israeli leader. In his speech at the Knesset, Modi showed no sympathy for Palestinian suffering. While expressing his “deepest condolences” for the Israeli lives lost in the Hamas’ “barbaric terrorist attack” on October 7, 2023, Modi was conspicuously silent on Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed over 73,000 Palestinians, many of them children, in the last 2 and a half years. 

Jairam Ramesh, a senior parliamentarian of the Congress, India’s main opposition party, said: “This Israel visit was shameful and it is even more so in light of the war that has been launched by two of Mr. [Netanyahu and Trump],” accusing Modi of “the highest moral cowardice” for not speaking up on Israel’s war on Gazans. 

The Ideological Connection

According to Al Jazeera, one reason Modi, unlike previous Indian leaders, has displayed such warmth towards the Israeli prime minister is the Indian Hindu right’s enthusiasm for the ideology of Zionism. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has roots in a philosophy, Hindutva, which ultimately seeks to transform India into a Hindu nation and a natural homeland for Hindus anywhere in the world – similar to Israel’s view of itself as a Jewish homeland. 

According to France 24, when X briefly made users’ countries of origin public, several prominent pro-Israel accounts were found to be run from India. It was an unfortunate testament to the success of Hindutva forces in cultivating Islamophobia by presenting Palestine as supposedly anti-Hindu. 

India’s UN Voting Record on Gaza

India was one of the first countries to condemn the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas and other Palestinian groups designated as terrorists. Three weeks after the attack, India abstained in the vote on UN General Assembly Resolution ES-10/21 calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire because it did not explicitly condemn Hamas.

When Israel began its genocidal war on Gaza, India condemned the humanitarian crisis in the enclave but repeatedly abstained from UN resolutions which called for a ceasefire. In 2024, India also abstained from a UN Human Rights Council resolution which called for an arms embargo on Israel. 

Defense and Trade Ties

According to Al Jazeera, India is Israel’s largest arms buyer, spending $20.5bn on Israeli weapons between 2020 and 2024. In 2024, trade between the two, largely based on defense and security, stood at $3.9bn. 

Before Modi’s trip to Israel, Indian outlets began reporting on a historic multiyear $10 billion defense deal between the two countries. 

The blocking of “The Voice of Hind Rajab” represents more than just film censorship—it symbolizes India’s dramatic pivot from its historical support for Palestinian self-determination to unconditional backing of Israel. Under Modi’s leadership, India has moved from its traditional position of non-alignment to what analysts describe as joining “the U.S.-Israeli camp,” raising questions about India’s moral credibility in the Global South and its role as a voice for developing nations.