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‘Line of Control’ explores Kashmir conflict in new digital release
Set during the 1993 Kashmir insurgency, the film follows a teenage boy whose friends disappear amid escalating violence.
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Staff Reporter - Fri, 01, May 2026
- 01:44 EDT
- 9
Poster of the film. / Courtesy photo
‘Line of Control,’ a film directed by Travis Hodgkins and based on writer Mirza Waheed’s novel ‘The Collaborator,’ has been released on digital platforms in India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East, following its international festival screenings.
The film became available April 17 on Apple TV and YouTube Movies after premieres at the San Diego International Film Festival and the UK Asian Film Festival. It marks Hodgkins’ feature directorial debut.
Set during the 1993 Kashmir insurgency, ‘Line of Control’ follows a teenage boy whose friends disappear amid escalating violence. He is compelled by a local army officer to collect identification cards from the dead, as he searches for his missing companions.
Critics noted the film’s focus on personal experiences rather than geopolitics. “The film, much like the novel, pushes back against the simplified narratives often presented in mainstream discourse... it reframes the story through human experience,” Outlook India said.
The Kashmir Observer wrote, “Several films about Kashmir lean heavily on geopolitics. Line of Control stays intimate. Families searching for sons matter more here than diplomatic history. Villages hollowed out by disappearances matter more than speeches about sovereignty.”
Hodgkins said the film aimed to center the human cost of conflict. “We sought to move beyond the traditional war narrative and focus on the quiet, devastating impact of conflict on families and identity,” he said. “The film honors the visual poetry of Waheed's prose to tell a story of friendship and survival that is tragically universal.”
Mulberry Films, which produced the film along with Fabled Frames and Metro Productions, reported that promotional videos released online have drawn more than 4 million combined views.
The cast includes Rudi Dharmalingam, Nitin Ganatra, Vikram Kapadia, and newcomers Nikhil Singh Rai and Anastasia Jairath. The film was produced by Rashaana Shah, Cristy Coors Beasley, Namrata Sharma, Chaitra Vedullapalli and Swetha Pakala.
The film’s original score by Wayne Sharpe is scheduled for release May 1 on streaming platforms.
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