'I had to document Air India 182 bombing'

Speaking at an interactive session at the fourth Bengaluru International Film Festival, he said the bombing of Air India 182, which killed all the 331 passengers aboard the flight, was one of the most gruesome mass murders in Canadian history.

“It is saddening that the Canadian government, in the face a great tragedy, went into a denial mode and blamed the Government of India instead, for the accident,” he said.

He pointed out that the Canadian government could have averted the tragedy and that it was an utter intelligence failure on the government’s part.

Most expensive trial

The Kanishka flight, that was bound for Delhi from Montreal, was bombed at an altitude of 31,000 feet in 1985. The trial, which lasted 23 years, was termed one of the most expensive cases in Canada.

The director termed his experiences in making the film as factual.

“Somebody had to make a film about an incident of this magnitude, which left thousands of lives devastated,” said Sturla Gunnarson.

The family members of the victims were victimised twice, once when they lost their loved ones and the second time when the Canadian government decided not to act, he said.

On the difficulties of making a movie 23 years after the tragic incident, he said: “To get the Indian characters to play the roles was a tough task. Sikh people are a respected community in Canada and many of them thought the film would rouse feelings against their community and hence were not ready to talk.”

However, the co-producer of the documentary film, who knew Punjabi, helped family members to open up and recount the incident, which formed a firm basis while reconstructing the bombing.

Sturla Gunnarsson also makes feature films. He has films like ‘Beowulf and Grendel’, ‘Force of Nature’, ‘Such a Long Journey’ and ‘Gerrie and Louise’ to his credit.