Indian writer Arundhati Roy said on Friday that she was canceling her planned participation in the Berlin Film Festival over comments by jury president Wim Wenders that the festival must “stay away from politics”.
In a statement sent to AFP, the Booker Prize-winning author said she was “shocked and disgusted” by the famous German director’s response to a question about war-torn Gaza at a news conference on Thursday.
She reportedly said: “It is with deep regret that I have to say that I will not be attending the Berlinale.”
According to Variety , Roy was scheduled to present her 1989 campus comedy “In Which Annie Gives It To Those” as part of the Classics section.
She reportedly said she would no longer participate, citing “unconscionable statements” made by jury members when asked to comment on Gaza.
What did Wim Wenders say?
After asking several questions about the current state of the world, Wim Wenders said at a press conference: “We have to stay out of politics, because if we make films that are implicitly political, we enter the field of politics.”
“But we are the counterweight to politics, we are the opposite of politics. We have to do the work of the people, not the work of the politicians,” he is quoted as saying by Variety.
How did Roy react?
In a statement announcing her withdrawal – first provided to the Indian publication Wire – Roy said that “to hear them say that art should not be political is stunning”.
She was quoted as saying, “It’s a way to end the conversation about a crime against humanity, even though it’s happening in front of us in real time – when artists, writers and filmmakers should be doing everything in their power to stop it.”
Arundhati Roy’s full statement:
Here is Arundhati Roy’s full statement shared by The Wire and Variety:
“In what Annie gives it to those, a whimsical film I wrote 38 years ago was selected to be screened in the Classics section of Berlinale 2026. There was something sweet and wonderful about that for me.
Although I was deeply concerned about the attitude of the German government and various German cultural institutions towards Palestine, I always received political solidarity when I spoke to German audiences about my views on the genocide in Gaza. This allowed me to think about attending the screening of Annie at the Berlinale.
This morning, like millions of people around the world, I heard the unscrupulous statements made by members of the Berlin Film Festival jury when they were asked to comment on the genocide in Gaza. It’s terrifying to hear them say that art shouldn’t be political. It’s a way to end the conversation about a crime against humanity, even as it’s happening in front of us in real time—when artists, writers, and filmmakers should be doing everything in their power to stop it.
Let me be clear: what happened in Gaza and what is still happening is the genocide of the Palestinian people by the State of Israel. It is supported and financed by the governments of the United States and Germany, as well as several other countries in Europe, making them complicit in the crime.
If the greatest filmmakers and artists of our time can’t stand up and say it, they should know that history will judge them. I am shocked and disgusted.
It is with deep regret that I have to say that I will not be attending the Berlinale.